On Thursday, August 25th at 6 PM, Gayle Phillips, Executive Director of the Lincolnville Museum & Cultural Center, will be a guest speaker for the closing event of the "Presence / Erasure: Black History in St. Augustine" exhibit.

Phillips currently serves as executive director of the Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center which is housed in the historic Excelsior High School. She began at the museum as a volunteer in 2015 and has been instrumental in its transformation and development over the past five years.

The closing event is free, open to the public, and available on Zoom. Registration is required and available here.

The exhibition Presence / Erasure: Black History in St. Augustine traces the city’s 450+ years of Black experiences and stories. It examines the critical role Black St. Augustinians played in the development of St. Augustine and the United States.

The exhibition is largely drawn from across the Special and Area Studies Collections and Governor’s House Library, with contributions from Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center. The artifacts on display include historical photographs, brochures, maps, and more documenting Black presence in St. Augustine over the centuries. Represented in the exhibit are the Black communities and people of Fort Mose, Lincolnville, and West Augustine.

Presence / Erasure: Black History in St. Augustine is curated by Laura Marion and Casey Wooster. The physical exhibit is on view in the Smathers Library Gallery from July 15 – August 31, 2022.

The Smathers Library Gallery is located on the second floor of the Smathers Library on the University of Florida campus. Hours are Monday through Friday 9 AM to 5 PM, unless otherwise specified and with occasional exceptions for maintenance. All exhibitions are open to the public and free of charge.