1828 - MARIANNA KEY LANDMARKS

In 1829, Marianna was designated as the county seat in Jackson County, Florida, superseding the earlier settlement of Webbville, which soon after dissolved and no longer exists. Marianna was platted along the Chipola River. Many planters from North Carolina relocated to Jackson County to develop new plantations to take advantage of the fertile soil. They relied on the labor of enslaved African Americans brought from the Upper South in the domestic slave trade. The community's maxim evolved from the Akan word, Sankofa, meaning "learn from our past, going into the future.

Like the majority of our Legacy Communities, Campbellton is a mostly rural community within Jackson County, full of rich history. Many residents of this community worked hard on their respective farms but the weekend would provide a much a family reunion. On Saturdays in the past, many residents would walk miles to other Legacy Communities to play baseball alternating every week playing in another community or hosting a game in their neighborhood. They played all types of sports with the other adjacent Jackson County Legacy Communities such as Springfield, Browntown, Graceville, Holyneck, and St. John (sometimes referred to as State Line).

Melvin Pittman and Bille Ray Graham close friends for over 50 years.

On Sundays, many residents attended St. Paul A.M.E. Church and Sunday school. On Wednesdays, the church would often host prayer meetings.

Springfield, like other Legacy Communities, was established on land that was once a plantation. After emancipation, sharecropping became the major industry in the area until the community became economically independent as its agricultural industry grew to be its main local industry. Springfield is located southeast of Campbellton, near US-231, which operates as a connection between the community and the rest of Jackson County and provides access to trade and other forms of economic opportunity.

The Springfield community suffered from out-migration after the increase in industrialization in the southeastern part of the County and those in search of education or better economic opportunity left Springfield for larger markets in Florida and other parts of the Southeast. As urban sprawl increased, more and more people moved to larger nearby cities, Springfield is still a tight knit community as those who remain in the communities have passed down traditions for generations. Locations like the Springfield Schoolhouse Museum and the Springfield A.M.E. Church have worked as community centers for gatherings, celebrations, and other social events.

One of these local traditional practices are the “Box Parties” hosted by Springfield A.M.E, a fundraiser for the church where church members prepare box lunches and sell them to community members. Another local celebration known as May Day started in 1865 called May 20th and commemorates when black people in Jackson County learned about their emancipation. For many of Springfield’s residents, the day was a huge event in school when the Springfield Schoolhouse was operating, and students celebrated by wrapping the May Pole, decorating arts and crafts, and apple bobbing.

Located near downtown Marianna, FL, this Legacy Community was once approximately 563 acres. Farming and sharecropping were originally the main sources of income, but later residents also held teaching and government jobs.

A renaissance period in the late 19th and early 20th centuries brought the construction of new schools and churches, coupled with thriving, minority-owned businesses. Involvement in city government remained important and five city mayors hailed from the West End community between the 1980 to 2016.

The Akan language originates in Ghana and is currently spoken by millions of people in Ghana and the Ivory Coast of Africa.