The Florida Black Heritage Trail includes sites related to Florida's African American leaders and communities.Black Heritage Trail Publication Historical Resources, Florida Department of State It was the first trail to be included in the Florida Heritage Trails series.
History Between 1986 and 1988, archaeological work and a historical investigation by Kathleen Deagan of the Florida Museum of Natural History, and Jane Landers and John Marron, both of the University of Florida, led to the discovery of the second iteration of Fort Mose. Located in present-day St. Johns County near St. Augustine, the 1752 fort was situated near the town of Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose. The town and fort both became the first legally sanctioned community for free Africa Americans in an area of the modern-day United States. Slaves fleeing the Southern United States for Spanish Florida were offered freedom if they converted to Catholicism and joined a militia to protect the colony from British attacks.
Inspired by the discovery of Fort Mose, the Florida Legislature voted to establish a commission to study the history of African Americans in Florida. According to Rusty Sevigny of the Florida Department of State's Division of Historical Resources, the study group received $14,000 and "was charged with four tasks: to study the establishment of a Black Heritage Trail, to explore ways to include black history in textbooks, to determine how African-American culture could be included in the quincentennial celebration, and generally to recommend methods of preserving black history in Florida." After the commission compiled a list of 141 sites relating to African American history in Florida, state representatives Bill Clark and Alzo Reddick sponsored legislation in 1991 to allocate $100,000 for the creation and publication of a guidebook.
Sites The following sites are listed on the Florida Black Heritage Trail: + Alachua County Name Location Notes A. Quinn Jones Center 1108 Northwest 7th Avenue, Gainesville A two-story brick building that originally served as Lincoln High School and opened in 1925 as the successor to Union Academy. Lincoln High School became one of the first accredited black high schools in Florida. The structure underwent significant renovations in the 1990s. The center is named after A. Quinn Jones, Lincoln High School's last principal. Chestnut Funeral Home 18 Northwest 8th Avenue, Gainesville One of the oldest businesses in the city, the Chestnut Funeral Home was founded in 1914 by Charles Chestnut Sr. and Matthew E. Hughes. Damascus Cemetery Along County Road 236 just east of Interstate 75 in Bland A cemetery formerly associated with the now-demolished Damascus Church, built in 1900. Dunbar Hotel 732 Northwest 4th Street, Gainesville In the early 20th century, it was the only hotel in Gainesville to accommodate African Americans. The resort was owned by the Dunbar family. After undergoing restoration work, the former hotel now serves as the headquarters for Pleasant Place Facilities for Single Mothers. First Morning Missionary Baptist Church 115 Northwest 55th Street, Gainesville A place of worship housing a congregation founded in Rutledge, a community established for former slaves during the Reconstruction era. The present-day church was erected at its current location in 1955. Friendship Baptist Church 426 Northwest 2nd Street, Gainesville A c. 1911 Romanesque-Gothic Revival-style church. The congregation was organized in 1888, although fire destroyed its original building in 1911. Greater Liberty Hill United Methodist Church 7600 Northwest 23rd Avenue, Gainesville Although the current iteration of this church was constructed in the 1950s, its congregation dates back a century further. This church also served as a meeting place for the Farmer's Aide Society, a group of early local black farmers. An affiliated educational institute, the Liberty Hill School, became one of the first schools for African American youth in the Gainesville area and was built in 1892. Haile Homestead 8500 Southwest Archer Road, Gainesville A former slave plantation erected in 1856 for Serena and Thomas Haile, which previously included 18 slave cabins. Thomas reported that he owned 66 slaves. The Hailes declared bankruptcy in 1868 due to crop failures. Hawthorne Historical Museum and Cultural Center 7225 Southeast 221st Street, Hawthorne Originally an African American house of worship, New Hope United Methodist Church, founded in 1907. It was later moved four blocks away and restored and transformed into a museum during the 1990s. Institute of Black Culture 1510 West University Avenue, Gainesville An archive founded in 1971. It contains artifacts and resources related to black University of Florida (UF) students. Jesse Aaron House 1207 Northwest 7th Avenue, Gainesville A house erected in 1925 by Jesse Aaron, a black Seminole. Aaron was a well-known woodcarving artist whose works have been collected by individuals and museums. Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park 18700 South County Road 325, Cross Creek A state park memorializing Pulitzer Prize-winning author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, who moved to Cross Creek in 1928. The park also includes a tenant house, relocated there in 2000, to showcase a type of residence that rural African American Floridians lived in during the early 20th century. Mount Pleasant AME Church 630 Northwest 2nd Street, Gainesville Later known as Mouth Pleasant United Methodist Church, this place of worship houses the oldest African American congregation in the city, organized in 1867. The present structure opened around 1906, after the original building was destroyed by a fire in 1903. Old Cotton Club 837 SE 7th Avenue, Gainesville Formerly used as Camp Blanding's post exchange, built between 1940 and 1941. After World War II, the Perryman brothers relocated the building to Gainesville and repurposed it as a movie theater serving black customers. Pleasant Street Historic District Gainesville The oldest continuously occupied black neighborhood in Gainesville, former slaves began settling in the area shortly after the American Civil War. Containing 255 historic structures, the district's boundaries are 1st Avenue, Northwest 2nd Avenue, Northwest 6th Street, and Northwest 8th Avenue. Shady Grove Primitive Baptist Church 804 Southwest 5th Street, Gainesville The current iteration of this church was erected in the 1930s, although the existence of the congregation can be traced back to the late 19th century. During the Civil Rights movement, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) held meetings at this church. Smathers Library 1508 Union Road, Gainesville The library for the UF, which maintains a large collection of materials relating to the culture and history of African Americans. St. Augustine Day Care 405 Northwest 4th Avenue, Gainesville Previously a black Episcopal church constructed between 1875 and 1889, the building was later moved and repurposed into a parochial school in 1895, before becoming a daycare center in 1957 and then integrating in 1964. Union Academy 524 Northwest 1st Street, Gainesville Founded by the Freedmen's Bureau in the 1860s, the Union Academy provided K–12 education for local African American students for nearly 60 years. It was the second-largest school in Florida constructed by the bureau, with a second floor added in the 1890s. Wabash Hall 918 Northwest 5th Avenue, Gainesville A two-story building with a grocery store operating on the ground floor, while students from Lincoln High School used the second floor for proms and football game victory celebrations. Waldo Cemetery Waldo A cemetery for early black settlers in the community. Among those interred there are American Civil War veterans and Henry Hill, Waldo's first African American firefighter. + Baker County Name Location Notes Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park 5815 Battlefield Trail Road, Sanderson The site of Florida's only major American Civil War battle, which occurred on February 20, 1864. Of the Union troops involved in the battle, about one-third were African American. + Bay County Name Location Notes Massalina Bayou Panama City A bayou named after Josea Massalina, an African American Spanish fisherman who founded the small community of Red Fish Point, which stood where Tyndall Air Force Base is now located. The Rosenwald School 624 Bay Street, Panama City A school for African American students in Bay County during the Jim Crow era. + Bradford County Name Location Notes Robinson Jenkins Ellerson High School Intersection of Florida and Pine streets, Starke The successor of Bradford County's first school for black students, Robinson Jenkins Ellerson High School opened in 1913. It is named after the three men who founded the school: Robert Ellerson, Professor A. O. Jenkins Sr., and Rev. James Robinson. + Brevard County Name Location Notes Bethel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church Community Cemetery 4725 N Tropical Trail, Merritt Island A cemetery associated with one of the oldest African American churches on Merritt Island and formerly referred to as White Lily Cemetery. Gravestones date as far back as 1919. Brothers Park 2518 Race Street, Melbourne A park dedicated to the former site of the Melbourne School, the first black school in the southside of the city, built from 1920 to 1921. It was destroyed by fire in 1953, except for a band room. The park is named after Wright Brothers, one of three black men who were the first to settle in present-day Melbourne. Gibson Tenement Houses Chain of Lakes Heritage Park, Titusville A group of three remaining shotgun houses erected by William Gibson and his family in the early 20th century, which were primarily occupied by farmers and railroad workers. These residences were later relocated to the Titusville campus of Eastern Florida State College. Harry T. Moore Center 307 Blake Avenue, Cocoa This building is named in honor of Harry T. Moore. He and his wife were killed by an explosion at their house in 1951 in Mims due to Harry being the NAACP's Florida chapter president. A former black high school, the structure now houses the Leon and Jewel Collins Museum of African American History and Culture. Harry T. & Harriette V. Moore Cultural Center 2180 Freedom Park, Mims Opened in 2004, the cultural center is a museum and archive located at the site of Harry T. & Harriette V. Moore's residence. Both served as civil rights activists, with Harry becoming the NAACP's Florida chapter president. The couple died in 1951 due to their house being bombed. Hilltop Cemetery/Cemetery Hill Pine Street and Taft Avenue, Cocoa An African American cemetery established in the 1880s. Hurricane Gabrielle in 2001 uncovered 58 lost graves, bringing the total to 475. Malissa Moore House 215 Stone Street, Cocoa A residence built along the Indian River in 1890 and was later moved and transformed into a restaurant. It was named after Malissa Moore, who raised funds for erecting Mount Moriah AME Church. Richard E. Stone Historic District 121-304 Stone Street, Cocoa A historic district named after Richard E. Stone, who in 1935 invented the automobile turn signal. The building at 304 Stone Street is Mount Moriah AME Church, Cocoa's first black church. Stone Funeral Home 516 King Street, Cocoa One of the oldest active businesses in Brevard County, opening in 1923. It is named after brothers Richard E. Stone and Rev. Albert T. Stone, who operated the funeral home in the 1930s and expanded the business to include branches in Cocoa, Fort Pierce, and Melbourne.