St. Mary's Missionary Baptist Church

Here, on June 9, 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., told 500 supporters that he would participate in a sit-in at a motel restaurant the next day, anticipating correctly that he would be jailed. Segregation practices in St. Augustine drew ...

St. Benedict the Moor Catholic Church and School

This block of property in the Lincolnville District is owned by the Catholic Church and contains historic buildings important to St. Augustine's African American heritage. It was part of the Yallaha orange grove plantation before the Civil war and was ...

Gracia Real De Santa Teresa de Mose (Ft. Mose)

In 1693, King Charles II of Spain decreed runaway slaves were to be given sanctuary in his colonies. Black fugitives from the British Colonies made their way south and fought against a British retaliatory attack on St. Augustine. In 1728, ...

Cary A. White, Sr. Complex, FL School for the Deaf and the Blind

This classroom and dormitory area is dedicated to the memory of the first African American deaf graduate of the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind. Cary A. White, Sr. worked at the school for 46 years and was ...

Butler Beach

In 1927, Lincolnville businessman Frank B. Butler bought land between the Atlantic Ocean and the Matanzas River, which he developed into Butler Beach. For many years this was the only beach that African Americans were allowed to use between Jacksonville ...

Old Central Academy High School

Established in 1892, Central Academy became the first accredited Negro high school in Florida in 1924. The first Central Academy building was destroyed by fire in 1936. The present building replaced it in 1937 and now serves as the County ...

Finley Homestead (Private)

This two story frame vernacular structure was the home of Adam Finley, a free African American artisan. Finley acquired the property in 1883. His grandson, Dr. Harold E. Finley was a nationally known zoologist.

Information provided by Florida Department of State.

Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church - Palatka

The residents of the community of Newtown organized the Bethel AME church in 1866. This Romanesque Revival style building was constructed by the congregation circa 1908-1912.

Information provided by Florida Department of State.

Photo courtesy of Fish Ministries.

Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church

The traditional site for free Blacks, Indians, Spanish Indians and Mulattoes, Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church served as the rallying place for the African American community in Nassau County. The original church was built in 1870, burned in 1920 and ...

The Williams House

Confederate President Jefferson Davis was a friend of the Williams family and was a guest in this c.1856 house. It is reported that some of his personal effects were stored in the Williams House during the Civil War.

After the ...