Portraits Honoring Melbourne’s Founders Now on Display at City Hall

During a special ceremony before last night’s City Council meeting, the Concerned Citizens Committee of South Brevard unveiled portraits of the three freedmen who founded the settlement of Crane Creek, which later became the City of Melbourne. 

Peter Wright, Wright Brothers, and Balaam Allen settled Crane Creek beginning in 1867. They helped establish the community’s early homesteads, mail service, citrus farms, a grocery, and Melbourne’s first church. 

The Concerned Citizens Committee of South Brevard has donated the portraits to the City of Melbourne as part of the organization’s effort to increase awareness of the founders’ important role in the city’s history.