St. Johns County
LAUNCHES
Black Heritage Trail
by Alesia Wilbekin
St. Johns County has launched the St. Johns County Black Heritage Trail, a self-guided journey through 20 historic sites that traces centuries of Black history from Spanish colonization through the Civil Rights Movement. The trail highlights well-documented moments while also bringing greater visibility to stories that have not always received broad attention in this region’ s history.
Spanning St. Augustine, Lincolnville, West Augustine, Armstrong, Switzerland, and Ponte Vedra, the trail offers a deeper look at the individuals, communities and cultural landmarks that shaped Black life in Northeast Florida. The featured sites include churches, schools, neighborhoods, businesses, and homes that played central roles in community formation, civil rights leadership, education, worship and economic development. Interpretive signs added at five public sites: Alpine Groves Park, St. Augustine Beach Pier Park, Butler Beach, Elkton, and Collier-Block-
Puryear Park in West Augustine share powerful accounts of resilience, innovation and cultural identity, offering visitors context as they explore the county’ s historic landscapes.
A History Rooted in Global Influence St. Johns County holds one of the oldest and most globally connected Black histories in the United States, shaped by African, Spanish, British, French and Indigenous cultures.
“ The Black history of St. Johns County is exceptional because of its depth and diversity, spanning five centuries and ties to African, Spanish, English, French and Indigenous
St. Mary’ s Baptist Church is a historic landmark on the Black Heritage Trail, central to community-building and the long tradition of Black worship, leadership, and activism in St. Johns County. Photo Credit: St. Johns Cultural Council.
VOLUME II 2025 | 27 |