A vivid recollection of a groundbreaking beach community
“This book is both distinctive and valuable as one of the relatively few books on African Americans in Florida and as one of the even smaller number of publications treating the subject of well-to-do blacks.”—Choice
“An insider’s account, which is remarkably candid about the strengths and weaknesses, triumphs and pitfalls, of the community.”—Southern Quarterly
“This is a lively story of a place marked by community, sociability and food, where generations of families found an oasis from racism.”—Publishers Weekly
“The vivid, personal story of American Beach, a coastal community on Amelia Island in northeastern Florida . . . blends oral history with never-before-collected documents dating back to the turn of the century, including photographs, historical records, and even recipes for such local favorites as Daddy Charlie’s Jamaican Con Pollo.”—Preservation
“More than a study of African American recreation, the book provides insight into the self-sufficient African American communities that were commonplace in the days of Jim Crow and their ultimate decline after desegregation.”—Alabama Review
“Marsha Dean Phelts uses facts, photographs, profiles, memories and recipes to tell a story as intimate as the epics we enjoy over pie and coffee. It’s less a book about racial discrimination than it is a story of the consequences for the people of a particular community and their triumph over confinement.”—Tampa Tribune
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. Phelts invokes colorful firsthand accounts and “old-timer” stories, and paints what is ultimately a personal and intimate portrait of a community rich in heritage and culture.
