Daytona Beach, FL - Bethune-Cookman University (B-CU) and the Bethune Beach Property Owners Association will be joined by the Volusia County Council to celebrate the history of Mary McLeod Bethune Park on Friday, May 19.
The celebration starts at 10 AM at the park located at 6656 S. Atlantic Ave., New Smyrna Beach.
Representatives from B-CU and the Bethune Beach Property Owners Association will unveil a state historical marker that designates the park as a Florida Heritage Site. Two historical panels will tell the story of Bethune Beach. The beach was a former African American-owned resort that provided coastal access to black people when Florida beaches were closed to them in the 1940s.
The park was named after Mary McLeod Bethune, the educator and stateswoman who founded B-CU. The park sits on six acres between the Indian River and the Atlantic Ocean, and now includes a boardwalk on the ocean side, a fishing pier on the river side, and other features.
The event is sponsored by the County Council Partnership with B-CU and the Bethune Homeowners Association.
For more information about the park, visit volusia.org.
Photo courtesy of shutterstock.com and peterfactors.
Copyright Southern Stone Communications 2017.
