Florida Historical Markers Programs - Marker Detail

Description: Louis Dargan (L.D.) Ervin was born in Darlington, South Carolina, in 1873. He attended the Georgia State Industrial College for Colored Youth in Savannah, the oldest institution of higher education for African Americans in Georgia. Ervin eventually settled in Jacksonville, Florida, where he worked as a skilled mason and a licensed contractor. In 1901, Ervin was the first full-time agent for the Afro-American Life Insurance Company. Ervin stayed with the company for 63 years and retired as its vice-president. In 1935, Afro-American Life Insurance president Abraham Lincoln Lewis helped establish American Beach as a vacation community for African American due to racial segregation. In 1938, Ervin constructed this two-story beach cottage, the second home built on American Beach. Fondly referred to as Ervin’s Rest, it was the vacation home for Ervin and his family. Ervin’s Rest is still owned by his family, and is the only ocean-front home on American Beach that maintains its original structure. Ervin's Rest was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. L.D. Ervin’s legacy in the American Beach community was preserved with a street named in his honor.