History's Lost Black Towns

Black Americans have played a vital role in building this nation. Eager to live and prosper as free people, we have established our own towns since Colonial times. Many of these communities were destroyed by racial violence or injustice, while some just died out. The Root looks at the history of these lost towns.Fort Mose, Fla.: The First 'Emancipation Proclamation'
Courtesy of Black Past

Founded in 1738, Fort Mose, located just north of St. Augustine, is the United States' first free black settlement. Amid the fight for control of the New World, Great Britain, Spain and other European nations relied on African slave labor. The king of Spain issued an edict: Any male slave of the British colonies who escaped to the Spanish colony of Florida would be set free -- as long as he declared his allegiance to Spain and the Catholic Church. The settlement was abandoned when the British took possession of Florida in 1763.

Captions by Monée Fields-White
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