The Central Tampa News & Tribune
Following A Trail
Crystal L. Lauderdale/Tampa Tribune
St. Paul AME church in downtown Tampa has been featured recently as a heritage site. The church was dedicated in 1914.
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Published: October 24, 2007
TAMPA - Booker Lundy doesn't need to be told too much about the Florida Black Heritage Trail.
Lundy, 64, has lived the Heritage Trail - a listing of historical places first published by the state in 1991 - at least the part that winds through the city.
As a youngster, he attended Helping Hand Day Nursery, a 1924-founded day care at 623 E. Seventh Ave.
Then he went to St. Peter Claver School, 1401 Governor St., the oldest black school, public or private, still functioning in Hillsborough County.
Lundy, who retired five years ago after 30 years as a cameraman for Fox 13 News, is a volunteer caretaker at St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church, 506 E. Harrison St.
The church, built in 1914, is the grand dame of Tampa's black churches, with Gothic and Romanesque detailing. Outside, there's a brick, gingerbread design, and inside, a pristine white sanctuary is highlighted by an archway of lights. The notable stained glass windows at one time illuminated numerous civil rights meetings in the 1960s and '70s.
But on a sunny fall morning, Lundy is alone, checking things out, collecting the mail and puttering around the basement, where the house of worship's history is told in photographs on a wall.
'Nearly 80 percent of these folks have passed,' said Lundy, pointing to people in the pictures. Nearby, fine antique furniture creates an intimate setting for quiet talk.
Lundy said tour groups often make appointments to view the church. But he imagines a day when the Heritage Trail will attract more attention.
'I hope I never see the day when these few rare places are gone,' he said.
In the state's glossy booklet, part of its extensive www.visit florida.com program, 10 Tampa sites are listed in its recently released third edition. Two locations on the list are private - the Jackson House, 851 Zack St., and the Helping Hand Day Nursery - so no visitors are allowed.
When the list was first published, retired University of Florida English Professor Kevin McCarthy was so intrigued he began a quest to visit all 140 sites.
'I realized there were a lot more,' he said.
So he worked on his own list, which now numbers 300 black history sites in 67 counties. The result is the recently published, 344-page 'African American Sites in Florida.'
In 1993, McCarthy collaborated on another book, 'African Americans in Florida,' with Florida State University Professor Maxine Jones.
From his Gainesville home, McCarthy said it's hard to say whether black historical sites will ever be a tourist draw.
'There really aren't any in the state on a large scale of attracting people,' he said. But he sees the value of promoting their presence for the sake of schoolchildren and other groups.
'This is living history, where children can touch and feel the past,' he said.
Locally, retired city official Fred Hearns begins his Tampa Bay History Tours on Saturday.
The four-hour bus trip highlights such famous names as Al Lopez, Butterfly McQueen, the Rev. Billy Graham and Ray Charles. All the places on the Florida Black Heritage Trail also are featured.
Hearns, who held a practice run recently with help from downtown hotel concierges, said the tour, which is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. four days a week, will stop at Oaklawn Cemetery, H.B. Plant Hall at the University of Tampa and Ybor City, where groups will stop for a lunch break.
'The practice drive was a real learning experience,' said Hearns, who previously held the tours on a limited basis. 'It will all work out, though, because all I've heard from people is how much a bus tour is needed to focus on this city's incredible history.'
GUIDE TO TOURS
Florida Black Heritage Trail, a glossy guide booklet published by the state, is free. Call 1-800-847-7278 or write Florida Department of State, Division of Historical Resources, 500 S. Bronough St., Tallahassee FL 32399-0250, or go to www.flheritage.com.
'African American Sites in Florida,' by retired University of Florida Professor Kevin McCarthy, is available for $29.95. The 344-page hardback features black-and-white photographs. Contact Pineapple Press at P.O. Box 3889, Sarasota FL 342301, call (941) 739-2219 or go to www.pineapplepress.com.
Tampa Bay History Tours begin Saturday. Cost ranges from $21.75 to $27.25 per person for the four-hour tour. Call Fred Hearns at (813) 866-5205 for information. For tickets, contact Destination Tampa Bay, 651 Channelside Drive, Suite 207, (opposite The Florida Aquarium entrance) or call (813) 905-5202.
Reporter Janis D. Froelich can be reached at (813) 835-2104 or jfroelich@tampatrib.com.
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