Jekyll Island in Glynn County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
Memories of Home
Wanderer Memory Trail
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, March 10, 2021
1. Memories of Home Marker
A famous Gullah Geechee proverb says: If oonuh ent kno weh oonuh dah gwine, oonuh should kno weh oonuh come f’um. Translation: If you don't know where you're going, you should know where you come from.
Through necessity, the enslaved community adopted some of the ways of their owners in order to adjust to life in their new surroundings. They also retained many of their ancestral traditions and folkways. This resulted in a unique blend of West African, English, French, and Portuguese traditions, known as the Gullah Geechee culture.
Today, the Gullah Geechee community still thrives in many coastal areas of the Southeast.
Here in Georgia, community members continue to preserve and pass on the language, storytelling, food, crafts, music and dance traditions handed down to them from their ancestors.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Arts, Letters, Music.
Location. 31° 1.362′ N, 81° 26.059′ W. Marker is on Jekyll Island, Georgia, in Glynn County. Marker can be reached from Beach View Drive, 0.1 miles north of South Riverview Drive. Marker is located along the Wanderer
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Food (here, next to this marker); Pursuit of Freedom (a few steps from this marker); Generations (within shouting distance of this marker); Music (within shouting distance of this marker); A Life of Slavery (within shouting distance of this marker); Strange New World (within shouting distance of this marker); A Miserable Voyage (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Marched to the Sea (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Jekyll Island.
Regarding Memories of Home. The UNESCO Slave Route Project: Resistance, Liberty, Heritage. This site fulfils the quality criteria set by the UNESCO Slave Route Project in conjunction with the International Network of Managers of Sites and Itineraries of Memory.
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Wanderer Memory Trail
Also see . . .
1. Wanderer Memory Trail. The trail is located along the banks of the Jekyll River where the ship illegally came ashore 160 years ago with more than 500 enslaved Africans. (Submitted on March 18, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
2. Marker detail: Regional Map
2. Geechee and Gullah Culture. Although the islands along the southeastern U.S. coast harbor the same collective of West Africans, the name Gullah has come to be the accepted name of the islanders in South Carolina, while Geechee refers to the islanders of Georgia. Many traditions of the Gullah and Geechee culture were passed from one generation to the next through language, agriculture, and spirituality. The culture has been linked to specific West African ethnic groups who were enslaved on island plantations to grow rice, indigo, and cotton starting in 1750, when antislavery laws ended in the Georgia colony. (Submitted on March 18, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Courtesy Yvonne Grovner
3. Marker detail: Gullah Geechee Culture
Courtesy The Brunswick News
4. Marker detail: Gullah Geechee Culture
Courtesy The Brunswick News
5. Marker detail: Gullah Geechee Culture
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, March 10, 2021
6. Memories of Home Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on March 18, 2021. It was originally submitted on March 16, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 125 times since then and 8 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on March 18, 2021, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
