Ethnohistorical Study of the Kingsley Plantation Community
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National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Timucuan Ecological & Historic Preserve Jacksonville, Florida Kingsley Plantation Ethnohistorical Study 'MPSB)BOOBIBO .VOTJMOB.D(VOEP 4BSB.VSQIZ ;FQIBOJBI,JOHTMFZ "OUB "OOB .BKJHFFO/EJBZF,JOHTMFZ (FPSHF(JCCT *** *TBCFMMB,JOHTMFZ(JCCT +PIO.BYXFMM,JOHTMFZ (FPSHF,JOHTMFZ "OBUPJMF75SBWFST +PIO4BNNJT .BSZ&,JOHTMFZ4BNNJT $SBO#BYUFS .BSUIB,JOHTMFZ#BYUFS &EXBSE4BNNJT &M[POB-FXJT/PCJMFP "--FXJT .BSZ'4BNNJT-FXJT (FPSHF8(JCCT *7 5IF,JOHTMFZ.BKJHFFO/EJBZF4BNNJT-FXJT#FUTDIGBNJMZMJOF "OOJF3FFE-FXJT +BNFT)FOSZ #FSUIB-FXJT 'BNJMZNFNCFSTJEFOUJmFEBTCMBDL i/FHSPw PS"GSJDBO 4BNNJT-FXJT 'BNJMZNFNCFSTJEFOUJmFEBTXIJUF $BVDBTJBO PS&VSPQFBO .BSSJBHF %FTDFOU /PUF5IJTJTBQBSUJBMMJTUPGUIF,JOHTMFZ4BNNJT-FXJT#FUTDIEFTDFOUMJOF +PIO5#FUTDI .BSZ'SBODJT +BNFT-FPOBSE 5IFMNB-FXJT 4BNNJT-FXJT#FUTDI 4BNNJT-FXJT "3PCJOTPO +PIOFUUB 3PCFSU$PMF .B7ZOFF +PIO5IPNBT $$SFTTXFMM 4BNNJT-FXJT#FSUTDI$PMF 4BNNJT-FXJT#FSUTDI 4BNNJT-FXJT#FSUTDI 1FSJ'SBODFT 4BNNJT-FXJT#FSUTDI Cultural Resources Southeast Region Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve Ethnohistorical Study of the Kingsley Plantation Community January 2006 originally prepared August 2004 by Antoinette T. Jackson with Allan F. Burns Department of Anthropology University of Florida Gainesville, Florida This ethnohistorical study exists in two formats. A printed version is available for study at the park, at the Southeast Regional Office of the National Park Service, and at a variety of other repositories around the United States. For more widespread access, this ethnohistorical study also exists as a PDF through the web site of the National Park Service. Please visit www.nps.gov for more information. Cultural Resources Division Southeast Regional Office National Park Service 100 Alabama Street, SW Atlanta, Georgia 30303 404.562.3117 Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve 12713 Fort Caroline Road Jacksonville, Florida 32225 http://www.nps.gov/timu About the cover: The front cover shows the Kingsley Sammis- Lewis Betsch descent chart. Contents Foreword . v Acknowledgements . vii Introduction . 1 Chapter One: The Kingsley Plantation Today—A Physical (and Social) Reminder . 5 Chapter Two: Zephaniah Kingsley and the Kingsley Plantation in Global Perspective . 15 Chapter Three: Kingsley Descendants, Community Associations, and the Plantation Legacy Kingsley Gibbs and Kingsley McNeill Families . 19 Anna’s Family. 23 Kingsley-LeBron and Kingsley-Eliebo. 23 Kingsley-Sammis and Kingsley-Baxter . 23 Kingsley-Sammis-Lewis-Betsch Family . 23 Kingsley Plantation Extended Community . 28 Remembering Anna Majigeen Ndiaye Today . 31 Chapter Four: Transition, Movement, and Memory — The Kingsley Plantation Community and Jacksonville’s Growth and Development Transition to Industrialization in Jacksonville: A Historical Overview . 35 The Bartley-King-Murrell-Williams Family Profile . 40 The Bartley-King-Murrell Family . 40 Bartley-Scott Family. 45 Bartley-King-Williams Family . 47 National Park Service iii Chapter Five: Ethnographic Profiles of a Historic Resource Site — The Kingsley Plantation Talbot Islands, Kingsley Plantation, and the Christopher Family . 51 The Christopher Family Profile . 53 The Daniels Family and the Fort George Club . 55 Conclusion . 59 Notes . 61 Appendices Appendix 1: Kingsley Family Descent Charts . 65 Appendix 2: 1860, 1870, 1880, and 1920 US Census Data Tables . 70 Appendix 3: 1910 and 1930 Negro Occupations Census Charts . 79 Appendix 4: Aunt Easter Family Genealogy Charts. 81 Bibliography . 83 List of Figures 1 Timeline of Kingsley Plantation. 6 2 Map of Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve and surrounding area. NPS map . 7 3 Sketch map of Kingsley Plantation, in the Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve. NPS map . 8 4 Kingsley family descendants. 10 5 Kingsley Gibbs family descendants. 11 6 Zephaniah Kingsley family in global historical perspective. NPS map . 16 7 Descendants of Zephaniah Kingsley Sr.and Isabella Johnstone.. 20 8 1860 and 1870 US Census data from St. Johns County Florida. 21 9 Descendants of George Gibbs III and Isabella Kingsley. 22 10 Descendants of Anta Majigeen Njaay (Anna) and Zephaniah Kingsley Jr. 24 11 1860 US Census data from Duval County Florida. 25 12 Kingsley Sammis-Lewis Betsch descent chart. 26 13 Descendants of Anta Majigeen Njaay (Anna) and Zephaniah Kingsley Jr. 27 14 Kingsley Plantation extended community.. 29 15 1870 US Census Report excerpt from Duval County Florida. 36 16 Negro Occupations in Florida in 1910. 38 17 Sample 1920 US Census data from Duval County Florida. 39 18 Easter Bartley's Family-Descendants of Carpenter Bonify and wife Mary.. 41 19 1920 US Census data from Duval County Florida. 42 20 Descendants of Easter and Quash Lottery /George Bartley Jr. 46 21 Descendants of Easter and Quash Lottery /George Bartley Jr. 48 22 1880 US Census excerpts from Duval County Florida. 52 23 1920 US Census excerpts from Duval County Florida. 56 iv Kingsley Plantation Community Ethnohistorical Study Foreword When the 19th century ended, Jacksonville, Florida, was transformed from a sparsely populated seacoast town into a city. That transformation was made by families that had been enslaved, families that held slaves, and free people whose lives created a new city on Florida’s “First Coast.” Jacksonville today is a city with a rich tapestry of industry, tourism, service, and a naval installation as large as any in the United States. The transformation of the mouth of the St. Johns River and the marshlands of the sea islands of Georgia and Florida to a thriving metropolis is clearly seen in this study of the Kingsley Plantation. The Kingsley Plan- tation is important as a place were people lived and worked in Florida, as well as a place in Florida’s history. As this report.