40. About 40th ACCORD
The Anniversary to Commemorate the Civil Rights Demonstrations, Inc. (ACCORD) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization envisioned in 2002, established in 2003, and incorporated in 2004. Our goal is to increase the nation’s awareness of one of the greatest events that took place in America’s History, the Civil Rights Movement.In July 2007, with the aid of Northrop Grumman Corporation, ACCORD unveiled the first ten of now 31 historic ACCORD Freedom Trail Markers around the city of St. Augustine. The markers contain short narratives and illustrations describing the people, sites, and events that took place during the Civil Rights Movement of St. Augustine led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Dr. Robert B. Hayling, and the Southern Christian Leadership Council (SCLC). Dr. Hayling has been called the “Father of the Civil Rights Act.”
101. 79 Bridge Street
The Rudcarlie Building at 79 Bridge Street was built in the 1950's by Dr. Rudolph N. Gordon (1901-1959) and named for the members of his family. Rudolph, Carlotta, and Rosalie. It was the first medical/dental office constructed in St. Augustine without racially segregated waiting rooms.After Dr. Gordon's death, the office was rented to Dr. Robert B. Hayling, a dentist who became a prominent leader of the civil rights movement in St. Augustine. Many of the planning sessions for the movement were held here, with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and others. On one occasion, the owner of a local tourist attraction came to the office with a gun and said he intended to kill Dr. King, "but I can't do it, because when I look at you, I see that you are a God-sent man." Lawyers who came to support the civil rights efforts made this building their headquarters as well. Two of them--Alvin J. Bronstein and Ralph Temple--were honored by ACCORD when they returned to the Ancient City in 2005.Dr. Gordon's widow, Mrs. Rosalie Gordon-Mills (1907-2004) made history in 1965 when she became the first black woman in 400 years to seek public office in St. Augustine, as a candidate for the City Commission. The ACCORD Civil Rights Museum officially opened on July 2, 2014 at this location, marking the 50th Anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
102. 81 Bridge Street
This Victorian house in the historic Lincolnville neighborhood (founded by freed slaves after the Civil War) became a civil rights landmark in 1964. It was a gathering place for people in the movement, where they could meet, rest, seek solace, and get something to eat, courtesy of Mrs. Cora Tyson. By day, she was the cafeteria manager at Webster Elementary School, but she did extra work during her off-hours to support the campaign against racial discrimination.Those who enjoyed her hospitality obliged her by inscribing their names in her family bible. It read like a "Who's Who" of the civil rights movement, including Ralph Abernathy, Andrew Young, C. T. Vivian, Dora McDonald, Fred Shuttlesworth, Hosea Williams, and others.To see that the accomplishments and sacrifices of those who marched and sat-in and knelt-in and swam-in and waded-in (and were often beaten and jailed) were properly honored for their role in changing America and inspiring the world, Mrs. Tyson served in the 21st century as vice president of ACCORD (the Anniversary to Commemorate the Civil Rights Demonstrations, Inc.).At a 2008 ceremony at St. Paul A.M.E. Church, on the 40th anniversary of the assassination of her most famous guest, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Mrs. Tyson remembered how much he enjoyed her iced tea, and told the press "Dr. King was a Moses."
103. 84 Bridge St
Trinity United Methodist Church is the oldest congregation in historic Lincolnville and one of the oldest Protestant congregations in Florida. Its origins date to the early American period, in the 1820s, when a Methodist missionary came to St. Augustine and baptized both blacks and whites.Two earlier church buildings, on Charlotte Street and on St. George Street, housed integrated groups until the Civil War, when the whites withdrew and the congregation became all black. In 1905 the whites tried to reclaim the coquina church on St. George Street. An agreement was reached to sell that building and divide the money, giving rise to the First Methodist Church for whites and Trinity for blacks.This site on Bridge Street had been an orange grove owned by a free black man named Philip Edinboro under both Spanish Colonial and American Territorial rule. The church acquired it from Ward G. Foster, founder of the famous "Ask Mr. Foster" travel agency. They met in the Foster house, at first, then in 1912 broke ground for the current church building, which was completed in 1913 by contractor S. Clark Edminster. It is one of the great architectural landmarks of the city and has been included on the annual tour of historic churches. During the civil rights movement of the 1960s, Trinity was one of the main churches where rallies were held, in preparation for marches downtown to protest racial discrimination. When marchers were cursed and had bottles thrown at them in the downtown plaza, they made their way back to Trinity for sanctuary. Their courage and determination impressed the world and led to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.
104. 113 DeHaven St
This was the home of Oscar Turner (1898-1987) and his wife Mabel (1903-1978). Their daughter, Mattie, married educator and Coach A. Malcolm Jones, the principal of Richard J. Murray High School, for whom the recreational field at the nearby Willie Galimore Community Center is named.A native of South Carolina, Mr. Turner came to St. Augustine in the 1920s and worked for 40 years for the Florida East Coast Railway. The family lived for many years on Gault Street in North City, near the Fountain of Youth, before moving to this house in the 1960s.Oscar Turner was active in the civil rights movement, serving as vice president of the St. Augustine NAACP and treasurer of the local chapter of Martin Luther King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).He made history in the 1960s when he became the first black candidate for public office in St. Augustine since black City Councilman John Papino was shot during a council meeting by white City Marshal Charles Benet in 1902.Turner ran for the School Board in 1962 and for the City Commission in 1965. Though he did not win either race, his grandson, Errol D. Jones, became St. Augustine's first black elected official in the 21st century when he was elected to the City Commission in 2002.
105. 120 DeHaven St
This house was built in the 1920s and purchased a decade later by Jutson Ayers, who worked as an alligator wrestler for a quarter of a century at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm before his death in 1958. His widow, Mrs. Rena Ayers, gave important support to the civil rights movement of the 1960s by providing lodging for out-of-towners who came here to support the movement.In March 2005, when she was 100 years old, Mrs. Ayers had a visit from one of those she had hosted 41 years before. He was Alvin J. Bronstein, an attorney who had come to St. Augustine in August 1964 with the idea of spending his two week summer vacation aiding the movement with his legal skills. Instead, he wound up spending the next four years as staff counsel for the Lawyers’ Constitutional Defense Committee (LCDC), handling important civil rights cases in Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana (including getting Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. out of jail in Mississippi). He was one of many people whose lives were deeply influenced by their time in St. Augustine. On his 2005 return, he walked through the front door of this house pointed to the left and said, "That's my room".When the U.S. Postal Service issued a set of stamps, commemorating the Freedom Movement in August 2005, Mrs. Ayers was honored as one of the legendary "Housemothers of the Civil Rights Movement" in St. Augustine.
106. 111 Lincoln St
Constructed before 1885, this is one of the oldest surviving buildings in Lincolnville, an historic neighborhood founded by freed slaves after the Civil War. It was home to two generations of the Moran family. Horace Moran was the chef at the Monson Hotel on the bayfront for half a century, and in the 1920s he was president of the company that put out The Home Circle Weekly, one of the pioneer black publications in St. Augustine.Moran was active in St. Mary’s Baptist Church, and from the mid-1920s on, this served as the church parsonage.A notable resident was Rev. Thomas A. Wright, who was not only pastor of the church from 1954 until 1962, but also president of the St. Augustine NAACP and a key figure in the civil rights movement. His wife Affie taught at nearby Excelsior School.Threats against the family led the Wrights to move to Gainesville, where he pastored Mt. Carmel Baptist Church from 1962 until 2006. He served for many years as president of the Alachua County NAACP. His daughter, LaVon Wright Bracy, became the first black graduate of Gainesville High School in 1965.Rev. Wright is the author of seven books, including Courage in Persona (1993), one of St. Augustine’s most important twentieth century autobiographies.
107. 97 MLK Ave
97 Martin Luther King Avenue was built in the 1920s by Frederick E. Martin, a prominent Lincolnville businessman whose name is set in the tile inside the front door. It was a popular confectionery and sundries store under many owners, drawing some of its customers from three neighboring schools: Excelsior, St. Benedict, and the Presbyterian Parochial and Industrial School.The back section of the building, along Dehaven Street, was added in the mid 1920s. It served first as a pool room, then as a barber shop. The Lincolnville Public Library, under the direction of Mrs. Dorcas B. Sanders, occupied the back section in the 1950s and 1960s.It was here that Rev. Thomas Wright, pastor of St. Mary's Baptist Church and president of the St. Augustine NAACP, trained students from Florida Memorial College in nonviolent techniques before they began sitting-in at local lunch counters in the 1960s to protest racial discrimination.
108. 102 MLK Ave
This area in the heart of Lincolnville was associated with black education for nearly a century. This lot was the site of the Presbyterian Parochial and Industrial School, headed by Rev. James H. Cooper. It was demolished in 1940 and the grounds became part of Excelsior School.Across the street there were two school buildings dating back to the Flagler Era of the late1800s, before the existing Excelsior School was built in 1925. It was the first public high school serving black students in St. Augustine. Before that, a public high school education had only been available to whites.One of the early teachers at Excelsior was Edward D. Davis (1904-1989), who became president of the Florida NAACP and worked with civil rights martyr Harry T. Moore and future Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall on a campaign in the 1940s to equalize the pay of black and white teachers. At the time, blacks were paid only about half as much as their white counterparts were. Davis published his autobiography A Half Century of Struggle for Freedom in Florida in 1981.Many Excelsior alumni made important contributions to the civil rights movement of the 1960s, including Henry Thomas (one of the original Freedom Riders), members of the Eubanks family, Henry and Katherine Twine, and College Football Hall of Famer Willie Galimore.In 2005, the Excelsior building opened as the city's first museum of African American history.
109. 112 MLK Ave
This house was built between 1904 and 1910 on what was then called Central Avenue. The name was changed in 1986. There are many streets in America named to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., but this one is special because he actually walked on it in the course of changing history.In 1964 this was the home of Robert Victor Bell, who worked for the Post Office, and his wife Willie Mae Bell. The family was active in the civil rights movement, and their daughter, Veronica, was one of the pioneers of school desegregation in St. Augustine. The Bells provided lodging for people who came to town to support the civil rights efforts here. One of them was J.T. Johnson, a longtime aide to Dr. King, who took part in one of the most famous incidents of the movement: what came to be known as “the splash heard `round the world.” On June 18, 1964, a swim-in was held at the Monson Motor Lodge on the bayfront. Johnson and his colleagues were shown in what became the most famous photograph ever taken in St. Augustine--of the motel manager pouring acid in the pool while they were swimming. That horrifying image of "Southern Hospitality" showed the world why the old segregated way of doing things had to end. The photograph appeared on the front page of the Washington, D.C. newspaper the day that the United States Senate voted to pass the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, outlawing discrimination in hotels, motels, restaurants and employment.
110. 156 ML King Ave
The house at 156 Central Avenue was built in the 1950's for Mrs. Janie Price, a nurse at Flagler Hospital. She had taken her nurse's training at Grady Hospital in Atlanta in the 1940s and while there had attended dances with students from Morehouse College--one of them a teenager named Martin Luther King, Jr.When Dr. King came to St. Augustine during the campaign that led to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, this was one of the houses where he stayed. Mrs. Price remembered Dr. King and his colleague, Rev. Ralph Abernathy, eating breakfast here before going off to be arrested at the Monson Motor Lodge on the bay front--an event that made international news.In 1985 the name of Central Avenue was changed to honor Martin Luther King. Many cities have streets named for Dr. King, but this one is special because he actually stayed on it in the course of changing history.Mrs. Janie passed away on January 6, 2023.
111. 160 MLK Ave
The southern half of Lincolnville was, in colonial times, a plantation called "Buena Esperanza" (Spanish for "Good Hope"). During the Flagler Era of the 1880s, it was bought by Standard Oil millionaire William Warden and developed as a residential subdivision. One of Warden's investments was the local gas and electric company, whose manager lived in this elegant Victorian house, which originally bore the address of 160 Central Avenue.In 1954, the U. S. Supreme Court ruled in the famous case of Brown v. Board of Education that racially segregated schools had to end. This was a harbinger for the end of the Jim Crow system of discrimination that had prevailed since the end of Reconstruction. Most of the southern states responded by establishing some kind of official state commission to see what could be done to preserve racial segregation as long as possible. Florida's contribution to that was called the Fabisinski Committee, headed by Judge L. L. Fabisinski--who had grown up here in this house in the early years of the twentieth century. Five decades after Judge Fabisinski left, this house became, in 1964, the home of Dr. Robert B. Hayling, the courageous dentist who was the main organizer of the civil rights movement in St. Augustine. For his outstanding leadership, Dr. Hayling has been hailed as "The Father of the Civil Rights Act of 1964."There is no other house in St. Augustine--probably no other house in America--that within its walls has sheltered the two opposite sides of that great conflict that shaped our modern democracy. Thus, it is known as "The Civil Rights House."
112. 56 Park Pl
This house, overlooking Maria Sanchez Lake, was built in the 1950's for a distinguished family of educators. James G. Reddick was a longtime principal of Excelsior School and his wife Maude was the supervisor of black schools in St. Augustine in the age of segregation.Professor Reddick also edited the first black newspaper, The St. Augustine Post in the 1930's. In March 1964 four prominent women from Boston (three of them wives of Episcopal Bishops) came to St. Augustine to give their support to the civil rights movement. Two of them were guests of Mrs. Reddick at this house.Mrs. Esther Burgess, who stayed here, was married to the first black Diocesan Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States. Her companion, Mrs. Hester Campbell, who was white, was married to a former Bishop of Los Angeles then associated with the Episcopal Theological Seminary in Cambridge, Massachussetts.The arrest of these women, and their friend Mrs. Mary Peabody, the 72 year old mother of the governor of Massachussetts, in two separate incidents on March 30 and March 31, at the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge north of town brought the civil rights movement in St. Augustine to international attention. For the next three months, the Ancient City was the state for a great moral drama that resulted in the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.Mrs. Campbell wrote a book, Four for Freedom (1974), about the events in St. Augustine, including mention of her stay in his house. Mrs. Burgess hoped to return to St. Augustine for the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the civil rights movement in 2004, but she passed away just a couple of weeks before the event, at the age of 93.
113. 222 Riberia St
Bethel Baptist Church was founded in 1939 by Rev. William Banks, the former pastor of St. Mary's Missionary Baptist Church on Washington Street, and other members from that congregation. Land was acquired on Riberia Street, and the church building constructed in 1943. From its earlier years, the picturesque church, with its distinctive coquina shell-dash stucco finish, has attracted the attention of artists. It became famous around the country through its appearance in many paintings.In 1963, the church provided meeting space for the NAACP Youth Council, advised by Dr. Robert B. Hayling and Rev. Goldie Eubanks, Sr. which picketed restaurants and lunch counters in the downtown areas that refused service to black people.When Dr. Martin Luther King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) came to town, in 1964, the civil rights meetings took place at Bethel Baptist Church. A "Freedom School" held here under the direction of Rev. Andrew Young, taught black history and the history of the civil rights movement. Young went on to serve as congressman, ambassador to the United Nations, mayor of Atlanta, and President of the National Council of Churches. He returned to St. Augustine in 2004 to take part in the celebration of the 40th anniversary of the campaign here that led to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.
114. 84 St Benedict St
The narrow streets and small building lots of this area mark it as the earliest part of Lincolnville, founded by freed slaves after the Civil War and now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. An earlier house that stood on this site was the home of William VanDyke, a pioneer black elected official of St. Augustine in the 1870s.The current building was constructed between 1910 and 1917 to serve as a parsonage for the adjacent St. Paul A.M.E. Church. It is similar in age, design, and building material to the nearby parsonage for First Baptist Church and the rectory for St. Benedict the Moor Church, all of them representing the early twentieth century heyday of Lincolnville.Rev. Shepherd Hunter and his wife Alberta lived here in the 1940s. Their granddaughter remembered visiting them, and "the passage way between the church and the parsonage", in her biography, In My Place (1992). Her name is Charlayne Hunter-Gault. In 1961 she became the first black woman to attend the University of Georgia in its 176 year history. She is known to millions from her years as correspondent on the popular PBS television program "MacNeal/Lehrer News Hour".St. Paul A.M.E. Church played an important role in the civil rights movement. Baseball Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson spoke at a large rally here in June 1964. When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. came to speak, many people wanted to hear him, but no single church was large enough. Rallies were held simultaneously at St. Paul and neighboring First Baptist. Dr. King was shuttled out the back door of one church and in the back door of the other, allowing more people the opportunity to hear him speak.
115. 94 South St
This has been the home to the Whites, one of the outstanding families active in the 1963-1964 civil rights movement in St. Augustine. Parents James (a decorated Buffalo Soldier from World War II) and Hattie Lee White both took part in demonstrations and went to jail for freedom in those times. Their son Samuel was one of the "St. Augustine Four"--teenagers who spent six months in jail and reform school after a July 1963 sit-in at the Woolworth's lunch counter downtown. Mrs. White wrote to NAACP leader Roy Wilkins, "I've never heard of any child being taken away from their parents for wanting his freedom. Have you?" National protests at the injustice by Jackie Robinson and others forced the governor and cabinet of Florida to release the St. Augustine Four in January 1964.Twin daughters Janice and Jeanette took part in the effort to integrate one of the local white churches. They are featured in Jeremy Dean's movie "Dare Not Walk Alone."Sons Christopher and Walter Eugene were pioneers in the effort to end racial segregation in St. Augustine's public schools. Son James took part in the wade-ins that garnered international attention at St. Augustine Beach in the summer of 1964.This marker is erected by ACCORD to honor all of the members of the family for their efforts to make St. Augustine, America, and the world a better place.
116. 177 Twine St
The event that brought the civil rights movement in St. Augustine to international attention was the arrest of Mary Parkman Peabody (1891-1981), the 72-year old mother of the Governor of Massachusetts, for trying to be served in a racially integrated group at the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge on March 31, 1964.The socially prominent Mrs. Peabody, whose husband was an Episcopal bishop, and who was related to Eleanor Roosevelt, stayed here at 177 Twine Street when she was not in the St. Johns County Jail. She was the guest of Mrs. Loucille Plummer (1924-1978) a nurse and civil rights activist.Mrs. Plummer's house was the target of a firebombing attempt in 1965 because of her civil rights activities, but she did not let that dissuade her. According to Audrey Nell Edwards (one of the St. Augustine Four), Loucille Plummer "was a rock" in the cause of equality.
117. 64 Washington St
64 Washington Street was the Florida State Headquarters of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) during and after the civil rights demonstrations of 1964. SCLC was founded in 1957 by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. after the successful Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955-56.The first executive director of SCLC was a former St. Augustinian, Dr. John Tilley (1898-1971). He had lived here while serving as president of Florida Normal (later Florida Memorial) College in the 1940s. In charge of the SCLC office here was Mrs. Loucille Plummer (pictured), a nurse who had lost her job because of her civil rights activities.The building at 64 Washington Street also housed the Roayl Palm Barber Shop of Ernest Wells, one of the civil rights pioneers of St. Augustine, as well as a grocery store operated by Chris Lightburn, the celebrated alligator wrestler who was a co-founder, with jazz musician Doug Carn, of the annual Lincolnville Festival in 1979.
118. 76 Washington St
The St. Augustine office of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was located in this building from the 1970's until the early 1990's. The organization's roots in the Ancient City began much earlier. William English Walling (1877-1936), one of the organizers and the first chairman of the NAACP, was a frequent guest at the nearby Alcazar Hotel--now St. Augustine City Hall. A local NAACP Chapter was first organized here in 1915.Notable NAACP member, James Weldon Johnson (1871-1938) was born in Jacksonville and became familiar with St. Augustine at an early age. A modern renaissance man he was a poet, novelist, educator, diplomat, attorney, journalist, and songwriter--most notably of "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing"--before serving from 1916-1931 as a top official. One thing he did in that position was to arrange a meeting in St. Augustine between civil rights supporters and U.S. President-elect Warren G. Harding in 1921.In addition, Langston Hughes (1902-1967), the celebrated author whose books included Fight for Freedom: The Story of the NAACP, spoke in St. Augustine in 1954.In the early 1960's, the NAACP, led by President Fannie Fulwood, protested plans to celebrate St. Augustine's 400th birthday on an all-white basis. The NAACP Youth Group organized many demonstrations to protest segregated lunch counters and other facilities. They were pioneers in the efforts that led to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. The NAACP dates its birth to February 12, 1909, chosen because it was the 100th birthday of Abraham Lincoln.This marker is dedicated to honor the 100th birthday of the nation's oldest civil rights organization.(Presented by Beth Levenbach)
119. 126 M L King Avenue
This house was built in 1979, on what was then called Central Avenue, for Clyde and Hattie Jenkins, who moved here from their old home at 106 Lincoln Street. In 1985 the street name was changed to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.--making it one of the few streets bearing his name on which he actually walked in the course of changing history. Clyde Jenkins was a barber who long practiced his profession at McCall’s Barbershop a few blocks north of here. He was much beloved by neighborhood children for giving them a little change from their bill that they could use to buy treats on the way home. Clyde Jenkins was an outstanding figure in the civil rights movement in the Ancient City. In 1963 he was arrested at a downtown sit-in, and later that year was brutally beaten at a Ku Klux Klan rally south of town, along with his companions: Dr. Robert B. Hayling, James Jackson and James Hauser.He was part of the group that convinced the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to come to St. Augustine in 1964, and took part in the caravans that brought Dr. King safely here from the Jacksonville airport. He was arrested with Dr. King on July 11, 1964 when they attempted to be served at the Monson Motel restaurant on the bayfront. News reports of that arrest—the only one for Dr. King in the state of Florida—went around the world. Reflecting on his civil rights activities, Jenkins told a reporter in 1974: “I didn’t do it only for the blacks; I did it for the whites too. When you have segregation, nobody is free—the white man or the black man.”In 2010 he received the second Dr. Robert B. Hayling Award of Valor for his participation in the movement. Clyde Jenkins passed away at the age of 87 on September 29, 2015, just a few months after his beloved wife Hattie.
120. 36 Weeden Street/ Carrie Johnson Way
Bravo Street (once part of an orange grove owned by Abraham Lincoln’s private secretary, John Hay) was renamed Carrie Johnson Way in 2021 in honor of the singer, folklorist and community activist known as “The Voice of Lincolnville.” She grew up in this neighborhood in the 1930s and 1940s, then raised her family in Miami, where she worked in the school system. She returned here following the destruction caused in South Florida by Hurricane Andrew in 1992. She was one of the founders of ACCORD—an organization devoted to honoring the participants in the civil rights movement in St. Augustine. She served as vice president of the Fort Mose Historical Society, preserving the memory of the pioneer free Black community founded here in 1738. Among many honors, she served as an Olympic Torchbearer, and Grand Marshal of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. She served as the city’s unofficial greeter, with a hearty “Hi, darling!” given to one and all as she made her daily rounds.Her return here made her a neighbor once again of her childhood baby-sitter, Debbie McDade, who had gone off from St. Augustine in the 1940s to a singing and acting career in New York and abroad that earned her a listing in The Encyclopedia of Jazz under her stage name, Debby Moore—before coming back in 1976 to care for her aging mother.In their last decade, the two worked together on Barbara Vickers’ committee to erect an artistic monument in the downtown plaza honoring the Foot Soldiers of the civil rights movement in St. Augustine. Debbie McDade lived 91 years, passing away just after New Year’s in 2017. In her last year she was able to see the performance of a musical play Sweet Emmaline, inspired by her life and career. Carrie Johnson, “The Voice of Lincolnville,” passed away at the age of 83 in 2018.
201. 33 Bernard St
Bernard Street is one of three historically black residential streets in the North City area, dating back to the Flagler Era. At the west end of the street were a lumber yard, steam laundry, and ice plant that provided employment. Other residents worked at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind and the Fountain of Youth.In the early twentieth century, Dawson Chapel C.M.E., Hurst Chapel A.M.E., and North City Baptist Church were built on Bernard St.Many residents were active in the civl rights movement of the 1960's, including Eliza Hawthorne, secretary of the NAACP, and Bungum Roberson, treasurer of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Another notable resident was Cary White for whom a building was named at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind is named. He was the school's first black graduate.St. Augustine public schools were segregated until 1963, when 6 black students enrolled in formerly all-white schools. In May, 1964 it was announced that 13 more black students would go to white schools, a majority of them lived on Bernard Street.This marker is placed here to honor the pioneers of school desegregation who lived on Bernard Street: Rose Etta Washington and Alfred Eugene Davis (who lived in this house), Christopher White, Janet Elizabeth White, Janice Marie White, Deanna Debra Brown, Michael Edward Brown, and Walter Eugene White.For their courage, they were included in the group that Dr. Martin Luther King hailed as "the heroes of St. Augustine."
202. Gault Street
Gault Street was one of the historically black residential streets in North City. Many residents worked at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind, the Fountain of Youth, laundries and ice plants that were once located in the area.Three Victorian houses on the west side of the street were built in the 1880's. Most of the houses on the east side of the street were built in the 1920's by Henry Proctor, descendant of one of the famous free black families of colonial Florida whose story is told in the 1992 book Free Men in an Age of Servitude by Lee Warner.Many Gault Street residents were active in the civil rights movement of the 1960's. When the Roberson family, of what was then 167 Gault Street, sent their sons to integrate previously all-white Fullerwood School, their home was firebombed. Only these brick steps remain as a landmark of the heroism of this family in the cause of equality.
203. 10 Hildreth Dr
Fullerwood School was built in 1927 and is the only example in St. Augustine of the work of noted architect A. Ten Eyck Brown (1878-1940), famed for his courthouses, banks, and city halls in New Orleans, Miami and Atlanta. His name is on the cornerstone of the building.Although there had been racially integrated schools in St. Augustine in colonial times, when the public school system was established here after the Civil War it was done on a segregated basis, with separate schools for whites and blacks. Florida even had a law making it illegal to store the textbooks for white and black schools in the same warehouse.In 1954, the U. S. Supreme Court ruled in the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education that racial segregation in public schools had to end. It was not until 1963, however, that Fullerwood and Ketterlinus became the first schools here to desegregate. The children of two black families who lived in the North City area, the Brunsons and the Robersons, were admitted to the formerly all-white Fullerwood School.Opposition to integration was intense. In January 1964 while Charles Brunson, an employee of the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind, was attending a PTA meeting here, his car was set on fire. In October 1963, an unsuccessful attempt had been made to firebomb the home of the Roberson family. A second attempt in February 1964 succeeded, and today a Freedom Trail marker on Gault Street shows where only the brick steps of the house survive. Bungum Roberson, father of the children who helped break the racial barrier at Fullerwood, was fired from his job at the local Ford dealership in retaliation for his civil rights activities.Fullerwood closed as an elementary school in the 1980s and later housed St. Johns River Community College and the media center for the county public schools. A teacher training session held here in February 2009 brought many people who had participated in the civil rights movement together to share their experiences with those who will teach future generations.
204. 31 King Street
The Ponce de Leon Shopping Center opened in 1955 as the first downtown shopping center in St. Augustine. It was designed by Morris Lapidus (1902-2001), Florida's most famous mid-twentieth century architect, and is the only example of his work in the Ancient City. It was anchored by a Woolworth's store on the west side (the door handles still say Woolworth's). On February 1, 1960, black college students in Greensboro, N.C. began a sit-in at their Woolworth's lunch counter to protest racial discrimination. Their example electrified the south, and just a few weeks later, students from Florida Memorial College in St. Augustine began sitting-in at this Woolworth's lunch counter.In the summer of 1963, local black high school students sat-in here and were arrested. They refused when the judge wanted them to end their participation in the civil rights effort, and as a result spent the next six months in jail and reform school. The case of the St. Augustine Four--Audrey Nell Edwards, JoeAnn Anderson, Samuel White and Willie Carl Singleton--received national publicity as an example of injustice, and finally the governor and cabinet of Florida ordered them released in January 1964. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Jackie Robinson hailed the St. Augustine Four as heroes of the civil rights movement.
301. St. Johns County Jail
This building, designed by architect F. A. Hollingsworth, opened in 1953 as the St. Johns County Jail, replacing an earlier jail building on San Marco Avenue that subsequently became a tourist attraction. A decade later, this building played a prominent role in the civil rights movement, when hundreds of demonstrators were incarcerated here in 1963 and 1964. At one point, the president of the United States was told that if he wanted to keep an eye on the leaders of the civil rights movement, he should look at the St. Johns County Jail. Photographs of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. taken here have become some of the iconic pictures of that era.The demonstrations in St. Augustine, under the leadership of Dr. Robert B. Hayling, led directly to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, one of the two great legislative accomplishments of the movement. Many famous people spent time in this building, including the St. Augustine Four (teenagers who spent six months in jail and reform school for sitting-in at a local lunch counter); Mrs. Mary Peabody, 72-year-old mother of the governor of Massachusetts; author Sarah Patton Boyle; and those who took part in the largest mass arrest of rabbis in American history. A veritable Who's Who of civil rights leaders including Dr. King, Rev. Ralph Abernathy, Hosea Williams, Rev. C. T. Vivian, Rev. Andrew Young, Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth and others passed through these doors.While many notable people came from outside to support the civil rights movement here, the largest number of those arrested were local residents--the "foot soldiers" of the movement--whom Dr. King hailed as "the heroes of St. Augustine." They displayed extraordinary courage in standing up against racial segregation, and their example helped to change America and inspire the world.
350. Beach Wade-ins
Some of the most widely-publicized events of the civil rights movement took place at St. Augustine Beach in the summer of 1964, when wade-ins were conducted at what had historically been a beach reserved for “Whites Only”. Many courageous local residents took part in the wade-ins, along with a number of staff members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), including Rev. C.T. Vivian, Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, Dorothy Cotton, Al Lingo, Rev. LaVert Taylor, Benjamin Van Clarke, Golden Frinks, Rev. S. B. Wells, Dana Swan, Willie Bolden, and J. T. Johnson.Black and white supporters came from different parts of the country during a campaign organized by Dr. Robert B. Hayling that brought Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and SCLC to St. Augustine. The many rallies, marches, sit-ins, and wade-ins that took place here led directly to the passage and signing of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 which outlawed racial segregation in hotels, motels, restaurants and other public accommodations, and job discrimination against blacks and women.Images broadcast internationally, of peaceful demonstrators being brutally attacked, yet holding their ground, helped to change American attitudes and inspired the world for generations to come. Dr. Martin Luther King went on from here to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.The inside story of how law enforcement protection was finally provided to demonstrators, after a number of beatings had taken place, is told by Dan Warren in the book If It Takes All Summer, published by the University of Alabama Press in 2008. The events at St. Augustine Beach, and their wide-ranging historic significance, form an important episode in Jeremy Dean's award-winning movie "Dare Not Walk Alone," and in books by Pulitzer Prizewinning authors Taylor Branch and David Garrow.ACCORD and the Northrop Grumman Corporation present this Freedom Trail marker in 2009 to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the incorporation of St. Augustine Beach, and the 45th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
401. 57 Chapin St
57 Chapin Street was once the home of Willie Galimore (1935-1964), the most famous athlete to come from St. Augustine. A three-time Pittsburgh Courier All-American football player at Florida A & M University under the legendary coach Jake Gaither, Galimore is now a member of the College Hall of Fame. He played professionally for the Chicago Bears under coach George Halas from 1957 until his tragic death in an auto accident in 1964. He was nicknamed "Galloping Gal" and renowned for his speed. Hall of Fame teammate Doug Atkins said "He was the fastest person I ever saw in a uniform."Galimore's last visit to St. Augustine, shortly before his death, was to support the civil rights demonstrations taking place here. He made history by becoming the first black person who was able to register as a guest at the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge on U.S. 1 North.
402. 570 Christopher St
This was the home of Rev. Roscoe Halyard and his wife Flora, both active participants in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Rev. Halyard, who was associated with Zion Baptist Church and worked as a carpenter, made trips to both Tallahassee and Washington to talk with government officials about the racial situation in St. Augustine.He was one of the group that convinced the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to come to St. Augustine in the Spring of 1964, and made the trip to Jacksonville to pick up Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. at the airport.The Halyards also provided lodging for people who came from around the country to support the civil rights efforts here. One of them was the famous author Sarah Patton Boyle (1906-1994) who wrote the Desegregated Heart (1962) and other books. A Virginian, and a cousin of General George S. Patton, was praised by Dr. King in his celebrated "Letter from the Birmingham Jail" for having written about our struggle in eloquent and prophetic terms."Boyle was arrested, for the first time in her life, when attempting, as part of a racially integrated group, to be served at the segregated Monson Motel restaurant on the bayfront. She spent several days in the St. Johns County Jail, and later published an article called "Song of a Jailbird." She wote: "I regard my arrest as an honorary degree in the struggle to implement the principles in which I so deeply believe."
403. 8 R B Hayling St
The house at 8 Scott Street was built in the 1950s as part of Rollins Subdivision, a new residential area where many prominent black St. Augustinians made their homes. In the early 1960s it was the residence of Dr. Robert B. Hayling and family. A dentist and Air Force veteran from Tallahassee, Dr. Hayling became the leader of the civil rights movement in St. Augustine. This house became a target for racist attacks. In one of them, the family dog was killed and Mrs. Hayling narrowly escaped being shot.In 2003, this street was renamed to honor Dr. Hayling. A banner hung for the ceremony proclaimed him "Father of the Civil Rights Act of 1964." He was presented with a plaque from his former neighbors, who were known as "The Scott Street 11" for their civil rights activities. The ceremony was significant as the beginning of a concerted effort to honor the many heroes of the civil rights movement in St. Augustine as its 40th anniversary approached.
404. 650 Julia St
This house was built in 2008 by Habitat for Humanity for one of the Ancient City's civil rights heroes, Audrey Nell Edwards. Along with JoeAnn Anderson Ulmer, Samuel White, and Willie Carl Singleton, she was one of the "St. Augustine Four." As young teenagers, they were arrested for seeking service at the segregated lunch counter of the local Woolworth store on July 18, 1963, and spent the next six months in jail and reform school when they refused to sign a statement for the County Judge that they would no longer take part in civil rights demonstrations. Their case attracted national attention as an example of injustice, and pressure from around the country finally forced the governor and cabinet of Florida to free them in January 1964. They had missed Thanksgiving and Christmas with their families, but they had shown that the civil rights movement could not be crushed. The St. Augustine Four were praised for their steadfastness by Jackie Robinson and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (who called them "my warriors").A block north of here is historic Woodlawn Cemetery, the final resting place for many prominent African Americans. Among them is Miss Cuter Eubanks (1927-1985) whose arrest with Mrs. Mary Peabody, the 72-year-old mother of the governor of Massachusetts, at the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge was front-page news across the country in 1964. Willie Carl Singleton and Samuel White, two of the St. Augustine Four, are buried there, as are civil rights activists Loucille Plummer and Gertrude BiasThe movement in St. Augustine led directly to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.
405. 262 W King St
Leo C. Chase, Sr., who had previously managed the Huff Funeral Home in Lincolnville, opened one of the oldest businesses in St. Augustine, this funeral home in 1955. His son, Arnett Chase, took over after his father's death in 1977. Another son, Leo C. Chase, Jr., was the first St. Augustinian killed in the Vietnam War, and a nearby park was named in his honor in 1965.During the 1960s, this was a place of sanctuary for civil rights activists who were subjected to harassment in St. Augustine. The funeral home's ambulance was used to take marchers to the hospital when they were beaten in the downtown area. Dianne (Mrs. Arnett) Chase took part in the demonstrations that led to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.There were many black elected officials in St. Augustine in the decades after the Civil War, but the shooting of black alderman John Papino by a white city marshal during an official meeting in 1902 was the act of terror that put an end to black political office holding for more than 70 years. Arnett Chase made history in 1973 when he was elected to the city commission as the first black elected official in modern times.In 2008, a Chase limousine went to the Jacksonville airport to pick up the Rev. Dr. C. T. Vivian, one of Dr. Martin Luther King's closest associates. Vivian returned to St. Augustine--where he had been beaten and arrested while leading beach wade-ins and demonstrations in 1964--to address the second annual Freedom Trail Banquet sponsored by ACCORD.
406. 1074 W King St
This was the home of Mrs. Georgie Mae Reed (1926-1995), who took part in one of the most famous events in the civil rights movement that changed America and inspired the world.On March 31, 1964, Mrs. Reed was one of five St. Augustine women who accompanied Mrs. Mary Peabody, the 72 year old mother of the governor of Massachusetts, to the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge on U.S. 1 North. The group sat down in the restaurant there and asked to be served. They were arrested instead.That event was reported on the front page of newspapers around the country, and from that point on, international attention was focused on the activities in St. Augustine that led directly to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.Mrs. Reed suffered from polio, but she did not allow that to stop her on the day that she put on her Sunday best and walked off into American history. She told her story to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Taylor Branch when he was in St. Augustine in 1991, but did not live long enough to see his book Pillar of Fire (1998) in which her heroism was celebrated.
501. 5480 Atlantic View
This beach cottage attracted international attention in 1964, and a photograph taken here of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. pointing to a bullet hole in the window has become one of the iconic images of the civil rights movement.It was the winter home of Dr. Cyril M. Canright (1894-1965) and his wife Winifred (1898-1995), who taught as missionaries in China in the 1920s and 1930s and later made their home in New Jersey. They were supporters of the civil rights movement. They made their beach house available to Dr. King when he came here with his Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) at the urging of Dr. Robert B. Hayling and the St. Augustine movement in May 1964 for the mass campaign that led to the passage of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964.SCLC staffers Dorothy Cotton, Rev. C.T. Vivian, and Harry Boyte visited or stayed here, but Dr. King had not yet spent a night in the house when the local newspaper ran directions to it on the front page, and segregationists attacked it. They shot up the house on May 28, 1964, and then attempted to burn it on May 30. On June 8, they smashed the windows and furniture, painted racist graffiti inside, and firebombed it. All of these events were widely reported around the country, and increased public pressure to do away with racial segregation.Dr. Canright passed away the next year, but Mrs. Canright continued up into her 90s to work for prison reform and other causes in New Jersey. She was honored there by the naming of the Winifred Canright House in Asbury Park, which provides housing for people with HIV/AIDS who might otherwise be homeless.Gay and Kathleen Welborn put the heavily damaged house back into livable condition from Gainesville, who made their home here while running businesses on St. George Street in downtown St. Augustine. Mrs. Welborn was also a nurse at Flagler Hospital. When she passed away in 2009 at the age of 93, she was the senior member of the local Altrusa Club.This house has been featured, as a civil rights landmark, in newspaper stories, books, television programs, and in Clennon King's 2004 movie "Slave Market Diary." In 2024, the historic beach cottage was relocated from 5480 Atlantic View to Collier-Blocker-Puryear Park on North Holmes Boulevard in St. Augustine.
502. St. Augustine Beach Wade-ins
Some of the most widely-publicized events of the civil rights movement took place at St. Augustine Beach in the summer of 1964, when wade-ins were conducted at what had historically been a beach reserved for “Whites Only”. Many courageous local residents took part in the wade-ins, along with a number of staff members of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), including Rev. C.T. Vivian, Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, Dorothy Cotton, Al Lingo, Rev. LaVert Taylor, Benjamin Van Clarke, Golden Frinks, Rev. S. B. Wells, Dana Swan, Willie Bolden, and J. T. Johnson.Black and white supporters came from different parts of the country during a campaign organized by Dr. Robert B. Hayling that brought Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and SCLC to St. Augustine. The many rallies, marches, sit-ins, and wade-ins that took place here led directly to the passage and signing of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 which outlawed racial segregation in hotels, motels, restaurants and other public accommodations, and job discrimination against blacks and women.Images broadcast internationally, of peaceful demonstrators being brutally attacked, yet holding their ground, helped to change American attitudes and inspired the world for generations to come. Dr. Martin Luther King went on from here to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964.The inside story of how law enforcement protection was finally provided to demonstrators, after a number of beatings had taken place, is told by Dan Warren in the book If It Takes All Summer, published by the University of Alabama Press in 2008. The events at St. Augustine Beach, and their wide-ranging historic significance, form an important episode in Jeremy Dean's award-winning movie "Dare Not Walk Alone," and in books by Pulitzer Prizewinning authors Taylor Branch and David Garrow.ACCORD and the Northrop Grumman Corporation present this Freedom Trail marker in 2009 to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the incorporation of St. Augustine Beach, and the 45th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
10. Rosalie Gordon Mills Memory Gardens
Located at 79 Bridge Street, the Rosalie Gordon-Mills Memory Gardens were unveiled on June 1, 2025, on the 102nd birthday of Mrs. Cora Tyson, housemother to the civil rights movement and vice-president of ACCORD.Mrs. Rosalie Robinson Gordon-Mills, a pioneering educator, civic leader, and businesswoman, passed away at the age of 96 on April 20, 2004. Over her 44-year career in the St. Johns County School System, she served as Head of the English Department at Excelsior School and as Director of Guidance at Ketterlinus High School. She made history as the first Black woman in 400 years to run for public office in St. Augustine, earning a place in Florida’s history books. Honored by President Reagan in 1986 for her role in establishing the city's first senior center, she remained deeply involved in community service throughout her life, including leadership roles in the Council on Aging, Echo House, and St. Cyprian’s Episcopal Church. Her academic accomplishments included degrees from Boston University, where she also excelled in athletics and campus leadership.Born into a family of trailblazing educators, Mrs. Gordon-Mills carried forward their legacy of service and excellence. With her first husband, Dr. Rudolph N. Gordon, she championed education and health access for Lincolnville’s youth, and later shared a loving marriage with Dr. Otis J. Mills. An advocate for civil rights and a friend to influential figures like Mrs. Peabody and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., she remained active in civic and social life into her final days, leading her family’s real estate business and supporting scholarship programs. Known for her generosity, faith, and leadership, she leaves behind a legacy of love, service, and commitment to her community and family.This garden is a celebration of the incredible life and legacy of Mrs. Rosalie Gordon Mills, Mrs. Cora Tyson, and many other local heroes and sheroes who played a significant role in the 1960’s St. Augustine Civil Rights Movement and our community.
11. Mrs. Cora Tyson's Mint Garden
Inside the “Rosalie Gordon-Mills Memory Gardens is Mrs. Cora Tyson's Mint Garden, unveiled on June 1, 2025, on the 102nd birthday of this Housemother to the Civil Rights Movement. Mrs. Cora Booker Tyson, originally from Quitman, Georgia, moved to St. Augustine, Florida, in 1949, where she dedicated her life to service, community, and civil rights. She worked for 30 years as a Dietician with the St. Johns County School District and was active in youth programs, serving over 15 years as a Cub Scout Leader and Boy Scout Commissioner. A longtime member of St. Paul AME Church, she has held numerous leadership roles including Senior Choir President, Trustee, Steward Board member, and food service coordinator. For over six decades, she has also served in various capacities with the Pride of Fountain of Youth Temple #413, including District Deputy for three temples.During the 1960s civil rights movement, Mrs. Tyson’s home became a refuge for activists, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and other prominent leaders, many of whom signed her Family Bible. Mrs. Tyson made a special iced tea for Dr. King using fresh mint leaves.Her lifelong dedication to justice and equality earned her numerous honors, including recognition as one of ten "Courageous Women of Color" by the 40th ACCORD, Inc., and a featured appearance in the documentary Crossing in St. Augustine. In 2011, an ACCORD Freedom Trail Marker was placed in her front yard. Today, she continues her commitment as Vice President of ACCORD, helping preserve the legacy of the civil rights struggle in St. Augustine.
12. Gail Blattenberger
The sitting areas and outdoor receptacle at the Rosalie Gordon-Mills Memory Gardens were provided by the estate of Gail Blattenberger, a human & civil rights activist.In the summer of 1965, Gail Blattenberger, a sophomore at Smith College and graduate of Princeton High School, traveled to St. Augustine, Florida, to participate in a civil rights tutorial program organized by chaplains from Dartmouth and Yale. She taught high school-level math to local students at Florida Memorial College. While staying with civil rights activist Mrs. Loucille Plummer, Blattenberger witnessed an attempted arson attack when a flaming kerosene-filled object was thrown near a large gas tank outside the Plummer home. She and Mrs. Plummer quickly acted to extinguish the flames, preventing a potential explosion. The incident was confirmed as arson by the fire chief and gained national attention through an Associated Press article.Blattenberger later became a professor of economics at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. She returned to St. Augustine as a special guest at the 6th Annual Freedom Trail Luncheon, organized by ACCORD to honor those who contributed to the civil rights movement. The event took place on July 2nd, 2012 in the historic Ponce de Leon Hotel dining room, marking the anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964—legislation influenced by protests in St. Augustine. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., played a pivotal role in these events and was later awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.Gail Blattenberger sadly passed away on December 4, 2023. Her legacy as a teacher, advocate, and humanitarian continues to inspire all who knew her and those who learned about her remarkable journey.
