Martin Luther King Jr. Biography: Net Worth, Wife, Age, Parents, Children, Movies, Education, Death, Speech

Biography

Martin Luther King Jr. (born in 1929 but died in 1968) was a celebrated American civil rights leader, Baptist minister, and advocate for nonviolent resistance against racial segregation and discrimination.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, he rose to prominence during the Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955–1956) and led the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).

His iconic “I Have a Dream” speech, delivered during the 1963 March on Washington, called for racial equality and unity.

King’s efforts helped secure the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964, he was assassinated in 1968 in Memphis, Tennessee, leaving a lasting legacy in the fight for justice and equality.

American minister and civil rights activist
Martin Luther King Jr.
Wiki Facts & About Data
Real Name:	Martin Luther King Jr.
Stage Name:	Martin Luther King
Born:	15 January 1929 (age 39 years old)
Place of Birth:	Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Assassinated:	4 April 1968, St. Joseph’s Hospital, Memphis
Nationality:	American
Education:	Morehouse College, Crozer Theological Seminary, Boston University
Height:	170 cm
Parents:	Martin Luther King Sr., Alberta Williams King
Siblings:	Willie Christine King, Alfred Daniel Williams King
Spouse:	Coretta Scott King (m. 1953–1968)
Girlfriend • Partner:	Betty Moitz (1940)
Children:	Martin Luther King III, Bernice King, Dexter King, Yolanda King
Occupation:	Civil Rights Leader • Advocate • Minister
Net Worth:	$6,000-$250,000 (USD)

Early Life & Education

Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, a city deeply entrenched in the racial segregation of the Jim Crow South.

Of African American ethnicity, he was raised in a middle-class family within the Sweet Auburn neighbourhood, a hub of Black commerce and culture.

King was a devout Christian, specifically a Baptist, and his faith profoundly shaped his worldview from an early age, influenced by the progressive teachings of his family’s church.

His parents were Martin Luther King Sr., a prominent Baptist minister and civil rights advocate who pastored Ebenezer Baptist Church, and Alberta Williams King, a talented musician and educator from a family of ministers.

The couple instilled in their children a strong sense of dignity, self-worth, and resilience in the face of racism, often sharing stories of perseverance in the face of discrimination.

King was the second of three children. His older sister, Willie Christine King (born 1927), was a schoolteacher and civil rights supporter, while his younger brother, Alfred Daniel Williams King (born 1930), also became a Baptist minister. The siblings grew up close, navigating the challenges of segregated Atlanta together.

Educationally gifted, King skipped both the ninth and twelfth grades, allowing him to enter Morehouse College in Atlanta at just 15 years old in 1944. He pursued a Bachelor of Arts in sociology, graduating in 1948 at age 19.

Doubting his initial calling to ministry, he enrolled at Crozer Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, where he excelled, serving as class president and graduating as valedictorian in 1951 with a Bachelor of Divinity.

He then advanced to Boston University for graduate studies, earning a PhD in systematic theology in 1955 at age 26. These formative years honed his intellectual rigour, blending rigorous academics with a burgeoning commitment to social justice, setting the stage for his lifelong activism.

Career

Martin Luther King Jr.’s life and career stand as one of the most powerful testaments to the pursuit of justice in modern history.

A Baptist minister whose philosophy was deeply rooted in Christian faith and inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s teachings on nonviolence, King devoted himself to dismantling segregation and inequality in America.

Ordained in 1947 while still a student, he began his ministry as an associate pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta under his father’s guidance. His path shifted dramatically in 1954 when, at just 25, he accepted the pastorate of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama.

This move placed him at the epicentre of the civil rights struggle, aligning his growing moral and intellectual convictions with a community eager for change.

King first emerged as a national leader during the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955–1956, a movement ignited by Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her seat to a white passenger. As head of the Montgomery Improvement Association, he organized carpools, inspired mass participation, and endured threats, including the bombing of his home.

The boycott lasted 381 days, ending with a Supreme Court ruling that struck down bus segregation. This victory established King as the face of a new movement and solidified his strategy of nonviolent resistance as both practical and morally transformative.

In 1957, King co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and became its first president. Through the SCLC, he mobilized Black churches across the South to lead boycotts, marches, and voter registration drives.

That same year, he published Stride Toward Freedom, recounting the Montgomery struggle and laying out his vision for nonviolent change. His work carried immense risks, and in 1958, he survived a near-fatal stabbing during a book signing in Harlem, an ordeal that only deepened his sense of mission.

The early 1960s tested and elevated King’s leadership. The Albany Movement of 1961–1962 revealed the challenges of confronting deeply entrenched racism, but the lessons he learned there shaped future victories.

In 1963, the Birmingham Campaign drew national attention when peaceful protesters, including children, were met with fire hoses and police dogs. The violent response shocked the world and forced agreements to desegregate the city’s businesses, while also paving the way for broader federal intervention.

That summer, King helped organize the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where he delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech to over 250,000 people at the Lincoln Memorial, crystallizing the aspirations of a movement.

Recognition followed swiftly. In 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, and later that year, King became the youngest person ever to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. But he was not content with symbolic victories alone.

In 1965, he led the Selma to Montgomery marches, which, despite brutal opposition on “Bloody Sunday,” spurred the passage of the Voting Rights Act. Expanding his focus beyond the South, King launched the Chicago Campaign in 1966 to address systemic racism in housing and economic inequality, confronting challenges less visible than Jim Crow but equally corrosive.

By 1967, his activism took an even broader scope. In his “Beyond Vietnam” sermon, King condemned U.S. involvement in the war, linking militarism abroad to poverty and racial injustice at home.

The stance drew sharp criticism, even from allies, but revealed his evolving vision of justice as global and intersectional. His final campaign, the Poor People’s Campaign, aimed to unite Americans across racial lines to demand economic fairness, a bold effort that underscored his belief that true equality required dismantling poverty itself.

Tragically, King’s life was cut short on April 4, 1968, when he was assassinated at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, while supporting striking sanitation workers.

His death unleashed grief and unrest across the country, but also cemented his place as a global icon of justice and moral courage.

Personal Life

Martin Luther King Jr. lived a relatively short but profoundly impactful life, reaching the age of 39 at the time of his death on April 4, 1968.

He stood at approximately 5 feet 7 inches (170 cm) tall, a stature that belied his towering moral presence.

King married only once, to Coretta Scott King, a talented singer, educator, and fellow activist whom he met while studying at Boston University in 1951.

Their wedding took place on June 18, 1953, in Marion, Alabama, at her family’s church, marking the beginning of a partnership that blended love, shared activism, and family life amid constant threats to their safety.

Coretta became a steadfast supporter of his civil rights work, later founding the King Center and continuing his legacy after his death.

Children

The couple had four children, all of whom grew up in the shadow of their father’s fame and the civil rights struggle:

• Yolanda King (1955–2007): an actress, author, and activist who often spoke publicly about her father’s dream.
• Martin Luther King III (born 1957): a human rights advocate and former president of the King Center.
• Dexter Scott King (1961–2024): an attorney and former chairman of the King Center, known for his work in preserving his parents’ archives.
• Bernice King (born 1963): a lawyer, minister, and CEO of the King Center, who has carried forward the family’s commitment to social justice.

King‘s dating history before marriage included a notable early romance during his time at Crozer Theological Seminary in the late 1940s with Betty Moitz, a white German-American student.

Their interracial relationship, passionate yet fraught with societal taboos, ended amicably due to racial pressures and differing paths, but it influenced King’s evolving views on love and justice.

He later courted Coretta amid a few other brief connections during his Boston years, but their bond proved enduring.

Cause of Death

Tragically, King‘s life ended in assassination on the evening of April 4, 1968, when he was shot once in the jaw and neck by James Earl Ray, a white supremacist, while standing on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee.

He had travelled there to support striking sanitation workers and was preparing to lead a march for economic justice. The bullet severed his spinal cord, and he died shortly after at St. Joseph’s Hospital.

His murder at age 39 sparked nationwide riots but also intensified the momentum for racial equality, cementing his martyrdom in the American consciousness.

Net Worth

Martin Luther King Jr.‘s net worth at the time of his death in 1968 was modest, estimated at less than $6,000—reflecting his dedication to civil rights activism over personal wealth accumulation.

Adjusted for inflation to modern dollars, this equates to roughly $250,000.

As a Baptist minister, he earned an annual salary of approximately $8,000 (equivalent to around $58,000 today), but he donated his entire $54,000 Nobel Peace Prize winnings in 1964 to the civil rights movement.

Posthumously, his estate gained value through artifacts like his Nobel medal and travelling Bible, which were auctioned for millions in 2018. However, King himself prioritized justice over fortune.