June 12, 2026, 5:00 p.m. ET
- Preserving Gullah Geechee history is vital to understanding the full and accurate story of freedom in America.
- Juneteenth is often remembered as a single moment, but freedom was delayed, contested and fought across generations.
- Florida’s long resistance included Black Seminoles and Maroon allies who defended land during the Seminole Wars.
- William T. Sherman's Special Field Orders No. 15 foreshadowed coastal lands of the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor.
- Juneteenth fuels efforts to preserve history; the corridor links land, culture and an accurate American freedom narrative.
- Long before Juneteenth, formerly enslaved Africans established free settlements like Fort Mose in Florida.
- Preserving Gullah Geechee history is vital to understanding the full and accurate story of freedom in America.
Juneteenth is often remembered as a single moment ― June 19, 1865 ― when U.S. Army General Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 5, officially enforcing the Emancipation Proclamation.
To treat Juneteenth as just a date is to overlook a larger truth: Freedom in America has always been delayed, contested and fought across generations.
Long before 1865, that struggle was unfolding in Florida. During the First Spanish Period, formerly enslaved Africans established Fort Mose near St. Augustine ― a free Black settlement where residents defended their liberty with arms in 1740, nearly four decades before the American Revolution.
That legacy continued into the Second Spanish Period, as Black Seminoles and their allies resisted capture and fought to maintain independence during the Seminole Wars from 1816-1858.
Fighting reached places like St. Augustine, Fort Pierce and Jupiter, where Seminole/Maroon warriors defended their land. A young cadet named William T. Sherman served in this war and was stationed at Fort Pierce, placing him within this longer history of contested freedom.
Two decades later, Sherman issued Special Field Orders No. 15. That order set aside a vast stretch of coastal land from South Carolina to Florida, where many Gullah Geechee people lived. In many ways, this region foreshadowed what we now recognize as the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor.
Though the modern corridor is a preservation effort, its geographic roots echo the same coastal lands identified in Sherman’s order ― a place where Black communities cultivated culture, land and independence.
That promise, however, was short-lived. Even so, it inspired communities along the St. Johns River from Jacksonville to St. Augustine, where Black families built lives rooted in agriculture, resilience and self-determination.
Juneteenth reminds us that freedom did not arrive all at once. It was announced in Texas, defended in Florida and tied to land that was too often taken back.
Today, we continue to work to preserve Gullah Geechee history, and hence Juneteenth is not just about the past, but about understanding the full landscape of freedom and the accurate story behind it. It is also why the corridor is so vitally important to America history.
Derek Hankerson is a documentary filmmaker, author and historian who is actively involved in establishing the Florida Black History Museum. He lives in St. Augustine.
This guest column is the opinion of the author and does not necessarily represent the views of the Times-Union. We welcome a diversity of opinions.
