In the Sunshine State on this day in:

1817 Luis Aury, a reputed general in the Mexican independence movement, raised a flag on Amelia Island and declared himself in possession of an independent republic.

1904 Mary McLeod Bethune opened her school in Daytona, Florida. 

1922 The Lakeland campus of Florida Southern College, founded in 1885 and first named the South Florida Seminary, opened.  The college is affiliated with the United Methodist Church.

1950 Governor Fuller Warren dedicated the Stephen Foster Memorial at White Springs in formal ceremonies today.