The Gullah-Geechee influence on Black and American culture and history is astounding. The women and men showcased below carried the spirit of Gullah-Geechee culture wherever they landed in the world. They did so without even trying, often just following the lead of their hearts.
The Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor extends nearly 500 miles along the Atlantic coast, stretching from Jacksonville, North Carolina, down through coastal South Carolina and Georgia, to St. Augustine, Florida. Gullah-Geechee excellence, however, is much bigger than the corridor. People of the heritage, famous and infamous (Ellsworth Raymond “Bumpy” Johnson), migrated all along the east coast with huge conclaves of Gullah descendants in Harlem and throughout the boroughs of NYC, Philadelphia, the DMV, and even Miami.
The gifts and influence of the Gullah-Geechee can be found anywhere on this continent and abroad.
This is a short list of individuals who were born on the corridor, and embody the creativity and charisma found in Gullah-Geechee culture.
Wilmington, North Carolina
Sharon Green or MC Sha-Rock is considered the “first female rapper” or emcee.
Samuel George Davis Sr. (December 12, 1900 – May 21, 1988) was an American dancer and the father of entertainer Sammy Davis Jr.
Minnie Eva Evans (December 12, 1892 – December 16, 1987) was an African-American southern folk artist whose works are in the permanent collections at the Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian Institution, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the High Museum of Art.
South Carolina
Georgetown County, South Carolina
Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American rock and roll singer and dancer who is known for popularizing the Twist and the Pony.
Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American comedian, actor and filmmaker.
Charleston, Dorchester and Berkeley Counties, South Carolina
Edwin Alexander Smalls (1882-1974) was the original owner of Harlem’s Smalls’ Paradise, an integrated jazz club that was noted for its celebrity clientele as well as its entertainment and menu.
Ernest Everett Just (August 14, 1883 – October 27, 1941) was an American biologist and co-founder of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated.
Merton Daniel Simpson (September 20, 1928 – March 9, 2013) was an American jazz musician, abstract expressionist painter and African and tribal art collector and dealer.
Philip Simmons (June 9, 1912 – June 22, 2009) was an American artisan and blacksmith specializing in the craft of ironwork.
Mabel King née Donnie Mabel Elizabeth Washington (December 25, 1932 – November 9, 1999) was an American actress and singer. She was known for portraying Evillene the Witch, a role she originated in the stage musical The Wiz and reprised in Sidney Lumet’s 1978 film adaptation.
Lee Pringle, Founder & Artistic Director of the Colour of Music Festival, a showcase of the talents of Black classical musicians and composers throughout the U.S. and abroad in 2023 and beyond.
Alberta Wright (1931-2015) was a Pineville born and NYC-based retailer, costumer and restauranteur (Jezebel’s).
Beaufort County, South Carolina
Jonathan Green (born August 9, 1955) is an African American painter known for his works on Gullah culture as well as his activism to preserve Gullah culture including its relationship to rice and maritime activities.
Robert Smalls (April 5, 1839 – February 23, 1915) was an American politician who was born into slavery in Beaufort, South Carolina.
Thomas “Sam” Doyle (1906–1985) was an African-American artist from Saint Helena Island, South Carolina. His colorful paintings on sheet metal and wood recorded the history and people of St. Helena’s Gullah community.
Joseph William Frazier (January 12, 1944 – November 7, 2011) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1965 to 1981. Nicknamed “Smokin’ Joe”, he was the first boxer to defeat Muhammad Ali.
Clementa “Clem” Carlos Pinckney (clemen-TAY; July 30, 1973 – June 17, 2015) was an American politician and pastor of Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, South Carolina until his assassination in 2015.
Candice Rickelle Glover (born November 22, 1989) is an American R&B singer and actress who won the twelfth season of American Idol.
Ron Daise (1960) is the co-creator (with wife Natalie) of Nickelodeon TV’s Gullah Gullah Island.
Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Tommy Smalls (August 5, 1926 – March 8, 1972) was an influential African-American radio disc jockey in New York City during the early days of rock and roll. He was the second owner of Smalls’ Paradise club in Harlem in the 1950s, and was of no relation to the original owner Edwin Smalls.
James Moody (March 26, 1925 – December 9, 2010) was an American jazz saxophone and flute player and occasional vocalist, playing predominantly in the bebop and hard bop styles. Moody is best known for his hit with “Moody’s Mood for Love.”
Antwan André Patton (born February 1, 1975) is known professionally as Big Boi of Outkast fame.
Fredericka Carolyn “Fredi” Washington (December 23, 1903 – June 28, 1994) was an American stage and film actress, civil rights activist, performer, and writer. She gained recognition portraying Peola in the first film version of Imitation of Life (1934).
Sapelo Island, Georgia
Cornelia Walker Bailey (June 12, 1945 – October 15, 2017) was a storyteller, writer, and historian who worked to preserve the Geechee-Gullah culture of Sapelo Island, Georgia.
McIntosh County, Georgia
“Bessie” Mary Elizabeth Jones (February 8, 1902 – July 17, 1984)[1] was an American gospel and folk singer credited with helping to bring folk songs, games and stories to wider audiences in the 20th century.
St. Simons Island
Robert Sengstacke Abbott (December 24, 1870 – February 29, 1940)[4] was an American lawyer, newspaper publisher and editor. Abbott founded The Chicago Defender in 1905. Known for his empathy for migrants from the South, Abbott used the Defender to assist them in acclimating to life in the north. Abbott was also fully aware of his Gullah heritage and as a publisher he made certain articles appeared in his newspaper that highlighted the culture and the achievements of its people.
Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Deesha Philyaw (1971) is an American author, columnist, and public speaker. Her debut short story collection, The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, was a finalist for the 2020 National Book Award for Fiction and won The Story Prize.
Augusta Savage (born Augusta Christine Fells; February 29, 1892 – March 27, 1962) was an American sculptor associated with the Harlem Renaissance.
James Weldon Johnson (1871–1938) and his brother, J. Rosamond Johnson (1873–1954) were born in Jacksonville, and were the co-creators of “Lift Every Voice,” alternately known as the Negro National Anthem and Black National Anthem.
From the northernmost section of the Gullah-Geechee corridor to the southernmost section of the corridor, this curated list of artisans, writers, entertainers and more have left their mark on a world that didn’t always know what they were experiencing, and what they experienced was colorful, joyful and entertaining. It was Gullah-Geechee excellence at its finest.
Robin Caldwell is the blogger behind freshandfriedhard.com and academic researcher focusing on Black history, heritage and culture. Public historian primarily in Black American historical foodways: antebellum and regional.
