An American Beach for African Americans

Synopis: “In the only complete history of Florida’s American Beach to date, Marsha Dean Phelts draws together personal interviews, photos, newspaper articles, memoirs, maps, and official documents to reconstruct the character and traditions of Amelia Island’s 200-acre African American community. In its heyday, when other beaches grudgingly provided only limited access, black vacationers traveled as many as 1,000 miles down the east coast of the United States and hundreds of miles along the Gulf coast to a beachfront that welcomed their business.”

I came across this book while perusing the bookshelves of my local Barnes & Noble looking for new additons to my growing black history book collection. I eventually purchased another volume about the same topic, American Beach: A Saga of Race, Wealth, and Memory, but not before thoroughly browsing the pages of this book from start to finish. Unlike that latter work, “An American Beach for African Americans” takes a closer look at the historical origins of Florida’s famous black beach, from the days of slavery, through the Jim Crow era of the early 1900’s and the civil rights moment of the 1950’s and 60’s. Highly Recommended. Rated 4 out of 5 Stars.

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