FEBRUARY 10-19
Mavis Staples Feb . 10 , 2023
Photo Credit Myriam Santos
Fort Mose . While this historic site may not be a household name to all , there ’ s no question that it should be . Tucked away in northeast St . Augustine , Fort Mose is the site of the first legally sanctioned free African settlement in what is now the United States , and it was the ultimate destination of the first Underground Railroad , running south .
More than 300 years ago , a group of courageous Africans escaped enslavement in British colonies and fled southward on foot to Spanish St . Augustine . On their journey , the group crossed swamps and dense tropical forests in search of refuge .
By 1687 , these first freedom seekers , which consisted of eight men , two women and a three-year-old nursing child , arrived in St . Augustine . In exchange for their freedom , those who reached St . Augustine were granted asylum by the Spanish government in return for conversion to Catholicism and , for men , a term of military service .
By 1738 , more than 100 freedom seekers had been granted asylum , and in that year , a fortified town named Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose ( Fort Mose ) was constructed .
Fort Mose ’ s historical significance was nearly forgotten , but fortunately , after a team of archaeologists and historians excavated the site in the mid-1980s , Fort Mose was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1994 .
Today , Fort Mose is a beautiful 40-acre state park with a quaint yet informative museum along the Tolomato River . In a continued effort to increase awareness of the historic site , the St . John ’ s County Cultural Events Team and the Fort Mose Historical Society will hold the second annual Fort Mose Jazz & Blues Series at Fort Mose from February 10-19 , 2023 .
Artists confirmed to perform on the historic grounds include “ The Empress of Soul ,” Gladys Knight ; gospel and R & B national treasure Mavis Staples ; bassist , composer and bandleader Christian McBride ’ s New Jawn ; the “ future of blues ” guitarist Christone “ Kingfish ” Ingram ; eclectic folk singer and songwriter Rhiannon Giddens ; and Americana singer , songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Valerie June .
Trombone Shorty 2022
Photo Credit Milo Davis EVOLVE-SUCCESS . COM
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON FORT MOSE AND THE FORT MOSE HISTORICAL SOCIETY , VISIT :
WWW . FORTMOSE . ORG
WINTER 2023 | 21 |