Ethel Deloris Demps

Ethel Deloris Anderson, affectionately called “Low”, was born April 23, 1944 in the close-knit isolated community of Cosmo, Florida. Her grandparents and parents retold the story of how her ancestors came to own the land that her family had lived on for several generations. A direct descendant of one of the original settlers of Cosmo, Deloris did not always know how unique it was to grow up where the values and traditions of her Gullah  Geechee heritage were practiced in everyday living and worship. After leaving Cosmo to attend college at the historic Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, she soon realized the experiences that shaped her youth were not common to the rest of the world. Low returned home to marry her childhood sweetheart, Earl Demps. The couple chose to live and raise their two children in the familiar surroundings of Cosmo.

But the world was changing. The outside world moved into and around Cosmo with permanent effects. Families sold land to developers to off-set hard times; children left to seek employment and educational advancement and didn’t return.

The once large family oriented community was reduced to a handful of homes, abandoned lots, two churches and a cemetery.

Low watched Cosmo become almost unrecognizable to the close-knit community she loved and cherished.

It became her mission to preserve what was now left of Cosmo. She dreamed of creating a place that could be used to share their rich history.

 

Freedom Park is Low’s dream.

It is meant to be a place where all are welcomed to gather and learn about Cosmo and the Gullah  Geechee in Jacksonville.

 

“Telling our story is not just about remembering Cosmo as it was, it’s about preserving and protecting our heritage and legacy.”

“Telling we story” is a familiar Gullah  Geechee saying and Low loved to tell the story of Cosmo…

 

“As you stand here, imagine being surrounded by thick groves of oaks with low-hanging branches, cypress trees standing tall, and clumps of elephant ears, wild plums, and honeysuckle in the air. Sun peeks thru but it’s always cool. There was a time when standing on this spot you could not only see the river but you could hear the water brushing up along the shore. Everybody living here knew each other. We were connected to everything and everybody around here, either by blood or by church. We were self contained and self-sufficient back here. Some families grew fruits and vegetables. Wild pigs, rabbits and possums were everywhere. We hunted the land for food, fished the waters and even sold what we caught to people coming in and out of the communities bordering Cosmo. 

We had two churches and your family belonged to and worshipped at one or the other. There wasn’t much you had to leave for. We had an Oyster House on the river where oysters were shucked and sold by the pint or quart. My daddy was a fisherman and we always had plenty fish, shrimp and crabs. We had a barber and a car mechanic and even a beautician who would also give private music lessons. A couple of families ran stores for small items and snacks. Milk, cheese, butter and ice was delivered to the community by truck. The bagged ice was kept in a hole in the ground and covered with a blanket and that’s how we kept things cold. Johnny and Amanda Williams owned the Log Cabin where we would go to hear music on the Juke Box, dance and buy chicken or seafood dinners and maybe a glass of moonshine. But that was for the adults! As teens we would gather at Cotton’s Place and start a bonfire with old mattresses and dance the night away. The dirt roads and the pitch black didn’t scare us because we knew we were safe here. Nobody closed windows or locked doors in Cosmo. Blood-related or not, we were Family.”