Momentum continues to build in West Augustine, where the former Florida Memorial University campus is officially moving forward as the future home of the Florida Museum of Black History. The project is being championed by the Florida Museum of Black History Foundation, the nonprofit organization formed to advocate for the museum, engage the public, and secure the private funding needed to bring the vision to life. Since St. Johns County approved the site, the initiative has shifted from concept to action, most notably with a $1 million state investment supporting early planning, design, and engineering.
For Howard Holley, president of the Florida Black History Museum Foundation, that public support represents an important vote of confidence but not the full picture. “The state is backing this project, but it will not fully fund it,” Holley explains. “Every dollar from the state or county must be matched by private support.” That work is already underway. The Foundation is actively engaging donors, volunteers, storytellers, and cultural partners across Florida. Private contributions have already begun, and broader fundraising efforts will expand as the project reaches its next legislative milestone.
Chosen after a rigorous, statewide site selection process, St. Augustine stood out for its unparalleled history. With more than 450 years of Black presence, from the first enslaved Africans to civil rights leaders, educators, artists, and entrepreneurs, the city offers an authentic foundation for a museum that will honor the past while shaping the future.“This isn’t just a St. Augustine project,” he says. “It’s a regional and statewide legacy.” The museum is envisioned as a living campus featuring exhibitions, educational programming, cultural events, and future-forward technology designed to tell Florida’s Black history in full. From Fort Mose to civil rights movements and creative achievements across the state, the stories are vast and often untold. As Holley puts it: “If you love Florida, you deserve to know all of it.”
One of the most powerful outcomes of this project may be what it unlocks. Across Florida, families have preserved photographs, letters, diaries, artifacts, and oral histories for generations, often without a place to share them. The Museum aims to become that place: a home for stories that have long been overlooked, fragmented, or at risk of being lost, ensuring they are preserved and shared before time erases them.
Community members are encouraged to get involved by donating, volunteering, sharing family stories, and helping preserve a legacy that will educate, uplift, and inspire generations to come.
