- February 6, 2025
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Mt. Moriah Baptist Church is a small building on a small road that could easily go unnoticed if someone didn't know it was there.
However, this small Port Orange church, and the area where it sits just north of Charles Street, is packed full of history. The church is located in a section of the city that was once known as Freemanville, after 500 former slaves settled near the Halifax River on public land secured with the help of the U.S. Freedman Bureau in 1866.
Though little is left of the original settlement, the memory of the people who lived there has continued to live on during the city's annual Freemanville Ceremony.
On Tuesday, Feb. 13, city officials and members of the public crowded into the small church, which was built in 1911, to celebrate the 15th annual ceremony. Inside, attendees filled the 12 pews as well as extra chairs that had been set out for the event.
Discussing the importance of remembering the community of Freemanville, Mayor Don Burnette compared the area roots to those of the surrounding oak trees that have lasted for generations.
"I think about that when it comes to Freemanville and the roots of the city of Port Orange. This is a very, very strong community," Burnette said. "We've got very strong roots and those seedlings started here in what is known as Freemanville. This is founders day to me."
In addition to the 500 freed slaves that came to settle in the region, another 1,000 free slaves made Freemanville their home six months later. John Milton Hawks, a Union Army surgeon, was a major part of establishing the new community. Hawks helped form the Florida Land and Lumber Company in Port Orange in order to secure homesteads for the freed slaves.
"The successes of African American homesteads provides us with role models," Leonard Lempel, who spoke about the city's history, said. "They demonstrate the ability of the human spirit to overcome enormous hardships. These were people who were just out of slavery and had literally nothing."
Hawks' wife, Esther Hawks, formed the first integrated school in Volusia County. Eventually, the settlement, along with the lumber company and school came to an end in 1869. However, the community was not completely lost and the area had a second life when Port Orange was officially recognized as a community on April 26, 1867.
"The community of Freemanville provided a nurturing environment that enabled new generations of African Americans to thrive," Lempel said. "This is why the Freemanville celebration needs to continue — so that new residents and the new generation of children can understand Freemanville's important legacy, even as the community itself fades away."
