Legacy of Jacksonville Beach’s first black city councilwoman honored with new street sign

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — As Jacksonville Beach’s first-ever elected Black city councilwoman, Margaret McQueen was quick to make an impact on the community she served, helping pass legislation to build the beach’s city hall and police headquarters while also being tough on crime.

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Although McQueen passed away at 73 years old back in 2013, her youngest daughter, Tina McQueen, told Action News Jax on Saturday that her mom’s memory still lives on with all the lives she touched.

“My mother was a very phenomenal woman,” Tina said proudly. “She helped everybody in the community before she was a city councilwoman.”

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On Saturday morning, family members, sons, daughters and city officials met to unveil a street sign in Margaret McQueen’s honor. The sign was approved in February by the Jacksonville Beach City Council during Black History Month and was later unveiled to wrap up Women’s History Month.

Ultimately, it served as a fitting arrangement and honor for Jacksonville Beach’s first-ever Black city councilwoman.

“She always taught her children to do their best,” said one of Margaret McQueen’s other daughters, Mable McQueen. “And after doing that and teaching school, she decided to get active in her community in things that were not accepted of a woman in her community and see if she could make a change in the community.”

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Now, that memory and legacy will live on forever in Jacksonville Beach, where she touched the lives of so many.

“The keynote: ‘May the service I gave speak for me.’ Mama, job well done. Your service is shining in the east. It was set in the west but will always reshine again in the east,” added Mable with a proud smile.

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