Little Haiti in Miami in Miami-Dade County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
Lemon City-Knightsville
Photographed by Tim Fillmon, June 15, 2021
1. Lemon City-Knightsville Marker
Inscription.
Lemon City-Knightsville. . Bound by the area east of I-95, between 71st and 54th Streets, the Lemon City community had at least three identifiable historic black communities at the turn of the 20th century, including this area, Knightsville. Surrounded by groves owned by white residents, the neighborhood consisted of five acres divided into small lots along a sand road (now NE 68th Street) that stretched west up the pineland ridge from Rock Road (NE 2nd Avenue). Knightsville was the cultural center of Lemon Citys black community, many of whom were of Bahamian descent. Two churches were located in the neighborhood, Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist Church, founded in 1894, and St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church, founded in 1901. Both churches were damaged in the 1906 Florida Keys hurricane, but were later restored. The lodge of the local chapter of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, a two-story wood frame building, was also located in Knightsville. The first floor served as a local school, while the second was used as meeting space and for social events. In the mid-20th century, as racial discrimination and urban renewal began to force black residents out of Lemon City, both churches relocated northwest to the Liberty City area.
Bound by the area east of I-95, between 71st and 54th Streets, the Lemon City community had at least three identifiable historic black communities at the turn of the 20th century, including this area, Knightsville. Surrounded by groves owned by white residents, the neighborhood consisted of five acres divided into small lots along a sand road (now NE 68th Street) that stretched west up the pineland ridge from Rock Road (NE 2nd Avenue). Knightsville was the cultural center of Lemon Citys black community, many of whom were of Bahamian descent. Two churches were located in the neighborhood, Mount Tabor Missionary Baptist Church, founded in 1894, and St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church, founded in 1901. Both churches were damaged in the 1906 Florida Keys hurricane, but were later restored. The lodge of the local chapter of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, a two-story wood frame building, was also located in Knightsville. The first floor served as a local school, while the second was used as meeting space and for social events. In the mid-20th century, as racial discrimination and urban renewal began to force black residents out of Lemon City, both churches relocated northwest to the Liberty City area.
Erected 2019 by The City of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, The City of Miami in coordination
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with Alexander Adams, and the Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-1071.)
Location. 25° 50.239′ N, 80° 11.553′ W. Marker is in Miami, Florida, in Miami-Dade County. It is in Little Haiti. It is at the intersection of Northeast 68th Street and Northeast 2nd Avenue, on the left when traveling east on Northeast 68th Street. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Miami FL 33138, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in South Florida and on the Gold Coast. It is also in the American South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
2. Lemon City-Knightsville Marker looking southeast through intersection
. (Submitted on June 18, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on January 22, 2024. It was originally submitted on June 18, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 851 times since then and 79 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on June 18, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.
