Press Release
Genealogy Society
Submitted by Lori Smith Miranda
[email protected]
October 12, 2017 5:01 p.m
It’s been six years since the Amelia Island Genealogical Society (AIGS) produced its last tour of Bosque Bello Cemetery. Over 250 people attended that tour, held during the Old Town Bicentennial Celebration. With encouragement of the community, AIGS is pleased to announce a new tour of this most beautiful Bosque Bello Cemetery to be held on Saturday, October 21st.
“This will actually be the fifth cemetery tour production by AIGS,” said Bob Frey, Chairman of the Tour Planning Committee. “As a genealogy society, one of our missions is to preserve local history, and what a wonderful and interesting way to do just that.” Costumed members/actors will present the history of Fernandina and Amelia Island through the stories of both notable and ordinary citizens who played a role in making our community what it is today. “Sharing these stories with new residents, as well as long-standing residents, gives everyone a sense of belonging and understanding of the community in which they live.”
A lot of detailed research goes into putting a tour together. Member-volunteers spend many hours combing through documents including census records, vital records, military muster rolls, ship records, naturalization papers and newspaper accounts pertaining to the businesses and events of the subjects of the tour. It’s also important to study and understand the laws and social standards of the time in order to portray an accurate picture of an individual and their relationship to the events in their lifetime. It then all comes together in the writing of a tour script for each actor and for the tour guides who will take groups of individuals to each stop on the tour. “Some actors are making their own costumes for the events,” said member/actor Gloria Toomey. Every attempt is made to take the audience back in time to experience what it was like to live on Amelia Island in years past. On the upcoming tour, several of the stories will be told by actors who are direct descendants of those resting at Bosque Bello.
This year’s tour features eight stops. Included are stories of a resident who fled in March 1862 to escape as Union Troops took Fernandina during the Civil War; a slave family who escaped from Camden County, GA to the sanctuary of Union-occupied Fernandina; several entrepreneurs who contributed to Fernandina’s Golden Age and mid-20th century post-Depression comeback; and a local businessman who played a role in Cuba’s independence, to name a few.
Tickets for the Bosque Bello Cemetery Tour are on sale at the Fernandina Beach Branch of the Public Library in Downtown Fernandina on N. 4th Street. “These tours have been very popular in the past, and I recommend that people get their tickets as soon as possible,” said Marie Santry, Production Leader. Tickets are sold by time slots. A tour group will begin every 15 minutes begining at 9:30 AM, with the last morning tour starting at 11:30 AM. Tours will resume at 1:00 PM, with the last tour of the day starting at 3:30 PM. Each tour group will consist of no more than 16 patrons. The tour length is about three-tenths of a mile over uneven terrain, and there will be several rest stations in place if needed. The tour will last approximately one hour.