Weekly Challenger African American Digital Newspaper Archive & Research Guide

It has been said that journalism is the first rough draft of history.
If that is true, The Weekly Challenger is writing a first draft about the history of St. Petersburg's African American community. 
This digital archive is part of the USF Libraries African American Experience in Florida (AAE) online portal.
Here is a link to an INDEX of story subjects from The Weekly Challenger digital newspaper ARCHIVE.
Following are links to newspaper stories as well as other resources about local African American history.  
 

The links posted below are divided into the following topics:
_______________________

THE AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE ASSOCIATION

FOUNDATION FOR A HEALTHY ST. PETERSBURG

GAS PLANT NEIGHBORHOOD (TROPICANA FIELD SITE)

THE JORDAN PARK NEIGHBORHOOD

LYNCHING MEMORIAL -- "PINELLAS REMEMBERS: THE TRUTH OF RACIAL TERROR"
COMMUNITY REMEMBRANCE PROJECT COALITION

DR. CARTER G. WOODSON AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM
AND OTHER HISTORY ORGANIZATIONS

THE DEUCES

AFRICAN AMERICAN BURIAL GROUNDS & REMEMBERING PROJECT

ADDITIONAL VIDEOS & ONLINE EXHIBITS

RELATED RESOURCES

BOOKS AND UNPUBLISHED THESES, DISSERTATIONS
 

_________________________________________________

ST. PETERSBURG AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY RESOURCES 
_________________________________________________

https://www.stpete.org/residents/parks___recreation/african_american_heritage_trail.php
(Map)

THE AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE ASSOCIATION

 

"African American Heritage Trail"
 (YouTube page)

VIDEOS:

Stop 1: "In the Beginning"

Stop 2: "At the Crossroads"

Stop 3: "In the Name of Progress"

Stop 4: "The Manhattan Casino"

Stop 5: "Building 22nd Street"

Stop 6: "The Royal Theater"

Stop 7: "Faces and Stories"

Stop 8: "A Community of Caring"

Stop 9: "Blazing the Way"

Stop 10: "Crossing the Line"

Stop 11: "Jordan Park Housing Complex"

Stop 12: "Pioneer Schools"

Stop 13: "Civic Associations"

Stop 14: "Women United"

Stop 15: "Avenue of Faith"

Stop 16: "Happy Workers Daycare and Trinity Presbyterian Church"

Stop 17: "Empowered Negro Women"

Stop 18: "Early Housing"

Stop 19: "Campbell Park and Immaculate Conception"

Stop 20: "The End of an Era"
_______________________

"Introduction: Welcome to the African American Heritage Trial"

"Welcome to the African American Heritage Trail" (Trailer 2)"

"Welcome to the African American Heritage Trail" (Trailer 3)"

"Preview the Digital African American Heritage Trail"
(Recorded Zoom session with Tombolo Books, November 16, 2021.) 
_______________________
 

St. Petersburg African-American Heritage Trail. 
City of St. Petersburg.
 

Video: "Celebrating Black History Month: St. Pete's Historic 22nd Street South."
Java Ingram interviews Gwendolyn Reese.
WTSP-TV, Channel 10, Great Day Live, February 27, 2023.

"Virtual tours of St. Pete’s African American Heritage Trail."
By Waveney Ann Moore, St. Pete Catalyst, November 27, 2021

St. Petersburg African-American Heritage Trail. 
Olive B. McLin Project. (USF Neighborhood News Bureau, Internet Archive)

Video: "Experience the historical landmarks of St. Pete on the African American Heritage Trail." 
By Tony Sadiku, FOX 13, February 23, 2021.

Video: "St. Pete African American Heritage Trail embarks on journey back in time." 
By Robert Boyd, WFTS-TV, February 13, 2020.

Video: "Tour Highlights St. Pete's African-American Heritage." 
WTVT-TV, 2017.

Video: "Explore the African American Heritage Trail in St. Petersburg." 
By Jon Wilson, YouTube, TampaBay Reporter, February 17, 2017.
Eight short video tours.
 

_______________________

Links to: Weekly Challenger stories that mention the African American Heritage Association of St. Petersburg
_______________________

The African American Heritage Association &
City of St. Petersburg video history interviews with
Former Deputy Mayor Dr. Kanika Tomalin & Gwendolyn Reese (2021)

Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - Standing on the Shoulders."
Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - The Future."
Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - African American Heritage Trail."
Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - Gibbs High School."
Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - Elder Jordan Sr."

Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - Segregation."

Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - Manhattan Casino."

Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - The Deuces: 22nd Street South."

Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - Education."

_______________________
 

The African American Heritage Association
"Community Conversations"
(Videos -- Recorded Zoom Sessions with Tombolo Books)

Visit the Tombolo Books Facebook page for archived links to all of the programs.

Video: "A Visual History of Civil Rights & Social Change in Pinellas County."
Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, 2021. 
 

"Looking Back to Move Forward:
A History of Civil Rights and Social Change in Pinellas County."
Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, 2021.
Description:
This project "is an extension of an exhibit installed at the Center for Health Equity entitled "Building an Equity Movement." The exhibit shares stories of episodes in Pinellas County’s history when people came together to secure rights, combat injustice, and work to advance equity. The goal of the exhibit is to embrace that heritage and inspire solidarity and resolve among today’s social change makers."
 

Video: Webinar: Community Journalism: Webinar 4:  
"The Issues."
J.A. Jones, Guest Speaker; Nicole Slaughter Graham, Webinar Host.
The Weekly Challenger, Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, A Four-Part Series, July 15, 2021.
 

Video: Webinar: Community Journalism: Webinar 3:  
"How to Report on a Community."
Dr. Bernardo Motta, Guest Speaker; Nicole Slaughter Graham, Webinar Host.
The Weekly Challenger, Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, A Four-Part Series, June 17, 2021.
 

Video: Webinar: Community Journalism: Webinar 2:  
"Reporting on the History of a Community."
Jon Wilson, Guest Speaker; Nicole Slaughter Graham, Webinar Host.
The Weekly Challenger, Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, A Four-Part Series, May 20, 2021.
 

Video: Webinar: Community Journalism: Webinar 1: “What is Community Journalism?”
Dr. Goliath Davis, Guest Speaker; Nicole Slaughter Graham, Webinar Host. 
The Weekly Challenger, Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, A Four-Part Series, April 15, 2021.
 

Video: "St. Pete Stories, Askia Muhammad Aquil and Jon Wilson."
Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, 2018. 

GAS PLANT NEIGHBORHOOD (TROPICANA FIELD SITE)

Links to: Weekly Challenger stories that mention the former Gas Plant neighborhood 
 

"I AM: The story of the Gas Plant Neighborhood."
By Gwendolyn Reese, The Weekly Challenger, May 13, 2021.
 

"Hines & Tampa Bay Rays named as master developer of the Historic Gas Plant District Redevelopment."
The Weekly Challenger, January 30, 2023.

"Gas Plant documentary will feature former residents."
By Frank Drouzas, The Weekly Challenger, October 13, 2022.

"Tropicana Field proposals unveiled."
By Veronica Brezina, St. Pete Catalyst, December 5 , 2022. 

Video: Mayor Ken Welch Announces Request for Tropicana Field Area / Former Gas Plant Neighborhood Redevelopment Proposals.
City of St. Petersburg, August 26, 2022.
See Also:
City of St. Petersburg Announcement.
Excerpt:
“A competitive response to this RFP must include plans to....
Acknowledgment of future mitigation requirements related to Oaklawn Cemetery.”
and
Historic Gas Plant Site Request for Proposal."

"The Trop Site has a history problem. Let’s look for a solution."
By Monica Kile, I Love the Burg, June 16, 2022.

Video: "Gas Plant, Laurel Park neighborhoods reunite to honor past."
By Miguel Octavio, WTSP-TV, December 12, 2021. 

Audio: "Two Black neighborhoods were demolished for Tropicana Field. Ex-residents gathered and remembered."
By Daylina Miller, WUSF, December 12, 2021. 

Video: "Reunion for former residents of Black neighborhoods that were demolished to build Tropicana Field."
By Saundra Weathers, Bay News 9, Dec. 10, 2021.
 

Mayor Kriseman's Announcement about the Selection of Midtown Development Group. 
City of St. Petersburg, December 2, 2021. 
See Also:
Video: Story about Midtown Announcement. 
Bay News 9, December 2, 2021.

"City Wilds: Old wounds and big promises weigh on proposals for redevelopment of St. Pete’s Tropicana Field."
By Thomas Hallock, Creative Loafing, April 14, 2021.

Audio: "St. Petersburg Community Leaders Share Optimism And Concern For Tropicana Field Site's Future."
By Bradley George. Produced by Dinorah Prevost.
Florida Matters, WUSF Public Media, March 30, 2021.

Video: The Gas Plant Area.
City of St. Petersburg, October 2020.

"The Buried History of Methodist Town and the Gas Plant District."
and
"Methodist Town Project."
Department of Journalism, Neighborhood News Bureau, USF St. Petersburg campus.

"Timeline: 40 Years of Broken Promises to the Black Community Over the Trop; What We Lost & What to Watch for as Developers Present This Week."
 By Toni Gallardo, The Power Broker, April 5, 2021.

"Tropicana Field came at a cost to the Black community."
By Waveney Ann Moore, St. Pete Catalyst, February 5, 2021.

"City Wilds: Proposed plans for St. Pete’s Gas Plant site raise red flags for a neighborhood thats been wronged before."
By Thomas Hallock, Creative Loafing, August 12, 2020.

"Community, Faith, Land:
A Historical Look at St. Petersburg Black Churches from the Gas Plant Area."
By Tracy L. Darity, University of South Florida MLA project, Originally posted in 2019.

Video: "Black community fears more broken promises if Trop site is redeveloped."
WTSP-TV, July 18, 2019.

"Reimagining the Trop: A riverwalk, a convention center, a new name?"
By Caitlin Johnston, Tampa Bay Times, August 7, 2018.

"City Wilds: Gas Plant -- imagining a lost neighborhood."
By Thomas Hallock, Creative Loafing, October 19, 2017.

"Redesign of Trop focuses transformational change in St. Pete."
83 Degrees, April 4, 2017.

"Tropicana Field deal didn't pay off for all:
Group seeks benefits never realized for a razed neighborhood."
By Nicole Hutcheson, St. Petersburg Times, November 28, 2007.

"Build a Stadium, Raze a Neighborhood:
Memories of Gas Plant haunt the Rays' latest plans."
By Alex Pickett, Creative Loafing, November 28, 2007.

"Around the dome, echoes of the past."
By James Harper, St. Petersburg Times, March 29, 1998.

Book:
Vatelot, Sarah Jane. Where Have All The Mangoes Gone?:
Reactivating the Tropicana Field Site -- On the Threshold of St Petersburg’s History, Culture and Memory.
St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg Press, 2020.
(See Also:
"Community Voices: Where have all the mangoes gone?"
By Sarah Jane Vatelot, St. Pete Catalyst, August 2019, 
and the video of the 2020 book launch at the Florida Holocaust Museum
and video of 2021 Heritage Village presentation.) 

Program Brochure:
Various Gas Plant neighborhood businesses placed advertisements in the 1952 Melrose Clubhouse related program publication cited below. One of the founders of the organization that hosted the program was Fannye Ayer Ponder, who lived in the Sugar Hill area of the Gas Plant neighborhood.
(Source: “Melrose Park Clubhouse Souvenir Program Of the City Federation of Colored Womens Clubs.”
March 30, 1952. Digital Commons, University of North Florida.)
See Also:
“Fannye Ayer Ponder: Her story lives on.”
By Raven Joy Shonel, The Weekly Challenger, June 14, 2018.

THE JORDAN PARK NEIGHBORHOOD

Links to: Weekly Challenger stories that mention Elder Jordan
 

"The life and legacy of Elder Jordan."
By Holly Kestenis, The Weekly Challenger, June 12, 2014.

"History immortalized: City of St. Pete unveils bronze statue of Elder Jordan Sr."
By Nicole Slaughter Graham, The Weekly Challenger, Oct. 30, 2020.
Excerpt:
"Wednesday afternoon saw a sizable crowd of people gathered just south of the historic Manhattan Casino for the unveiling of the long-awaited statue of Elder Jordan Sr., one of St. Petersburg’s original Black pioneers.
Speakers at the event included Mayor Rick Kriseman, Deputy Mayor Dr. Kanika Tomalin, Veatrice Farrell, executive director of The Deuces Live, Rev. Basha Jordan, Elder Jordan Sr.’s grandson and John Hair, the local artist commissioned to create the bronze statue.
'Elder Jordan Sr. was a man who didn’t just build a dance hall or fight to get a school constructed; he built opportunity,' said Mayor Kriseman. 'He paved the way for much progress here in St. Pete. We thank him, and we thank his family. Now he will be immortalized forever, welcoming all to the Deuces.'"

Video: Jordan Park Redevelopment Groundbreaking Ceremony.
Facebook, January 28, 2022.

"Mayor Ken Welch, city leaders break ground on Jordan Park redevelopment."
The Weekly Challenger, Feb. 3, 2022.
Excerpt:
"Last week, Mayor Ken Welch and other city and county leaders and members of the St. Petersburg Housing Authority broke ground on a $93 million redevelopment project at Jordan Park, located near the Deuces Ninth Avenue South.
This will be the first time since 2000 significant work has been done on the historic affordable housing development. Jordan Park was originally constructed from 1939-41 as the city’s first African American public housing complex. It sits on property donated by Elder Jordan, an icon in the city’s Black community."

Links to: Weekly Challenger stories that mention the Jordan Park Projects Nostalgic Association
Links to: Weekly Challenger stories that mention the Jordan Park neighborhood 
 

St. Petersburg Housing Authority: Jordan Park Redevelopment
(St. Petersburg Housing Authority home page)
 

LYNCHING MEMORIAL -- "PINELLAS REMEMBERS: THE TRUTH OF RACIAL TERROR"
COMMUNITY REMEMBRANCE PROJECT COALITION

Pinellas County Community Remembrance Project Coalition (“Pinellas Remembers”) 
The St. Petersburg organization's mission "is to bear witness to the legacy of racial terror, epitomized by lynchings in America, in alignment with the Equal Justice Initiative."
 

Video: "Unveiling of the St. Petersburg Lynching Memorial."
Facebook, Pinellas Remembers, Feb. 23, 2021.

Video: Pinellas Remembers.
"Coalition members talk about the truth of racial terror in Pinellas County." 2021.

"History of a St. Petersburg lynching was hidden. Not anymore."
In 1914, John Evans was attacked by an angry mob and killed before a jury or judge weighed in.
By Leonora LaPeter Anton, Tampa Bay Times, Feb. 23, 2021.
 

"Remembrance: A panel discussion on racial terror lynchings."
By Frank Drouzas, The Weekly Challenger, Feb. 19, 2021.

Weekly Challenger stories related to the St. Petersburg / Pinellas County lynching memorial. 
"I AM John Evans."
By Gwendolyn Reese, The Weekly Challenger, July 12, 2018.
"John Evans was lynched at Ninth Street (now Dr. Martin Luther King Street) and Second Avenue South on Tuesday, November 12, 1914."
and
"I AM Parker Watson."
By Gwendolyn Reese, The Weekly Challenger, July 19, 2018.
"Parker Watson was lynched at the hands of a group of armed men wearing masks after being taken from three police officers on the evening of May 9, 1926."

"Recollections, reflections, remembrances and racial reconciliation in St. Pete – now is the time."
By Jacqueline Williams Hubbard, The Weekly Challenger, Jan. 7, 2021.
(Additional articles)

DR. CARTER G. WOODSON AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM
AND OTHER HISTORY ORGANIZATIONS

Links to: Weekly Challenger stories that mention the Woodson Museum
 

Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museum. 
Terri Lipsey Scott, Executive Director.

Video: "Dr. Carter Woodson museum provides context during pivotal moment in African American history." 
Fox 13, June 8, 2020.

Video: "Dr. Carter G. Woodson Museum in St. Petersburg Celebrates Black History All Year Long." 
WTSP-TV, 2019.

Association for the Study of African American Life and History 

"Is St. Pete really that progressive? A familiar face says maybe not.
Terri Lipsey Scott is everywhere -- holding events, raising money for a $20 million African American museum. And when it comes to racial equity, she says, the city could be doing more."
By Margo Snipe, The Tampa Bay Times, Feb. 26, 2021.
 

Jordan Park Administration Building. (Woodson African American Museum Building.)
Request for listing in the St. Petersburg Register of Historic Places.
City of St. Petersburg, Planning and Development Services Department,
Urban Planning and Historic Preservation Division, May 2021.

FLORIDA HOLOCAUST MUSEUM CIVIL RIGHTS IN TAMPA BAY EXHIBIT

Video: "New Florida Holocaust Museum exhibit tells the story of Civil Rights Movement in Tampa Bay."
By Lila Gross, WFLA-TV, September 2019. 

Online Exhibit: “Beaches, Benches, and Boycotts: The Civil Rights Movement in Tampa Bay,” Florida Holocaust Museum, 2020.
St. Petersburg history
Tampa history
Sarasota history

Florida Holocaust Museum

THE JAMES MUSEUM

The James Museum
See Also:
"Black stories through Black art."
The Weekly Challenger, June 25, 2021.
Excerpt:
"When something reverberates, it continues on as if in a series of echoes -- which is exactly what the Dr. Carter G. Woodson African American Museum hopes to accomplish with its new art exhibit, the aptly titled “Reverberations,” on view at the James Museum of Western and Wildlife Art now through Aug. 29."
 

ST. PETERSBURG MUSEUM OF HISTORY

St. Petersburg Museum of History
See Also:
Examples from Photo Archive (flickr)

THE DEUCES 

The Deuces Live -- The Heart of South St. Petersburg 
"Deuces Live is a nonprofit organization created to revive and revitalize the historic neighborhood of St. Petersburg’s 22nd Street, dubbed 'The Deuces' after its double 2’s, the heart of a vibrant and prosperous African-American community on St. Pete’s South Side."
 

Video: "Celebrating Black History Month: St. Pete's Historic 22nd Street South."
Java Ingram interviews Gwendolyn Reese.
WTSP-TV, Channel 10, Great Day Live, February 27, 2023.

Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - The Deuces: 22nd Street South."
City of St. Petersburg, The African American Heritage Association, Feb. 2021.
 

Video: "Deuces Rising: The City of St. Pete's Plans for the 22nd Street South Corridor." 
City of St. Petersburg, December 11, 2019.
and
Deuces Rising web page. 
 

"The Deuces: To Know This City -- First Know This Street." 
By Jon Wilson. St. Petersburg Times, July 28, 2002.
(Includes a link to an archived special multimedia report.)

Timeline: "Decades on the Deuces." 
By Jon Wilson. St. Petersburg Times, July 28, 2002.

"African-American History in St. Petersburg’s Deuces Neighborhood." 
By Jon Wilson, Visit Florida.

The Deuces: Manhattan Casino

Video: "St. Pete Black History Stories - Manhattan Casino."
City of St. Petersburg, The African American Heritage Association, March 2021.
 

"Vintage St. Pete: The Manhattan Casino."
By Bill DeYoung, St. Pete Catalyst, August 15, 2020.

Video: "Remembering the Historic Manhattan Casino in St. Petersburg."
By Chris Zuppa, Tampa Bay Times, 2011.

AFRICAN AMERICAN BURIAL GROUNDS & REMEMBERING PROJECT

USF African American Burial Ground & Remembering Project.
https://aae.lib.usf.edu/aabgp/

Audio: African American Burial Grounds Oral History Project. (Digital Commons, USF Libraries.)

ArcGIS StoryMaps interactive exhibit.  
and
Artist’s Gallery.

The Black Cemetery Network.  
 

USF Heritage Research Lab.

_________________________

"Event highlights St. Pete Black cemeteries were erased, not ‘lost.’"
By Nicole Slaughter Graham, The Weekly Challenger, November 30, 2022.
 

"Research project to recover, engage public on lost history of Black burial grounds in Tampa Bay."
The Weekly Challenger, USF St. Petersburg campus, Dec. 23, 2020.
Excerpt:
"In Tampa Bay and across the nation, many African-American burial grounds and cemeteries have been lost to history, neglected, abandoned, even paved over and developed on. A research project funded by a University of South Florida anti-racism initiative seeks to recover and reimagine the forgotten history of these sacred places.
Consisting of faculty, staff, graduate students, and community partners from fields such as anthropology, business, English and the arts, the African American Burial Grounds & Remembering Project will identify and preserve these cemeteries in Tampa Bay."

Video: "Are there graves still buried on the Tropicana Field property?"
By Saundra Weathers, Bay News 9, April 20, 2021.
 

Video: "The African American Burial Grounds and Remembering Project." 
A Community Conversation with the African American Heritage Association & Tombolo Books.
Dr. Antoinette Jackson and Dr. Julie Buckner Armstrong are interviewed by Gwendolyn Reese,  May 19, 2021. 

Video: "FDOT investigating erased veteran and Black cemeteries
under I-175 ahead of possible project."
By Emerald Morrow, WTSP-TV, May 26, 2021.

"St. Pete’s Black burial grounds erased from history."
By Frank Drouzas, The Weekly Challenger, May 27, 2021.

"The Lost African American Cemeteries of Tampa Bay & What’s Being Done to Remember Them."
By Drew Smith, Associate Librarian and Genealogist, June 9, 2021.
 

"USF launches website to serve as a national hub for erased Black cemeteries."
By Paul Guzzo, Tampa Bay Times, June 16, 2021.
 

"Anti-Racism Initiative Seeks to Recover History of Black Burial Grounds."
USF Magazine, Summer 2021, pages 15-14.  

"Possible Graves Found Under Tropicana Field Parking Lot, Report Finds."
By Bradley George, WUSF, August 9, 2021.
See Also:
"Oaklawn Cemetery Ground Penetrating Radar Survey at Tropicana Field Parking Lots 1 and 2 St Petersburg, Florida."
Cardno Company, July 19, 2021. Draft.
and
Cardno Oaklawn Cemetery Project Page. 
 

"Graves were found under Tropicana Field parking lots. Now what?"
By Paul Guzzo, Tampa Bay Times, August 10, 2021.
 

Video: "Radar identifies three possible graves under Tropicana Field parking lots."
By Briona Arradondo, FOX 13 News, August 11, 2021.
 

Audio: "Tampa Bay-Based Project Continues The Work Of Highlighting Unearthed Cemeteries."
By Bradley George. Produced by Dinorah Prevost.
Florida Matters, WUSF Public Media, September 14, 2021.
 

"When Black History Is Unearthed, Who Gets to Speak or the Dead?
Efforts to rescue African American burial grounds and remains have exposed deep conflicts over inheritance and representation."
By Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, September 27, 2021.

Abandoned African-American Cemeteries Task Force.
(Final Report, December 17, 2021.)
This ten-member Florida Department of State task force was established in 2021.  
 

Audio: "'Thank God you found me': Florida officials unearth a fourth forgotten Black cemetery."
By Greg Allen, NPR, December 20, 2021.

"Tampa lawmakers introduce bill to protect and find erased Black cemeteries."
By Paul Guzzo, Tampa Bay Times, January 6, 2022.
 

"Preserving Black Cemeteries: Recovering Lost History By Preserving the Memory and Physical Spaces of Historical Black Cemeteries."
USF St. Petersburg campus Innovations Magazine, Volume 3, 2022.
 

"Research project recovers, remembers lost history of Black cemeteries."
By Mark Parker, St. Pete Catalyst, February 2, 2022.

"It’s a matter of dignity and justice to acknowledge African American cemetery erasure."
By Shannon Peck-Bartle and Antoinette Jackson, Tampa Bay Times, February 2, 2022.
 

Video: "For descendants of those buried at erased Black cemeteries, work never stops to honor ancestry."
By Briona Arradondo, FOX 13 News, February 9, 2022.

Video: "African American Burial Grounds and Remembering Project."
Tampa Bay History Center, February 2022.

ADDITIONAL VIDEOS & ONLINE EXHIBITS

Video: "The Courageous 12." 
City of St. Petersburg, February 2020.
 

Video: "City honors the Courageous 12 with plaque at new police building." 
Posted on YouTube by The Weekly Challenger, November 1, 2019.
 

Video: "How Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Inspired a Movement in Tampa Bay." 
(Remembering Joseph Savage and the 1968 St. Petersburg Sanitation Strike)
WFLA-TV, 2018.
 

Video: "Black Pioneers of the Sunshine City." 
Produced by David and Archie Boston.
WEDU-TV, YouTube, 2018.
 

Video: "Historic Bethel AME Church 125th Anniversary Celebration." 
Historic Bethel AME Church, 2020.
 

Video: "Black History Month 2022: We Are St. Pete: Exploring Our History."
St. Petersburg Metropolitan Section, National Council of Negro Women, 2022.
 

"Community, Faith, Land:
A Historical Look at St. Petersburg Black Churches from the Gas Plant Area."
By Tracy L. Darity, University of South Florida MLA project, Originally posted in 2019.

Video: "An Oral History With Omali Yeshitela."
The Samuel Proctor Oral History Program, University of Florida, January 23, 2020.
 

Civil Rights: Racial Segregation and Protests Along Pinellas Gulf Beaches, 1940-1980.
Gulf Beaches project, USF Honors program, 2020.

Online Exhibit: “Beaches, Benches, and Boycotts: The Civil Rights Movement in Tampa Bay,”
Florida Holocaust Museum, 2020.
St. Petersburg history
Tampa history
Sarasota history

RELATED RESOURCES

Tampa Bay Collard Green Festival.

"I AM 400 banner brings celebration of Black history to campus."
The Weekly Challenger, University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus, May 27, 2021.

The Melrose Clubhouse.
Preserve the 'Burg.

“Melrose Park Clubhouse Souvenir Program of the City Federation of Colored Womens Clubs."
St. Petersburg, Florida, March 30, 1952.  
Digital Commons, University of North Florida.
 

"Aug. 28 Is A Significant Day In Black History. Here's How To Recognize It Across Tampa Bay."
By Daylina Miller, WUSF, August 27, 2021.
 

Structural Racism Study. (City website page)
"The City of St. Petersburg commissioned a study team led by the University of South Florida, in partnership with several community members, to examine both the historical and modern-day impact that structural racism has had on the lives of Black people in the City of St. Petersburg, Florida. Dec. 2021.
See Also:
Direct link to study --
"Examination of Historical and Modern-Day Impact of Structural Racism on the Lives of Black
People in the City of St. Petersburg, Florida."  
and
"City of St. Petersburg approves USF and community researchers’ recommendations on how to address systemic racism."
USF St. Petersburg Campus, Dec.  2021. 

"Vintage St. Pete: Making musical history at the Manhattan Casino." 
By Bill DeYoung, The St. Pete Catalyst, August 15, 2020.

"Q&A: He’s a photojournalist, pastor, police department employee and mentor to young Black and Latino men." 
An interview with the Rev. Kenny Irby on race, religion, policing and good journalism.
By Roy Peter Clark, Poynter Institute, June 10, 2020.

Green Book of Tampa Bay 
"We aim to provide you with information on African American cultural sites, black artists and black-owned businesses in Pinellas and Hillsborough counties."

St. Petersburg Chapter of the Links, Incorporated 
"A group of women dedicated to continuing the legacy of our Founders who were committed to providing meaningful, purposeful and transformational community service."
 

Olive B. McLin Community History Project. 
USF St. Petersburg campus, Circa 1999.
(Archived version from the Internet Archive)

Olive B. McLin Community History Project (Updated) 
USF St. Petersburg campus NNB, circa 2019.
SELECTED SECTION:
"To Be Black And To Live In St. Petersburg." 
St. Petersburg Times special report (40 articles), 1981.

USF ST. PETERSBURG CAMPUS NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS BUREAU

Neighborhood News Bureau Homepage. 
 

Methodist Town Project. 
"....This website serves as the community's digital archive. Within these pages, you'll get to know the Methodist Town community, its history, and its residents through interviews, articles, photos, documents, and more."

USF ST. PETERBURG CAMPUS LIBRARY'S WEBSITE

Nelson Poynter Memorial Library catalog. 
 

Antiracist Reading List. 
University of South Florida Libraries.
"In response to the 2020 summer black lives matter/police brutality protests University of South Florida Libraries wishes to present resources for people wishing to learn more about race, racism and antiracism. The Libraries are committed to fostering diversity and inclusion in order to provide access and opportunity for all of our users."

Digital Commons 

OLDER TAMPA BAY TIMES ARTICLES / VIDEOS

“Pinellas School Desegregation: A Chronology." 
By Kitty Bennett, St. Petersburg Times, May 21, 2003.

“Journalist’s words helped open doors, minds. Peggy Peterman: 1936-2004." 
By Craig Basse, St. Petersburg Times, August 20, 2004.

“A warrior, a father, a fighter.” 
St. Petersburg Times, November 25, 2007.
"Ralph Wimbish waged - and won - many battles at lunch counters, theaters and hotels. His son remembers them, and their cost."

“Tropicana Field deal didn’t pay off for all." 
By Nicole Hutcheson, St. Petersburg Times, November 28, 2007.

"Failure Factories." 
By Michael LaForgia, Cara Fitzpatrick and Lisa Gartner, Tampa Bay Times special report, 2015.
A Pulitzer Prize-winning series about schools in St. Petersburg's African-American neighborhoods.

"George Floyd protests: How you can support Tampa Bay’s black community from home." 
By Gabrielle Calise, Tampa Bay Times, June 4, 2020.

"Once upon a time, St. Pete was the center of baseball’s fight for civil rights." 
By John Romano, Tampa Bay Times, June 6, 2020.

"The last of the ‘Courageous 12′ wants to make sure the group’s sacrifice is not forgotten." 

By Waveney Ann Moore, Tampa Bay Times, June 20, 2020.

"Are there graves under Tropicana Field parking lots? Archaeologists want to find out." 
By Paul Guzzo, Tampa Bay Times, July 2, 2020.

"Meet the artists who created St. Petersburg’s Black Lives Matter mural." 
By Maggie Duffy, Dirk Shadd and Boyzell Hosey, Tampa Bay Times, July 10, 2020.

Video: "Hidden Histories: Why St. Petersburg’s Black voters beat national averages." 
By Jennifer Glenfield, Tampa Bay Times, October 1, 2020.

"History of a St. Petersburg lynching was hidden. Not anymore."
By Leonora LaPeter Anton, Tampa Bay Times, February 23, 2021.

"Meet the Black Floridians behind these Tampa Bay landmarks.
They brought change around Florida. Now their names are on streets and landmarks around Tampa Bay."
By Gabrielle Calise, The Tampa Bay Times, Feb. 24, 2021.