Robert Meacham – making Jefferson County history

Hailey Heseltine ECB Publishing, Inc. Robert Meacham was a Black Florida resident who left a big impact on Jefferson County during the decades following the Civil War. He shaped the county and accomplished many “firsts” in the community, paving the way for those to follow him. Meacham was likely born in early 1835 in Gadsden County; he was the illegitimate son of an enslaved woman and a white man. During his childhood, Meacham was educated and learned to read and write, which were skills that would aid him greatly later in life. When learning those skills, he had only attended school for a few days before Gadsden County parents began to protest, and promptly found himself left to hi