Entering this week, I turned my attention towards accessing the local community who will be most impacted by this project. I started at home through visiting the historic St. Lawrence AME church in Eatonville, then researched Baker County where the Olustee battlefield resides. Through this strategy I made valuable connections and discovered vital information about the climate that may surround the Olustee project once it is fully enacted.
On June 4th, I visited the St. Lawrence AME church to tap into the local African American community. I thought that a Sunday would be the most ideal time as the church did not have a lot of information online or other methods to contact them. Before the service started, I was able to talk to one of the church officers. I asked about the history of the church and was luckily given the contact information of a regular attendee and fixture in the community, Wanda Randolph. Wanda Randolph is a council woman for the town of Eatonville and may prove to be an essential contact for information about the church's long history. Or at the very least, this may be a way to get local leaders interested in the Olustee project. The church itself was created in 1881. Though this was two decades after the Civil War, I believe there can still be a connection as most likely survivors or relatives from that period may have helped established the church or left records about that tumultuous period. So far, I have not had the opportunity to contact Miss Randolph, but look forward to following up with her as my next plan of action. She can direct me towards some lesser known resources regarding local African American history.
Then, the rest of the week was occupied with learning more about Baker County. My initial internet searches did not yield much information. Although, with time I encountered a local newsletter titled Baker County Press, that has been active since 1929. I believe this will be the ideal resource for understanding the current climate and some of the more recent history behind Baker County. However, part of the online newsletter requires a paid subscription. Regardless, through my limited access I did not find anything significant. The articles were mostly obituaries, local honors, and stories on crime. As a result, I was forced to shift my attention to other resources that had more information. One such resource was Baker County's website that hosts facts about their commissioners, departments, and resources for the community. Within their website I noticed that they kept records of their monthly commissioner meetings where issues of the county are discussed. I began perusing these records somewhat aimlessly hoping to find something useful. I eventually found things like the date of the local Olustee festival that honors the battle, the contact information of Baker County commissioners, and the contact information of the Olustee Battlefield Citizens' Support Organization that seems to be involved in the planning behind the annual reenactment.
Still, I wanted to discover something representative of the community's voice or opinions. I realized that it may be easier to instead work backwards. If I discovered a significant local event or story, then I could see if it had been discussed at a certain meeting. I again went back to the internet and tried searching key words as "Baker County" was not sufficient. I tried "Baker County and Olustee", "Baker County controversies," and "Baker County Civil War." These searches gave general information, until I used "Baker County race relations." With this search I was directed to an article that discussed a controversy surrounding the Baker County courthouse. A mural on the courthouse depicted the evolution of American history throughout various periods. Unfortunately, this included a depiction of the KKK for a portion of the mural. The 2020 article discussed how this had divided the community as some wanted the mural removed and others wanted to keep it. After reading the article, I was able to use the date and match it to a transcript of a Baker County commissioner meeting that had happened around the same time. Within this PDF I discovered a host of emails written to the commissioners regarding the issue. The emails described the community's feelings and ranged from sentiments of wanting to embrace Baker County's dark past, to frustration over "political correctness." Some of the responses even expressed fear that if the controversial part of the mural was removed the Olustee battle reenactment may follow. This information was perfect for the project. Though the emails and letters did not exclusively discuss the mass grave or Union soldiers it illuminated the community's mindset towards potentially divisive, controversial topics. It showed me that the Olustee project could produce a passionate and multifaceted reaction from the community.
Understanding this environment will allow the VHP team to be more mindful about how to present the project. Moreover, the transcript provided the contact information of local people in the community. At Tuesday's team meeting it was discussed that it may be beneficial to create a Google Form asking questions about history in general, Olustee, and the mass grave. We could send these forms to the emails within the transcript, and try to gain a more detailed understanding of their feelings or knowledge on the Olustee conflict from the Union perspective. Some people within the PDF described themselves as activists or community leaders. Thus, contacting them for their thoughts could open more avenues of information about the mass grave. Ultimately, I plan to use the upcoming week to draft potential questions and hopefully begin sending them to the community members of Baker County. I am looking forward to seeing the responses, memories, and opinions people hold towards the Olustee battle.
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