Marin Co. Town Backs Sir Francis Drake Blvd. Name Change: Report

FAIRFAX, CA —The town of Fairfax became Marin County’s first municipality to back the renaming of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, The Marin Independent Journal reports.

The Town Council on Wednesday voted unanimously in favor of changing the name of the controversial 16th Century explorer with ties to slave trading among other atrocities, the report said.

The push to rename Sir Francis Drake Boulevard emerged from the racial justice reckoning amid the Black Lives Matter movement that swelled in the aftermath of George Floyd’s killing in police custody last summer.

Fairfax’s move to rename Sir Francis Drake Boulevard followed Larkspur and Ross deciding to keep the slave trader’s name on the roadway that runs through five Marin County jurisdictions, the report said.

Drake launched his maritime career in the slave trade in the 1560’s and played a key role in England’s slave trafficking industry according to History.com.

English scholar Claire Jowitt alleges Drake was also a murderer, HistoryExtra reports.

Drake is believed to have landed in what is now coastal Marin County amid a worldwide expedition.

The Sir Francis Drake Boulevard name change is scheduled to go before the Marin County Board of Supervisors Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. and the San Mateo Council on Tuesday at 7 p.m., the report said.

Read more in The Marin Independent Journal