Rosewood, Florida

Rosewood, Florida (HMBL5)

Location: Cedar Key, FL 32625 Levy County
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Country: United States of America
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N 29° 14.322', W 82° 55.958'

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Inscription
Racial violence erupted in the small and quiet Rosewood community January 1-7, 1923. Rosewood, a predominantly colored community, was home to the Bradley, Carrier, Carter, Goins, and Hall families, among others. Residents supported a school taught by Mahulda "Gussie" Brown Carrier, three churches, and a Masonic lodge. Many of them owned their homes, some were business owners, and others worked in nearby Sumner and at the Cummer Lumber Mill. This quiet life came to an end on January 1, 1923, when a white Sumner woman accused a black man of assaulting her. In the search for her alleged attacker, whites terrorized and killed Rosewood residents. In the days of fear and violence that followed, many Rosewood citizens sought refuge in the nearby woods. White merchant John M. Wright and other courageous whites sheltered some of the fleeing men, women and children. Whites burned Rosewood and looted livestock and property; two were killed while attacking a home. Five blacks also lost their lives: Sam Carter, who was tortured for information and shot to death on January 1; Sarah Carrier; Lexie Gordon; James Carrier; and Mingo Williams. Those who survived were forever scarred.

Haunted by what had happened, Rosewood residents took a vow of silence, lived in fear and never returned to claim their property. That silence was broken seventy-one years later. In 1994 survivors, including Minnie Lee Langley, Arnett Turner Goins, and Wilson Hall, filed a claims bill in the Florida Legislature. A Special Master, an expert appointed by the Speaker of the House, ruled that the state had a "moral obligation" to compensate survivors for the loss of property, violation of constitutional rights, and mental anguish. On May 4, 1994, Governor Lawton Chiles signed a $2.1 million compensation bill. Nine survivors received $150,000 each for mental anguish, and a state university scholarship fund was established for the families of Rosewood and their descendants. A fund was also established to compensate those Rosewood families who could demonstrate property loss.
Details
HM NumberHMBL5
Tags
Marker NumberF-497
Year Placed2004
Placed ByThe Real Rosewood Foundation, Inc. and Florida Department of State
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Friday, October 17th, 2014 at 3:32am PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)17R E 312176 N 3235979
Decimal Degrees29.23870000, -82.93263333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 29° 14.322', W 82° 55.958'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds29° 14' 19.32" N, 82° 55' 57.48" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)352
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 6251 SW State Road 24, Cedar Key FL 32625, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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