Celebrate Black History Month

Black History Month: Florida's Black Heritage Trail Recollects Black History in Sunshine State

27 Community Connection and Visit Florida invite you to come along for a historic journey through Florida’s Black Heritage Trail. Go back in time, and witness both the struggles and achievements of black history in the Sunshine State. This trail brings to life the black culture that transformed not just Florida but the nation itself, and it highlights all the important landmarks, the people, and other points of interest that have contributed to black history. If you visit the countless black heritage sites that are located all throughout the state of Florida, you have the chance to step right into the history books and see where it all began.

Some stops along the way include:

Daytona Beach features Bethune-Cookman University founded by Mary McLeod Bethune, who was a black educator and the first black woman to serve as head of a federal agency (National Youth Administration's Division of Negro Affairs).

In Eatonville, located just outside of downtown Orlando sits the residence of the Harlem Renaissance author Zora Neale Hurston who wrote works like Their Eyes Were Watching God, and became the most significant black woman writer of the first half of the 20^th Century.

In the heart of downtown Orlando, the restored Well’s Built Museum was first opened as a Hotel by Dr. William Wells. It was the only place black visitors could find accomodations in Orlando before desegregation, and just happened to be where legendary entertainers like Louis Armstrong and B.B King performed.

Those are just a few of the countless historical sites that you can visit in the trail, but there’s also plenty of history in the South with the Overtown Lyric Theatre that was a major entertainment spot for blacks in Miami, and in Key West the Cornish Chapel of the African Methodist Episcopal established by Sandy Cornish who was a highly successful farmer, one of the richest men in Key west, and a leader of the African American community.

Florida is rich in culture, so plan your trip today so you can explore every inch of history that the state has to offer.

Start your journey today-visit www.visitflorida.com/Black_Heritage_Trail and experience the Black Heritage Trail.