Over 150 years ago, the founders of what was then called Howell’s Creek were hoping to build a community with staying power. Though many things have changed — including the name, which eventually became Bealsville — the core values have stayed the same.
Asking around the community, those core values are why Bealsville has made it far enough to celebrate its 150th anniversary.
As the community prepares for its four-day sesquicentennial celebration, its residents have taken the time to reflect on the past: how the small town came to be, what life was like and how things have progressed over time.
For the uninitiated, there’s more to Bealsville’s history than meets the eye.
A NEW HOPE
Bealsville itself pre-dates Plant City.
In 1865, at the close of the Civil War, the Hancock, Berry, Hamilton, Branch, Wilder and Howell plantations freed their slaves. But many of the families from the Howell plantation remained on the lands, as they had a vision in mind.
Led by surveyor Peter Dexter and his family, the families of Bryant Horton, Roger Smith, Robert Story, Isaac Berry, Mills Holloman, Samuel McKinney, Mary Reddick, Jerry Stephens, Neptune Henry, Steven Allen and Abe Segenger wanted a place to live where other freed slaves could also come and feel welcome.
The Southern Homestead Act of 1866 enabled families to homestead 40 to 60 acres of property, which made settling down in Howell’s Creek a possibility for anyone. In 1868, Antioch Baptist Church and the town’s first school, located within the church, were established.
In 1873, the first schoolhouse was built. Eventually, the name was changed from Howell’s Creek to Alafia.
Alfred Beal, for whom the town is currently named, came into the picture around 1884. Born to Reddick in 1859, Beal married Esther Horton in 1879 and claimed a homestead in 1884. His farming skills enabled him to keep his land while many people had their property foreclosed, and he was later able to make enough to buy back some of the properties. He became known for helping his neighbors in times of need, and also for donating land for the church, school and cemetery. The town was renamed in his honor in 1923.
LIFE IN BEALSVILLE
Bealsville residents agree that the three pillars of the community have been the churches, education and farming.
These days, all of the churches come together to host vacation bible school. They hold a VBS kick-off celebration right before the schooling is scheduled to start, and each church hosts the kids for a week before passing them over to the next one. Antioch and Mt. Olive AME are located in the heart of Bealsville, near the historic Glover School, where the kick off is held.
When the community was unable to get the school district to build a new schoolhouse in 1932, Bealsville residents came together to raise $1,000 for a new building. William Glover, for whom the Glover School is named, donated the land, and the school district finally agreed to start construction in 1933. The building was expanded in 1945 and 1949.
People in town were always friendly with one another. If anyone needed food, there were always some extra crops on a neighbor’s farm for the taking. If anyone needed a ride, they could just hop in the first truck they saw and go wherever the driver would take them.
“Everybody just loved everybody, because everybody was related,” Bealsville native Esther Zeigler said.
Zeigler recalls that being a kid in Bealsville required a sense of imagination, but was a fun time for all.
“You didn’t have a playground — you made your own playground,” Zeigler said. “Horton Road was your playground, and that’s because it wasn’t paved. All the roads were dirt roads.”
As many up-to-date resources weren’t always available, Bealsville educators and students had to make do with what they did have. According to educator Beatrice Crowell, who taught in the area for over 40 years, the focus of education was at first more oriented toward free thinking and creativity than learning by the book.
“It wasn’t a formal, rigid atmosphere,” Crowell said. “We talked to each other and the children. It wasn’t tests all the time. We did plays, operettas — that kind of thing.”
The Glover School was also a “strawberry school” until 1962. During the picking season, students would spend their time in the fields. They got an education on the farmlands and learned about agriculture. Residents like Henry Davis remember working in the fields.
“I came in the 1950s, when you were transitioning from the mule for plowing to the tractor,” Davis said. “I was about 14. We learned young and fast. … My dad was trying to teach me how to plow a mule, and I guess your left and right was ‘hee’ and ‘haw.’ When you’re young, you’ve got this keen voice, and the mule ignored me. But I got on a tractor and thought, ‘I can handle this.’”
It closed in 1980, when the old school became obsolete, but was donated back to the community the following year when residents formed Bealsville Inc., a non-profit organization, and won the property in a lawsuit. Among those leading the charge was Davis, then the CEO of Bealsville Inc. The building was renovated to meet county standards. On November 29, 2001, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
Life in Bealsville in 2015 isn’t the same as it was over 50 years ago, but it still maintains a lot of its traditions. Many things have changed, but some of the most important things have stayed the same. That’s why people are still happy to live there, and why the buzz around town for the sesquicentennial is everywhere.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Thursday, June 25
5:30 p.m.: Reception at Glover School auditorium. Entertainment by Springhead Elementary Band Ensemble. Free to the public.
Friday, June 26
10:30 a.m.: Bealsville Heritage Festival at Glover School campus. BBQ competition, festival vendors, exhibits, museum tours and storytelling. BBQ Competition begins at 9 a.m.; competitors’ entry fee is $25. Vendors’ entry fee is $25. Free to the public.
Inside museum traveling exhibit presentation from the Mary McLeod Bethune Museum at Bethune Cookman University. Food, arts and crafts vendors open 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Features exhibits from Bealsville Inc., Plant City Photo Archives & History Center. Storytelling sessions from local residents and descendants. Tours of Glover School campus.
Saturday, June 27
9 a.m.: Bealsville Heritage Festival at Bealsville Recreation Center, 5009 Nesmith Road.
Featuring Civil War re-enactment by volunteers with Second Infantry Regiment United States Colored Troops Living History Association, which begins at 10:30 a.m. Free to the public.
7 p.m.: Bealsville Gala at TECO Expo Hall, Florida Strawberry Festival Fairgrounds. Presented by Publix Supermarket Charities. Tickets cost $35 per person. RSVP by June 19th – call (813) 737-1352. Live entertainment from the Music Makers, catering by Steph’s Southern Soul Food. Semi-formal attire.
Sunday, June 28
10:30 a.m.: Community outdoor faith service at Bealsville Recreation Center. All of the area churches work jointly together to do a vintage outdoor service in reflection of the how the original founders did it. Free to the public.
OTHER PAID ACTIVITIES
Golf Outing: 8 a.m. Friday, June 26. at Diamond Hill Golf Course, Seffner. $50 per person.
Family Bowling: 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 26 at Plant City Bowling Lanes. $80 for four people, or $20 per person.
Glover School Alumni Fish Fry: 5:30 p.m. Friday, June 26 at Glover School. $40 per person.
