Help Bring the Florida Black History Museum to St. Augustine

Help bring the Florida Black History Museum to St. Augustine. 

St. Johns County has put forth a request to have the Florida Black History Museum be located in St. Augustine. Take the Florida Black History Museum survey here.

The proposed location for the Florida Black History Museum is at the former Florida Memorial College site in West Augustine west of Holmes Blvd and north of 214. 

The faculty and students were integral to the St. Augustine Civil Rights Movement and Zora Neale Hurston taught at the college in 1942.

From the Florida Memorial University historic marker:

"Founded 1879—Live Oak, Florida Jacksonville, Florida—1892-1918 St. Augustine, Florida—1918-1968 Miami Gardens, Florida—1968-Present Students of Florida Normal and Industrial Memorial College, in the early 1960s (soon to be Florida Memorial College—year 1963), provided the initial and necessary spark to the local civil rights bonfire in pursuit of human equality. Through their determined will to make the difference in the movement, en masse, and uniquely guided by Dr. Homer Nicholson, faculty advisor to the campus chapter of the N.A.A.C.P., they left the tranquility of 'moss-hung trees' and the security of the Abraham Lincoln Lewis Archway. The difference they sought was evidenced locally, and through the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, nationally."

The college for black students was pushed out of St. Augustine in the wake of the civil rights protests. 

Let's shine a light on all of Florida's Black History and what better place to do so than right here in St. Augustine where the St. Augustine Civil Rights Movement led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

 🌟 St. Augustine is among a handful of proposed sites, and the county needs our help. 🌟 

From St. Johns County: "DEADLINE APPROACHING: St. Johns County has put out a call to action to its residents to help encourage the State to locate the proposed Florida Black History Museum in St. Augustine. 

The public survey is available online through February 29, 2024. 

Respond here: Florida African American History Museum Survey  

The survey has many questions. You don’t need to answer all or most of them. 

Go all the way to the last question. Say why St. Augustine/ St. Johns County is the best location. 

For more inspiration click the St. Augustine Civil Rights Movement tab in the sidebar and visit www.accordfreedomtrail.org www.fortmose.org www.lincolnvillemuseum.org 🔔

And let's not forget that St. Augustine is home to two of the oldest African American cemeteries in Florida, the Pinehurst and San Sebastian Cemeteries located in West Augustine.