Florida
African American Time Line
1492
Juan las Canarias, a Black sailor, serves on Christopher Columbus's flagship, the Santa Maria to the New World.
1527
Estevanico, an African slave, accompanies Andres de Dorants on an expedition to conquer Florida.
1540
A free African Spaniard serves as the interpreter on Coronados' expedition through southwest North America.
1675
Juan Merion, a free African, blacksmith came to St. Augustine from Havana.
By1683, he opened his own forge, blacksmithing for the royal armorer and private citizens.
1693
King Charles II of Spain issues a royal proclamation giving liberty to all runway in Florida who become practicing Catholics.
1695
Merchants Isavel de los Rios, a free Black woman and Captain Chrispin de Tapia, a free Black man testifies in a court case
against several Apalachee Native Americans had given them counterfeit money.
1738
Fugitive slaves from Carolina form a slave militia in St. Augustine. Two miles north of St. Augustine, they build Fort Mose
and a small town.
1763
The French and Indian War ends and Florida becomes an English colony.
1790
The Spanish rescinds policy of religious sanctuary for fugitive slaves.
1817-1818
Escaped slaves from Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama join the military campaign of the Florida Seminoles
to keep their homelands.
1830
In Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns counties, slaves and free Blacks comprised 52 percent of the population.
1845
Florida becomes the twenty-seventh state in the United States.
1856
T. Thomas Fortune was born a slave in Marianna, Florida. Fortune later founds the newspaper New Age.
1861
Florida seceded from the Union January 10. The next month, Florida representatives participate in the
formation of the Confederate States.
1865
The U.S. Congress established the Freedmen's Bureau to aid African Americans.
1868
Florida was readmitted to the Union with a new state constitution guaranteeing civil rights and giving blacks the right to vote.
1870
Josiah T. Walls becomes Florida's first African American member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Others African Americans politicians in Florida are John Wallace, Henry Harmon, Charles Pearce, Robert Meachem, Jonathan
Gibbs and John Sunday of Pensacola.
1887
Eatonville a town in Orange County, Florida,
was one of the first all-black towns to be formed after the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and, on August 15, 1887, was the first such town to be incorporated Florida Agricultural and Mechanical College is founded to provide higher education to African Americans.
1889
A. Philip Randolph is born in Crescent City, Florida Randolph organizes the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, an African American AFL union.
Florida becomes the first state to use the poll tax to disenfranchise black voters.
1889-1893
Charles F. Dupont as the state's first elected black sheriff.
1900
In January James Weldon Johnson writes the lyrics and his brother John Rosamond Johnson composes the music for Lift Every Voice and Sing in their hometown of Jacksonville, Florida in celebration of the birthday of Abraham Lincoln. The song is eventually adopted as the black national anthem.
1903
Author Zora Neale Hurston is born in Earonville, Florida.
1904
Mary McLeod Bethune founds the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Girls.
1923
The first week of January a race riot erupts in Rosewood.
1934
William "Bill" De Kova White, the first African American president of the National Baseball League was born in Lakewood.
1958
Blanche Calloway is the first African American woman to vote in Miami.
1968
Joe Lang Kershaw becomes the first African American elected to the Florida legislature in this century.
1975
Governor Askew appoints Joseoh W. Hatchett of Pinellas County to the Supreme Court, the first African- American justice.
1978
Daniel ' Chappie" James dies of a heart attack. He was the first African American four-star general.
His childhood home was close to Pensacola Navel Air Station and he dreamed of becoming an aviator.
1994
Governor Lawton Chiles names former African American legislator, Doug Jamerson to be Commissioner of Education.
1492
Juan las Canarias, a Black sailor, serves on Christopher Columbus's flagship, the Santa Maria to the New World.
1527
Estevanico, an African slave, accompanies Andres de Dorants on an expedition to conquer Florida.
1540
A free African Spaniard serves as the interpreter on Coronados' expedition through southwest North America.
1675
Juan Merion, a free African, blacksmith came to St. Augustine from Havana.
By1683, he opened his own forge, blacksmithing for the royal armorer and private citizens.
1693
King Charles II of Spain issues a royal proclamation giving liberty to all runway in Florida who become practicing Catholics.
1695
Merchants Isavel de los Rios, a free Black woman and Captain Chrispin de Tapia, a free Black man testifies in a court case
against several Apalachee Native Americans had given them counterfeit money.
1738
Fugitive slaves from Carolina form a slave militia in St. Augustine. Two miles north of St. Augustine, they build Fort Mose
and a small town.
1763
The French and Indian War ends and Florida becomes an English colony.
1790
The Spanish rescinds policy of religious sanctuary for fugitive slaves.
1817-1818
Escaped slaves from Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama join the military campaign of the Florida Seminoles
to keep their homelands.
1830
In Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns counties, slaves and free Blacks comprised 52 percent of the population.
1845
Florida becomes the twenty-seventh state in the United States.
1856
T. Thomas Fortune was born a slave in Marianna, Florida. Fortune later founds the newspaper New Age.
1861
Florida seceded from the Union January 10. The next month, Florida representatives participate in the
formation of the Confederate States.
1865
The U.S. Congress established the Freedmen's Bureau to aid African Americans.
1868
Florida was readmitted to the Union with a new state constitution guaranteeing civil rights and giving blacks the right to vote.
1870
Josiah T. Walls becomes Florida's first African American member of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Others African Americans politicians in Florida are John Wallace, Henry Harmon, Charles Pearce, Robert Meachem, Jonathan
Gibbs and John Sunday of Pensacola.
1887
Eatonville a town in Orange County, Florida,
was one of the first all-black towns to be formed after the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and, on August 15, 1887, was the first such town to be incorporated Florida Agricultural and Mechanical College is founded to provide higher education to African Americans.
1889
A. Philip Randolph is born in Crescent City, Florida Randolph organizes the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, an African American AFL union.
Florida becomes the first state to use the poll tax to disenfranchise black voters.
1889-1893
Charles F. Dupont as the state's first elected black sheriff.
1900
In January James Weldon Johnson writes the lyrics and his brother John Rosamond Johnson composes the music for Lift Every Voice and Sing in their hometown of Jacksonville, Florida in celebration of the birthday of Abraham Lincoln. The song is eventually adopted as the black national anthem.
1903
Author Zora Neale Hurston is born in Earonville, Florida.
1904
Mary McLeod Bethune founds the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Girls.
1923
The first week of January a race riot erupts in Rosewood.
1934
William "Bill" De Kova White, the first African American president of the National Baseball League was born in Lakewood.
1958
Blanche Calloway is the first African American woman to vote in Miami.
1968
Joe Lang Kershaw becomes the first African American elected to the Florida legislature in this century.
1975
Governor Askew appoints Joseoh W. Hatchett of Pinellas County to the Supreme Court, the first African- American justice.
1978
Daniel ' Chappie" James dies of a heart attack. He was the first African American four-star general.
His childhood home was close to Pensacola Navel Air Station and he dreamed of becoming an aviator.
1994
Governor Lawton Chiles names former African American legislator, Doug Jamerson to be Commissioner of Education.