Duval County

Within Living Memory: Ax Handle Saturday 60 Years Later

Jacksonville, Fla. — It’s been 60 years since violence broke out in Downtown Jacksonville now known as “Ax Handle Saturday”.

The unrest happened following civil rights protests, mostly sit-ins, by black demonstrators who wanted to be served at lunch counters alongside white citizens.

Almost no film footage or pictures survives of “Ax Handle Saturday” and what little there is has been locked away for years.

Pictures from August 27, 1960, show a horrifying day in Jacksonville’s history.

The day hundreds of white men beat blacks bloody.

“Civil rights demonstrators targeted segregated restaurants during the lunch hour. It happened in a public venue near a public park, but the story was suppressed and overlooked in the local media. These students were members of the local NAACP youth chapter. They were inspired by a Duval County school teacher named Rutledge Pearson,” said Jacksonville Historical Society President Alan Bliss.

Rutledge Pearson was the president of Jacksonville’s NAACP back then who helped lead peaceful protests.

“What happened on August 27, 1960, is within the living memory of Jacksonville people,” said Bliss.

Bliss says around 200 white men holding ax handles and baseball bats attacked protesters.

He says with light police presence, many of them were hurt and badly injured.

“Having peaceful sit-ins that were met with violent resistance was evidence of the justice of the requests, demands even for equal justice,” Bliss added.

By March of 1961 Jacksonville segregation of restaurants ended and 50 years after the violence the Jacksonville Historical Society raised money to put up a marker to honor the 1960s Civil Right movements and “Ax Handle Saturday”.

“When that placement took place, there was resistance to that, some push back, some criticism that it was actually better to stay silent on the events of 1960,” said Bliss.

Alan Bliss says he encourages everyone to learn about the city’s history and talk to someone who was alive during the 1960′s to hear their thoughts.