GREEN COVE SPRINGS – The Clay County Historical Archives Center, a service of Clerk of Court and Comptroller Tara S. Green, unveiled an exciting new partnership involving an oral history research initiative for Clay County's Hispanic residents; the goal is completion in 2023.

Historian Dr. Rebecca Dominguez-Karimi founded the Voces de Hispanos Oral History Collection in collaboration with the Jacksonville Historical Society in 2021. Forty oral histories were collected for the Jacksonville Historical Society’s Hispanic Heritage Month presentation. Dr. Karimi’s conversations with other regional historians revealed an unfortunate gap in Hispanic community history since the 1920s. Her goal is to help fill this 100-year gap by gathering stories from more Jacksonville area residents, now including Clay County residents.

Thanks to a new partnership with First Coast Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Dr. Karimi is gathering oral histories from residents in a five-county area. Voces de Hispanos: New Stories to Tell is a first-of-its-kind project due to scope, economic and cultural significance.

“Documenting the history of Hispanics in northeast Florida remains important for us all, for it will serve as a guidepost to our children and future generations,” Karimi said.

Green agreed.

“Since our Archives Center is a local hub for historical research and preservation, Hispanic community history is welcomed and needed”, she said.

The Archives Center is located at 21 Gratio Place in Green Cove Springs, inside the Old County Jail. Audio/video recordings (mainly done on Fridays and saved as MP4 files) will be posted on the Archives website, accessible via clayclerk.com.

Archives Specialist Vishi Garig may be contacted at (904) 371-0027 or by email, garigv@clayclerk.com.