It is located north of Jacksonville, on Amelia Island, in Nassau County. During the time of segregation and the Jim Crow era, African-Americans were denied access. In addition, farther south of Franklintown, the Jim Crow era forced African-Americans to develop independent businesses and communities that addressed the needs of people disenfranchised. The first “Black Beach” community in Northeast Florida that was a recreational center for Black was Manhattan Beach.
Known as the “Black Pearl”, located between Myrtle Beach and North Myrtle Beach, Atlantic Beach remains the only current black-owned beach in the nation. American Beach is a historic beach community in Northeast Florida that was once popular with African-American vacationers. Some other historic black beaches that are now less developed or no longer exist are definitely worth noting. After the Civil Rights Act desegregated Florida's beaches in 1964, American Beach as a resort for blacks ceased to be a necessity, and many African-American residents of Jackson went to places closer to their homes.
During the time of segregation and the Jim Crow era, African-Americans were denied access to many public services, such as public pools and beaches, to increase the value of nearby real estate, among other reasons. Despite local opposition, Butler eventually succeeded in convincing local government leaders to provide an access road from the A1A to his beach. As early as 1900, blacks from Jacksonville visited Manhattan Beach, which had a pavilion with changing rooms, a cafeteria, and a permanent “outdoor camp” built by Eartha White for children with tuberculosis. Lewis, another beach that became a reality in defying segregation laws and Jim Crow, saw it as a safe haven where his friends and employees could enjoy themselves quietly.
It became the only stretch of beach between Daytona Beach and American Beach, north of Jacksonville, where African-Americans were allowed to enjoy the sand and the sea. As tourism grew, the beach known as “The Negro Ocean Playground” was filled with food, lodging and entertainment. American Beach was co-founded in 1935 by Florida's first black millionaire, Abraham Lincoln Lewis, and his Afro-American Life Insurance Company. But when asked, most people who live in Butler Beach simply say, “I live near Crescent Beach because they know that even many locals don't have a clear idea of the location of Butler Beach.
Nowadays, visitors can enjoy the beach, see the famous NaNa dune (this dune system is the highest in all of Florida and is incredible to see) and visit A. American Beach, which hosted numerous celebrities during this period, such as folklorist Zora Neale Hurston, singer Billie Daniels, Cab Calloway, Ray Charles, Billy Eckstein, Hank Aaron, Joe Louis, actor Ossie Davis and Sherman Hemsley. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 banned racial discrimination, but it also ended Butler Beach's appeal as an exclusive destination for blacks.
