Celebrate African-American Heritage In Pensacola

Visitors traveling to the Pensacola Bay Area can see first-hand the impact African-Americans had on founding the first European settlement in the United States while celebrating the city’s rich history and culture through music, art, literature and Southern soul food.

African-Americans were among the first non-Native Americans to set foot in the United States. Approximately 100 Africans, mostly slaves, were brought by Don Tristan de Luna in 1559, and together they established Pensacola, the first European settlement in the United States. From the beginning, African-Americans have played a vital role in Pensacola history.

Pensacola Historic District and Downtown
Walk along the streets of historic downtown, from Seville Square to Martin Luther King, Jr. and experience 450 years of history at various sites. The African-American Heritage Society promotes, preserves and integrates African-American heritage and culture. The welcome center includes a small art gallery, gift shop and resource center. Named for a free African-American resident who lived in the house in 1803, the Julee Panton Cottage is now part of Historic Pensacola Village. The middle-class home is open for tours, complete with a furnished parlor, bedroom and kitchen. Also part of Historic Pensacola Village, Old Christ Church was built by slave labor in 1824. It’s the oldest church in Florida still on its original site. St. Michael’s Creole Benevolent Association Meeting Hall was a late 1800s gathering place for Pensacola Creoles, who were descendents of Africans, Indian, French and Spanish settlers. Said to have been a burial site since the mid-1700s, St. Michael’s Cemetery is one of the only cemeteries in the country that has both nobility and slaves buried side by side. Martin Luther King, Jr. Plaza commemorates the contributions of Dr. King and is the perfect centerpiece downtown, whether for the summer farmer’s market, to watch various parades or just take a moment to reflect. St. Joseph’s Catholic Church was created in 1891 for the exclusive use of Creoles and blacks in Pensacola.

Belmont-Devilliers
Belmont-Devilliers is a historic neighborhood centered around Belmont and Devilliers streets. This neighborhood was a melting pot for music, food and entertainment during the early 20th century. Today, the area is undergoing a revitalization. CJ’s Grille and Kitchen and Five Sisters Blues Café offer delicious Southern soul food, while Blue Dot Barbecue serves the best hamburger in town. Founded in 1887, St. Cyprian’s Episcopal Church was formed as a mission church through the sponsorship of Christ Church, and founded in 1880, the Zion Talbot Chapel houses one of the first pipe organs found in Pensacola. The Devilliers Cultural Heritage Museum was created as a performing arts venue to showcase local and national blues, gospel and jazz artists. The eclectic collection of artist Sonja Griffin Evans is worth a stop at Gumbo Gallery.

Eastside
The Eastside Neighborhood became racially integrated in the early 1940s. During this period, many of Pensacola’s prominent African-Americans, no longer restricted by Jim Crow laws to living in the neighborhoods on Pensacola’s west side, relocated to the east. This neighborhood has been home to many prominent African-American citizens, including baseball players with the famed Negro League. Founded in 1847, St. John the Baptist Church is the first black church in Pensacola. Organized in 1866 by Henry Call who began the AME denomination in Florida, the Allen Chapel AME Church was initially a secret organization. H&O Restaurant has served traditional Southern dishes since the 1930s and was a focal point for the black community before integration. The Chappie James Memorial Gardens is the birthplace of the nation’s first black four-star general. James’ mother Lillie had a private school for black children in the house where a large majority of black professionals obtained their education.

Perdido Key
Known for its beautiful beaches along the Gulf Islands National Seashore, Perdido Key was designated for African-Americans during segregation in 1950. Johnson Beach is a pristine stretch of seashore named for Rosamond Johnson, Jr., a black Pensacolian who died in the Korean War at the young age of 17. After his death, he received the Purple Heart for carrying two wounded soldiers to safety and was returning for the third when he was fatally wounded.

Pensacola Beach
Because Pensacola had relatively little agriculture, slaves did not have traditional Southern plantation experiences. Instead, West Florida slave owners rented out their slaves to work in construction trades or as longshoremen on the waterfront. For example, the U.S. Army rented slaves build forts such as the 19th century masonry walls and earthworks at Fort Pickens. During the Civil War, African-American troops occupied Fort Pickens while Confederate troops held Fort Barrancas on Santa Rosa Island.

Century
Century is a small town in Escambia County was once known as Teaspoon before the American Revolution. Teaspoon was a settlement of free African-Americans who traded on the Old Conecuh River. The Alger-Sullivan Historical Society gives a history of Teaspoon and the old sawmill town at the community museum.

Famous African-American Pensacolians
Matthew Lewy was publisher of the Florida Sentinel, a leading African-American newspaper in the state. John Sunday was a Civil War soldier and state legislator during reconstruction who became a wealthy entrepreneur in the late 19th century. Chappie James is the nation’s first black four-star general. Rosamond Johnson was the first African-American to die in the Korean War. He was only 17 and was killed trying to save his fellow soldiers. James Polkinghorne, Jr. was a Tuskegee airman and a WWII hero.