Eatonville By Zora Neale Hurston

The town of EatonVille was a black owned community in 1887.Eatonville is only 6 miles from Orlando. In 2010 the current population was 2,159. The town Eatonville was founded by 3 African American after the civil war. The author Zora Neale Hurston was raised in Eaton. Majority of Zora’s writings are based on the town. Zora Hurston and the state of Florida have a connection because of the town Eatonville and her writing. EatonVille was one of the first black owned towns in that time era. Eatonville was founded by Captain Josiah Eaton, Captain Lewis Lawrence , And the last captain is unknown. After the Civil War , the captains left to settle in south Africa , but during their voyage they turned to settle in Florida. The town was first named Maitland.
Slaves were brought by the seminole and cherokee Indians. The slaves will later call eatonville their home. At this time the Indians were stealing many slaves from various states. The slaves then became citizens of Eatonville and were able to call it their home. Since Eatonville was a founded town they were low on supplies and workers. Thats where the slaves came into play. The slaves that stayed in central florida were used to clear the lands. On August 15th,1887 the town Eatonville Officially had 27 registered citizens.Eatonville became a city with black self-government calling itself “The Town That Freedom Built”. Eatonville started to expand quickly. The first 10 acres were given to the Methodist Church, known today as the St. Lawrence African Methodist Episcopal Church. Founded in 1881, St. Lawrence was the first African American church in the area. St. Lawrence A.M.E. Church was
The community of Eatonville shaped her life and writing “ I’ve got the map of Florida on my tongue” (Boyd, V. (n.d.). About Zora Neale Hurston. Retrieved from http://zoranealehurston.com/about/). Zora was born on January 7th , 1981in Notasulga, Alabama. Zora had no memory of Notasulga , having moved to florida as a toddler. She was so proud of her heritage as a black Floridian that in her autobiography, Dust Tracks on a Road, she claimed she was born in Eatonville. Zora’s father was a preacher so he moved them to florida because of the St. Lawrence A.M.E. Church , but soon after her mother had passed when she was thirteen. Later that same year, her father removed her from school and sent her to care for her brother’s children. Zora was eager to leave the responsibility of that household. She became a member of a traveling theater at the age of sixteen. After that she worked for a white household. It was in this home that zora discovered her love for writing. Eatonville was always home. she could see black achievement all around