Fire at historic Black church in Memphis was intentionally set, investigators say

MEMPHIS, Tenn. A fire that severely damaged a historic Black church that served as the headquarters for a 1968 sanitation workers' strike, which brought the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to Memphis, was intentionally set, investigators said Wednesday.

- By ADRIAN SAINZ

The fire at Clayborn Temple, which was undergoing a years-long renovation, was set in the interior of the church, the Memphis Fire Department said in a statement. Investigators are searching for a person suspected of being involved with the blaze.

Flames engulfed the downtown church in the early hours of April 28. Later that day Memphis Fire Chief Gina Sweat said the inside of the building was a total loss, but there was still hope that some of the facade could be salvaged.

The fire department said May 14 that the building had been stabilized and investigators would use specialized equipment to study the fire's cause.

"Clayborn Temple is sacred ground home to generations of struggle, resilience and creativity," Anasa Troutman, executive director of Historic Clayborn Temple, said Wednesday. "This act of violence is painful, but it will not break our spirit."

Located just south of the iconic Beale Street, Clayborn Temple was built in 1892 as the Second Presbyterian Church and originally served an all-white congregation. In 1949 the building was sold to an African Methodist Episcopal congregation and given its current name.