Florida Historical Markers Programs - Marker Detail

Description: The Stewarts’ vacation cottage at 5449 Waldron St. was built in 1941 by Ralph and Marie Taylor Stewart. Waldron Street is one of the highest points on American Beach and was named after the Rev. J. Milton Waldron, one of the founders of what was then called the Afro-American Pension and Benefit Bureau in 1901. This single-family vacation cottage reflects the Frame Vernacular style that was common for the place and time period. The house has a rectangular plan protected by a front-facing gable roof. The exterior walls are covered with asbestos shingles. The fenestration consists of wood and aluminum, and features double-hung sash windows with two over two lights. The entrance to the home has an enclosed porch with a small front stoop. Ralph Stewart Sr. was the first actuary for the Afro-American Life Insurance Co. (“The Afro”), and retained the position until his passing in 1954. During the U.S. period of legislated racial segregation, the Pension Bureau of “The Afro” developed American Beach as an ocean-front resort for African Americans. Ralph Stewart Sr., a graduate of the Tuskegee Institute, was instrumental in recruiting alumni and faculty from Tuskegee to invest in homes and property on American Beach.