American Beach in Nassau County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Franklintown Chapel

Photographed by Mike Stroud, August 12, 2012

1. Franklintown Chapel Marker

Inscription. The Franklintown community was first populated by ex-slaves from the Samuel Harrison plantation. Franklintown Chapel's congregation was organized in 1880 by Trinity M.E. Church, located in the City of Fernandina at the north end of Amelia Island. The Reverend J.G. Howard served as the chapel's first pastor from 1880-1885. As the congregation grew, in 1888 ex-slave and Union soldier Gabriel Means and his wife, Edith Drummond Means, donated land for a building. In 1892, Means built the first Franklin Chapel, a one-room, unpainted frame structure. In 1949, that building was demolished to make way for the construction of State Road A1A, and a new building was constructed. In 1972, following the purchase of the entire Franklintown tract by the Amelia Island Company, the 1949 building along with the original bell from the 1892 chapel was moved to the American Beach community. American Beach had been established as an African-American ocean playground in 1935 by the Afro-American Life Insurance Company's Pension Bureau under its president Abraham Lincoln Lewis. Today, Franklintown Chapel serves as the Gabriel Lincoln Means Fellowship

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

Hall for the adjacent Franklintown United Methodist Church.

A Florida Heritage Site

Erected 2012 by The American Beach Property Owners' Association, Inc and The Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-737.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Industry & Commerce • Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical year for this entry is 1880.

Location. 30° 34.385′ N, 81° 27.179′ W. Marker is in American Beach, Florida, in Nassau County. It is on Lewis Street near 1st Coastal Highway (State Road A1A), on the right when traveling west. Located on Amelia Island. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1415 Lewis Street, Fernandina Beach FL 32034, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in First Coast,

in Greater Jacksonville,

and on the Sea Islands.

It is also in the American South

and on the Eastern Seaboard. 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

Franklintown Chapel and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mike Stroud, August 12, 2012

2. Franklintown Chapel and Marker

and adjacent Franklintown United Methodist Church

once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Martha's Hideaway (approx. 0.4 miles away); Historic American Beach (approx. half a mile away); The Guzman House (approx. half a mile away); The Stewart House (approx. half a mile away); American Beach at the Crossroads (approx. half a mile away); A Dune System Called "NaNa" (approx. half a mile away); Burney Park (approx. half a mile away); Evans’ Rendezvous (approx. half a mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in American Beach.

Franklintown Chapel and Marker along Lewis Street image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mike Stroud, August 12, 2012

3. Franklintown Chapel and Marker along Lewis Street

Credits. This page was last revised on March 5, 2024. It was originally submitted on August 18, 2012, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 1,433 times since then and 124 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on August 19, 2012, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.