Tampa has extra reason to be excited for Juneteenth this year: The announcement of the city’s first ever Black History Museum. The center will offer a Tampa accompaniment to St. Pete’s Woodson African American Museum of Florida, and its location is as impactful as the stories which will line its walls.
Who + what?
On Monday, June 17, the Tampa Bay History Center and Tampa Housing Authority formally announced the imminent arrival of the museum.
“We’re very excited about this journey,” said Fred Hearns, the Tampa Bay History Center’s curator of Black History. “Learning your history is so important, especially for young people.”
“It’s motivational when you find out that people who had much less than we have back in the time when Black people could not vote, had very few rights, and there were no Black elected officials,” Hearns added. “They persevered and overcame those challenges, and they did tremendous things, and they paved the way for this generation.”
Exhibits are yet to be confirmed, but officials say they will explore Tampa’s history with Black music, food, fashion, and neighborhoods.
Tampa’s Red Quarters district, 1927.
Photo via Florida Memory
Where?
The museum will be located inside the historical St. James Episcopal Church, first built in 1895 at 1202 N. Governor St. The church is owned by the Tampa Housing Authority, and recently underwent a $2 million preservation renovation, completed in 2021.
The church is in downtown Tampa’s Encore district, an area of cultural + historical significance. Hearns noted, “it’s right in the middle of the historic Scrub neighborhood.” It was “the first real community of the formerly enslaved African people who lived here in Tampa and along Central Avenue... which was the Harlem of the South,” he added.
Records show musicians like Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, and Etta James all have ties to the neighborhood which was first formed in 1864, just after emancipation.
Take a peek at where the center will be — it has already been added to Google Maps. Try this: Check out the progress of renovations on the church with older street view pictures.
There are several ways to get involved with the project.
Photo via Mayor Jane Castor
When + how?
Officials say the museum is still ~18 months away, due to the need to collect artifacts, records, and oral accounts. In the meantime, C.J. Roberts — Tampa Bay History Center CEO — and Hearns want to hear from the community + find out what people want included within the museum.
How else can you get involved? For starters, the History Center is looking for volunteers, ambassadors, and anyone willing to get the word out about the project. Get in touch.
The church is already hosting community events, so you don’t have to wait 18 months to see inside. For instance, the “Fabric of Freedom: Juneteenth Fashion Show” takes place on Wednesday, June 19. Hosted by and benefiting the Tampa Bay History Center, the show explores looks from the 19th century to today, as well as food + drink. Tickets cost $35.
For the bibliophiles, the Black History Book Club meets every other month at the church, where “significant works reflecting the African American journey” are discussed. Events are free and chosen works range from personal memoirs to critical essays.
