DELAWARE COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) — On January 19, we honor the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and we know most of the story.

A Baptist preacher turned civil rights icon who was killed by an assassin in 1968, but did you know an important chapter in the MLK story unfolded in a now-shuttered theological school near Chester?

Long before his famous speech, and the freedom marches and King’s journey to iconic status, there was an important stop in Pennsylvania.

“My dad, my late father, actually heard Dr. King speak in Chester,” said Janet Murphy.

King wasn’t a doctor yet, nor was he a pastor, but he was studying to be one at Crozer Theological Seminary, which closed in 1970, on the site of Crozer Chester Hospital.

“He was only 19 when he entered Crosier in 1948,” Murphy said.

Murphy loves Delaware County, its history and King’s role in it. She even has a PowerPoint presentation that includes a photo of his dorm room.

“He was the first African-American or Black student body president,” Murphy said.

An important chapter in an important life mostly unknown. Now, enter Patrick Parr, whose book chronicles King’s three years at Crozer including his first public speaking class.

“He got a ‘C’ in public speaking,” Parr said. “The professor, Robert Clayton, was a tough grader.”

Yes, he does mean King. A “C” in public speaking, which is an important course for a would-be preacher.

“He was still learning,” Parr said. “So, he he still didn’t know his voice at that time. He was still working it out. He he was a he was an academic at heart, but he didn’t really have the training yet to deliver that voice that we all remember so well.”

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At Crozer, King found his voice and the nation found a civil rights champion. An assassin silenced him, but the message, Murphy and Parr insist, continues to inspire.

“The message was, we can’t despair,” Murphy said. “Dr. King had hope, after all, which was rooted in his faith. But we have to keep fighting. We have to just not give in to despair.”

“If King was alive in 2026, he would be stressing public service and taking care of things that you can control, taking care of things that are around you,” Parr said. “Serve your community in a way that makes it stronger.”

And no question this son of a Georgia preacher was strengthened by his time in Pennsylvania.

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