Black History Month: Palm Beach architect Hazel August

One of the first, most well-known and respected architects from West Palm Beach is someone you've maybe never heard of before.

Through a collection of photos and images from people who knew him, you can meet him now too.

It TMs history laid out in photos-- black and white. This is Palm Beach County's own black history.

"He was a black architect who was also hired by white builders which is very unusual in that period of time," Historical Society of Palm Beach County Chief Curator Debi Murray said.

There's just one photo here of the architect-- Hazel Augustus--whose properties lined the streets of West Palm, even Palm Beach.

Born and raised in south Florida, Historical Society of Palm Beach County's Chief curator Debi Murray enjoys teaching others, showing them the foundation that built this area strong.

"It's everybody's history and we should learn to view ourselves as one community, not as individual communities," she said.

You can actually go to the Historical Society to see more of that history. If you'd like to share some with them, you can do that, too. Some of their best collections have

come from old family photos that otherwise would've been thrown out with the trash.

Connect with the Historical Society of Palm Beach County on Facebook here. Click here for the official website.