American Beach, Florida, United States

4Lifetraveler1 5:00 PM May 26, 2015

Holding its own. But it is sad to see it being squeezed.
The other current reviews called it historic, but don't tell you why. This beach was founded in the 1930's by a black millionaire, who owned a large insurance company. Wealthy black people (yes there were some) in those days traveled to this beach from many east coast cities to enjoy the hotels, bathhouses and nightclubs. The locals and tourist could enjoy it without humiliation and prejudicial issues. Location- The beach is now only a small part of Amelia Island, which is a very rich island of home and condo owners, as well as a tourist attraction. It is one of the few beaches you can get to without a resort or private homes blocking your way. The main parking lot is at the intersection of Gregg Street and Burney Blvd. Google earth or google maps coordinates are N30 34.14, W81 26.70 Attached are photographs of the beach as seen on our visit this weekend. It and the other beaches in this part of Florida have that kind of darkish looking sand, not the golden kind found near Miami or the white talcum powder kind of sand found near Clearwater on the west coast. There is a shower facility and restrooms at the main parking lot. This place is not fancy. There are no restaurants. But you do have folks cooking up barbecue for sale in the parking lot and it does smell good. The beach is wide and the crowd was quite diverse. The parking lot you see at the GPS coordinates, surprisingly is free. The waves were very strong when we were there. The beach is being squeezed by resorts touching each end of it. You won't find many visual signs of the historical businesses that thrived there, but there are some old residential homes trying to hold on. A conversation with a realtor told me that the demise will come from the children. They are selling their parents' property for prices way below what it is worth (remember beach front and beach accessible basic homes on an upscale island). An example provided to me was an heir selling a prime piece property there for $200K and the buyer immediately splitting in half and then selling both pieces for $250K each for a $300K profit. So my suggestion, please visit this beach while it still last! At some point it will just be American Beach in name only! I give it a very good rating, because these types of beaches are rare and it is well maintained

4Jeremy F 5:00 PM Aug 16, 2022

Good times.
I thought it was great to drive on the beach and park right near the water. The kids enjoyed the water, even though it was rough waves every now and then. They will turn you away unless you are a Nassau resident or dod emp.