Sherry Dupree convinced a majority of Levy County Commissioners to send a letter of support to Tallahassee for a second Rosewood monument.
By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter
Levy County Commissioners voted 3-2 Tuesday to send a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis giving their general support to a second historical monument in Rosewood commemorating a 1923 incident.
Commission Chairman John Meeks holds a picture of the Rosewood monument as he discusses whether he supports sending a letter to Tallahassee in support of it. He eventually voted to send the letter.
Sherry Dupree of the Rosewood Heritage Foundation said state officials told their group local support was needed before they go to Tallahassee looking for grant money to purchase a half acre of land for the 7-foot tall monument.
“We have a monument that has been given to us, given to the State of Florida and we need a place to place this monument,” Dupree said. “The purpose is to encourage brotherhood, peace, forgiveness and tranquility from what happened in Rosewood in 1923.”
Commissioners made it clear they wouldn’t be involved in donating land for the monument, maintaining the monument or providing insurance for the monument. They were giving a general letter of support and nothing more.
In 1923, six blacks and two whites were killed in Rosewood, though there is considerable disagreement on how many black residents were actually killed. Dupree referred to Rosewood as an incident. For many years it was called the Rosewood Massacre.
Dupree was criticized in the meeting by Levy County Historical Society President Toni Collins for claiming to be a historian. Collins said Dupree provided misleading information on Rosewood. She said Dupree first came to commissioners on May 20, 2003 asking the county for a minority grant to purchase land and to deed the land to the Rosewood Heritage Foundation for construction of the Rosewood Heritage Center and Resort. Collins said two Rosewood descendants, the late Arnett Doctor, and Lizzie Jenkins, said at the time they were not connected to the Rosewood Heritage Foundation.
“Due to the confusion and infighting of the various groups involved in the promotion of Rosewood, the board members denied Ms. Dupree’s request,” Collins said, adding, “Ms. Dupree’s claim that she is a historian is a sham.”
Collins said at one time, Dupree’s organization was involved in selling a Christmas ornament that said the Pac Mac locomotive in Gulf Hammock was used to ferry Rosewood residents to safety, but Collins said the Pac Mac locomotive was not moved to Gulf Hammock until 1927.
She argued Levy County has an attractive state historical marker in Rosewood commemorating the incident of 1923. The marker can be seen along State Road 24 in Rosewood. She didn’t think a second monument was needed.
Dupree said the state historical marker is popular with tourists. She said she arranges bus tours to see the Rosewood marker and other historical sites in the state on the Black Heritage Trail. She believes the second historical monument will increase tourism in Levy County and raise public awareness of what happened in Rosewood and give people a place to quietly think about the incident.
But Collins suggested the bus tours aren’t legitimate.
“Our county does not need another monument nor do we need to accommodate Ms. Dupree’s bogus bus tours,” Collins said.
Commissioners Lilly Rooks and Mike Joyner voted against sending a letter of support for the monument. Those who voted for sending a “generic letter of support” were Chairman John Meeks and Commissioners Matt Brooks and Rock Meeks.
County Commissioner Lilly Rooks and Mike Joyner voted against sending a letter of support to Tallahassee.
Deborah Goad, who supported Dupree, agreed bus tours are constantly going to Rosewood to see the historical marker.
“The story is how many busloads of people stop at that sign and take pictures,” she said.
Goad said she was recently conducting a survey in Cedar Key over a four-day period and every time she passed Rosewood she saw people parked on the roadside looking at the historical marker.
“So to say it is not important, it is not relevant, is wrong,” Goad said.
Dupree said Rosewood has become a global attraction. She said tourists from all parts of Europe come to see the marker.
“We just brought in a large Jewish group two weeks ago. I bring in a lot of military.” She said.
Dupree said she was a member of the Historical Board for Florida for 20 years. She said she is aware that there “are a few things that need to be corrected” on the existing historical marker in Rosewood. Collins disagreed. She said state historians vetted the information and found it to be accurate.
Carolyn Cohen, a Chiefland artist and author, said she doesn’t get into the controversy about Rosewood.
Author and artist Carolyn Cohen said everyone is family. She described herself as a calming influence in the Rosewood discussion.
“I try to be a calming factor. History is not always kind. We’re not an exception to the rule to have something better happen in Levy County, but we must do better by each other,” she said.
Cohen said she was born in Levy County in 1948 and her grandparents never discussed Rosewood. But she was always an inquisitive child. She found a way to ask questions of people who knew something about it.
Cohen said stories can change. It’s just the way things work in life.
“Everybody has their story. Everybody has a story. You can tell three people the same thing and I guarantee you at the end of the day the stories change dramatically. So what I do, I try to be a calming force. I’m here to be a stabilizing force. I wish you the best if you are white or black,” Cohen said. “We are all family. We have two eyes, we have a heart; we have to decide what is best for our Levy County, not for what someone else thinks.”
Al Carnegie, who was president of the Levy County Chapter of the NAACP for many years, said there must be a continued effort to make change. He said his great-great-great grandfather Jake Dawson lived at the time of the Rosewood incident.
“Nobody talked about it. Everywhere now, I don’t care where you go in the world, Levy County stands out,” Carnegie said. “We do not need it to stand out negative and against the church. I like to look forward to a better future and we can’t do it by bickering and fighting.”
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Board of County Commission Regular Meeting September 17, 2019; Posted September 17, 2019
