For those who read my blog on a regular or semi-regular basis, you will have recognized the lack of any new entries during the week of May 17th. (I took my computer along with me in hopes of blogging as the week unfolded, but no free wi-fi at the hotel and as it turns out, we were very busy from morning to evening that there would have been little time for blogging anyway and we were tired by the end of most days.)
The Colonel and I were out of town that week. We were in Tallahassee for an inter-museum conference that concentrated on heritage tourism. The museum we volunteer for and are board members of belongs to the Florida African-American Heritage Preservation Network and all of the other network's museums were in Tallahassee too. There were other organizations not from the network in attendance as well, such as the Smithsonian Museum.
We heard from many speakers, held round table discussions and also got to visit some of the area's historical places and museums. We saw and did so much that I will have to break the week's worth of activity and experience down, so that each day is covered by its own blog.
Here we go...day one...
Monday, May 17th...The Colonel and I leave home early, around 6 AM. It will be at least a 7 hour drive to Tallahassee, the state's capital. Yam and Spud will hold down the fort while we are gone (a first...and we came back to a clean house...thanks guys). We are driving my yellow VW bug and not the truck because the air conditioning isn't working in the truck and my bug gets better gas mileage. The Colonel, who does not drive it much, is impressed with the handling and roomy, comfortable interior.
We have an uneventful drive north on I-75, even with the traffic being a bit congested in the Sarasota/Tampa area. Eventually we peel off to highway 27, a more bucolic drive, our kind of byroad.
We are making good time and stop in Cedar Key (part of our travel plan) for lunch. Cedar Key has had human occupation since 500 B.C. In 1999 a 2,000 year old skeleton was found in an ancient burial mound on the key. Cedar Key was used by the Seminole Indians and the Spanish as a watering stop. The Spanish used it as they returned to Spain from Mexico. The pirates Jean Lafitte and Captain Kidd also used it.
In 1864 the Union Army occupied Cedar Key which in turn disrupted the Confederate Army's salt supply. In the early 20th century, fishing, sponging and oystering were the key's industries. President Hoover made Cedar Key a national wildlife preserve in 1929. Today tourism is the key's major industry. There are art and seafood festivals held there every year.
The Colonel and I walk along the water's edge, taking in the little shops and then step into The Rusty Rim restaurant for lunch. My shrimp was delicious.Back in the car, we head for another planned stop on our way up to Tallahassee...Rosewood...it is 9 miles east of Cedar Key.
There is nothing left of Rosewood, no buildings, no ruins, just a historical marker.
Rosewood was settled in 1845 by both blacks and whites. The timber industry was big and there were two pencil mills as well as turpentine and saw mills in operation. In 1890 the pencil mills closed and most of the whites moved away, so in 1900 Rosewood was made up of mostly black residents who were self-sufficient. Rosewood had 3 churches, a school, a sugar mill, turpentine mill, two general stores (one white owned) and even a baseball team. The residents of Rosewood enjoyed middle call prosperity.
The Rosewood Massacre took place during the first week of January 1923. A white woman in a near by town accused a black man of assaulting her and in retaliation white vigilantes raided Rosewood, killed some of the blacks there and burnt structures. Survivors fled into the surrounding swamps, hiding for days and were eventually evacuated to larger towns via train or car. More than 100 whites returned to Rosewood two days later to burn the remaining buildings. State and local authorities did not make any arrests. In May of 1994 the State of Florida paid 2.1 million dollars in compensation to survivors and descendants of survivors of the Rosewood massacre.
Leaving Rosewood behind us, The Colonel and I pull into Tallahassee and to our hotel there. It is only 2 blocks from the Old Capitol building (the view from our window).
After checking into our room we meet with the other Florida African-American Heritage Preservation Network members in the lobby. We discuss what we want to accomplish through this conference then go as a group to dinner at a local BBQ restaurant. Delicious.
The Colonel and I are tired from our long drive, so after dinner we turn in for the night. We will need a good night's rest for day two of our Tallahassee trip.
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