In the early 20th century when New York - not California, was the home of the silent film industry, Jacksonville, Florida, was known as the “World’s Winter Movie Capital.”

By 1917, some 30 studios had produced over 300 movies there. But the effects of World War I and anti-film politics caused Jacksonville studios to close down or move west. Norman Studios were the exception to this rule.

In the early 1920s, Richard E. Norman, a filmmaker from Middleburg, Florida, acquired a small complex of buildings in Jacksonville’s Arlington neighborhood, and established Norman Studios.

It was here that Norman, who was white, pioneered a genre of films, known then as “race” movies –films intended for a black audience, featuring positive roles and opportunities for black actors, writers and crews.

Few of Norman’s films have survived. However, his best know film, The Flying Ace, from 1926, is now in the collection of the Library of Congress.

Today Norman Studios is all that remains of Jacksonville’s once booming movie industry. Local efforts are underway to preserve the complex and assure this legacy from the golden age of silent films will survive.

Information provided by the Florida Division of Historical Resources.