The story of Jacksonville can be tasted as much as it can be told. Especially amongst Jacksonville’s Gullah Geechee community. The Gullah Geechee descended from enslaved Central and West Africans who worked the plantations of the Lowcountry in the coastal Southeastern U.S. After the abolition of slavery, the Gullah Geechee settled in remote areas, in particular the barrier islands stretching from North Carolina to Northeast Florida, where they formed a unique culture and strong communal ties that remain today.
Food has always been at the heart of Gullah Geechee life. This is certainly true in Jacksonville, where foodways are a bridge between land, water, ancestry and memory. Drawing from West and Central African, Native American, European, and Caribbean traditions, the region’s cuisine tells a story of creativity born from limited resources and of community sustained through flavor. Gullah Geechee food traditions remain an expression of identity and resilience in Jacksonville.
Gullah Geechee foodways in Jacksonville are more than meals. They are living archives of survival, celebration, and community care…