Agrarian Trust

Proposed Museum Could Unveil History, and Future

In a small beach haven in North Florida, there once lived a society separate from the economic realities of Jim Crow era America. As in many U.S. towns during that time, Black America was it’s own country with alternative economic structures, vacation spots and citizens.

MaVynee Betsch has always placed her faith in this forgotten alternative, and her plans to open a museum for American Beach, Florida may re-open this chapter of history, including the work of A. L. Lewis.

Read about the life of Betsch, American Beach and a past that could offer an alterantive for our future and present in the article Beach Lady, published by the Smithsonian Magazine and written by Russ Rymer.