A woman who made a big impact on Tallahassee's history is now remembered with an official historical marker behind the church she helped build. On Monday, Nov. 9th, a grateful community honored Lydia Smith.
Smith was one of just a handful of African-Americans in pre-Civil War Tallahassee who was not enslaved. After the war she'd found a school for Black children. She also kept the original St. James Church - now Florida TaxWatch's headquarters - running in partnership with Trinity United Methodist Church up the street. Trinity Pastor Matthew Williams praised Smith before the unveiling of the marker honoring her accomplishments.
"You carried your community through the upheavals that followed emancipation and you kept the church standing on this corner through them. You built a school and taught children and you held onto hope when the road was long."
This is the 10th local historical marker placed this year by the Tallahassee Historical Society and Florida Department of State's Division of Historical Resources.
