Civil rights historian and author Frank Sikora, who worked as a reporter for The Birmingham News for more than three decades, has died. He was 80.

The tall, gray-bearded reporter known for his kind, soft-spoken mild manner and elegant writing style died on Monday, according to his family.

Sikora was the author of highly respected books about the civil rights movement, including ''Until Justice Rolls Down: The Birmingham Church Bombing Case,'' published in 1991 and reprinted in 2005, and "The Judge: The Life and Opinions of Judge Frank M. Johnson Jr," published in 1992 and reprinted in 2006.

His first book, "Selma, Lord, Selma," published in 1980 and reprinted in 1997, was turned into a TV movie by Disney. It's an account of two young girls in 1965 Selma in the days leading up to Bloody Sunday, when law enforcement officers beat civil rights marchers.

Sikora was from Byesville, Ohio, but spent most of his life in Alabama. "He was really from Birmingham," said his granddaughter, SchaScha Smith. "He was very humble, very loving, he didn't care who you were, or what you did, if you needed help, he'd be there. He'd always show a sense of humor and make you smile even in a sad situation.

Sikora began his writing career at The Gadsden Times in 1964. He worked for The Birmingham News from 1967 until he retired in 1999. He freelanced for Time magazine from 2001-2007.

In 2014, Sikora received the Clarence Cason Award in Non-fiction Writing from the University of Alabama.

Sikora also co-wrote the 2006 novel "The Visitor at Winter Chapel" and a 2007 biography, "Hear the Bugles Calling: My Three Wars as a Combat Infantryman."

A funeral service will be held Monday, March 28, at Gray Brown-Service Mortuary in Anniston. Burial will be at Bethlehem Baptist Cemetery in Oxford. Sikora, who had six children, moved from Birmingham to the Anniston area about four months ago to live with his oldest daughter as his health declined, Smith said. Sikora had just turned 80 on March 18. He died of natural causes, Smith said. "He was just tired and worn out and ready to go," she said.