Plantation FAMU: University's Origin as a Slave Plantation Unknown to Many Students

Photo credit: Fla. Div. of Historical Resources William Pope DuVal, first territorial governor of Florida, owned a slave plantation where FAMU stands.

To say that students at Florida A&M University are standing on the shoulders of history is more than a metaphor.

Less than two centuries ago, William Pope DuVal, who in 1822 became the first civil governor of Florida Territory, owned "Highwood," a slave plantation that existed where FAMU stands. Most students are oblivious to this reality, but some accept it as a part of the past. Others refuse to deny the irony of walking on the grounds where slaves once did.

"People have died where we stand," said Jianna Hopkins, a junior psychology student. "We have a connection to that because so many have died for us to have an education."

The 22-year-old Cincinnati native, who was not previously aware that FAMU was built on plantation grounds, said she was torn about the fact.

"It's unsettling because of the fact that our people were degraded and dehumanized right here," Hopkins said. "But it's positive because although we're on a plantation, we have a university."

Jonathan Johnson, 19, a criminal justice student, said he also did not know about this ironic aspect of FAMU's past. He said the campus's history was absent from the university's curriculum.

"Teachers should discuss the history with students, especially first-year students," said the freshman from Jacksonville, Fla.

James Eaton, retired history professor emeritus, has done extensive research regarding the FAMU's history.

"The plantation was called Highwood, Fla.," said the 1976 founder of the Florida Black Archives on the FAMU campus. "Gov. DuVal and his brother owned it."

Eaton said that during the term of William H. Gray Jr., FAMU president from 1944 to 1949, the school administration had a slave tree on campus chopped down.

'The tree located on the southwest side of the library was cut down because they needed space," Eaton said. "There was a chain wrapped around it that was removed by [1924-1944 FAMU] President [John Robert E.] Lee's daughter and was never found again."

Some students around campus believe FAMU's location on an old plantation puts the state of blacks in America in perspective.

Hopkins said she thinks slavery still exists today but on a psychological level.

"The visible chains are gone, but now we have to break out of the invisible chains," Hopkins said. "I think we are still, in essence, slaves."

Eaton agreed that remnants of the past are still afflicting black people today.

"Things haven't gotten that much better," Eaton said. "Klan robes have been exchanged for business suits."

Although collective progress is evident, Eaton said black people still have quite a journey ahead.

Russell Nichols, a student at Florida A&M University, writes for The Famuan. He can be reached at [email protected].

Posted Feb. 16, 2004