St. Augustine, Florida One Place Study
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Location: St. Augustine, St. Johns, Florida, United States
Surnames/tags: One_Place_Studies Florida United_States
[send private message] and Stuart Wilson [send private message]the governor of the British colony of Georgia, the governor of the British colony of Georgia,
St. Augustine, Florida One Place Study
Name
St. Augustine Historical Downtown District, Florida
Geography
- Continent: North America
- Country: United States of America
- State/Province: Florida
- County: St. Johns
- GPS Coordinates: 29.894722, -81.314444
- Elevation: 2.0 m or 6.6 feet
Area: • City 12.85 sq mi (33.29 km2) • Land 9.52 sq mi (24.66 km2) • Water 3.33 sq mi (8.63 km2)
St. Augustine (Spanish: St. Augustin) (aka Spanish Florida) is a city on the northeast coast of Florida, and is known for its Spanish colonial architecture. It sits between the San Sabastion River and the Matanzas River.
Population
Historical population Census Pop. %± 1830 1,708 —
1840 2,450 43.4%
1850 1,934 −21.1%
1860 1,914 −1.0%
1870 1,717 −10.3%
1880 2,293 33.5%
1890 4,742 106.8%
1900 4,272 −9.9%
1910 5,494 28.6%
1920 6,192 12.7%
1930 12,111 95.6%
1940 12,090 −0.2%
1950 13,555 12.1%
1960 14,734 8.7%
1970 12,352 −16.2%
1980 11,985 −3.0%
1990 11,692 −2.4%
2000 11,592 −0.9%
2010 12,975 11.9%
2020 14,329 10.4%
About this One Place Study
This OPS will mainly focus on the historical downtown district of St. Augustine, Florida, but will also convey some areas of historical interest outside the center of town as well.
It's a study of historical facts, places, and people of the past, rather than today's commercial aspect of tourism (tours, shops, bars, restaurants, places to stay, etc).
Overview
St. Augustine , Florida ( Spanish: San Agustín) is named for 'Augustine of Hippo', aka Saint Augustine (345AD-430AD), Theologian, Philosopher, and Bishop.
St. Augustine has a long and interesting history that includes well known explorers and even pirates that came to this area of Florida. It was settled by Spain in 1565, half a century before the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620, making it the oldest settlement in North America.
It changed hands six times starting with Spain (1565-1763), then England (1763-1784), then Spain again (1784-1821), then the United States (1821-1861), next, the Confederate States (1861-1862), and finally the United States (1862-Present). Most of the street names reflect the Spanish founding and occupation.
St. Augustine was a slave trading port for many years, and later became the flashpoint for the Civil Rights movement of the 1960's.
St. Augustine is home to the narrowest street in the country. At just seven feet wide, Treasury Street connects the waterfront's Bay Street to the Royal Spanish Treasury.
Over the years, many notable residents have called St. Augustine home including musician Ray Charles, actor Richard Boone, novelist Zora Neale Hurston and human rights activist Stetson Kennedy. See 'Notable Men and Women Headings'.
In today's terms, it's a tourist destination that swells with visitors from all over the world on any given day.
Definitions
Adams-Onis Treaty of 1819
Arranged by then Secretary of State, John Quincy Adams (1767-1848) and Spanish envoy, Luis de Onís y González-Vara (1762-1827), this treaty, was also known by several other names such as the Transcontinental Treaty, the Spanish Cession, the Florida Purchase Treaty, or the Florida Treaty gave Florida to the U.S.
Civil Rights Movement aka 'St. Augustine Movement
Between 1954 and 1968, the civil rights movement in the U.S. was a nonviolent social movement to abolish legalized racial segregation, and discrimination. Unfortunately St. Augustine did experience some violence which occurred during the 'St. Augustine Movement' in the 1960's.
Coquina
Spanish for "cockle" and "shellfish", Coquina is a sedimentary rock that is composed of the shells of mollusks, trilobites, brachiopods, or other invertebrates.
Coquina vs. Tabby Construction
Tabby was a form of construction that produced a cement slurry with an aggregate of oyster shells, whereas coquina stone was quarried and cut to size.
Laws of the Indies
Issued by the Spanish Crown for the American and the Asian possessions of Spain, these laws regulated social, political, religious, and economic life.
Middle Passage and the Triangle Trade (1500's-1800's)
From the 1500s to the 1800s,12 million enslaved Africans were transported on British and American ships across the Atlantic Ocean as human property connecting Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean to the Americas.
A Middle Passage voyage lasted roughly 80 days on ships ranging from small schooners to large 'slave ships'. The 'passengers' were packed tightly, mostly without proper ventilation or provided water, whereas about 15% died from these conditions.
Minorcans
The term 'Minorcans' is used in St. Augustine to describe people of many different countries that emigrated to Florida from The Spanish Islands of Minorca and Majorca as well as Greece, Italy, and France to work the many plantations.
Seven Years' War - 1756-1763
This war involved most of the European great powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific.
Treaty of Paris - 1763
The first Treaty of Paris, aka the Treaty of 1763, was signed by the kingdoms of Great Britain, France and Spain, with Portugal in agreement. .
Treaty of Paris - 1783
The second Treaty of Paris, signed by Great Britain and the United States on September 3, 1783, officially ended the American Revolutionary War.
Underground Railroad
Not really a railroad as such, this term refers to enslaved African Americans' attempts to gain their freedom from their plantation 'slave masters' by people that promised them transportation to a new life elsewhere.
War of Jenkins Ear - 1739
While off the coast of Cuba in 1731, Captain Robert Jenkins of the British brig 'Rebecca' had his ear chopped off by Spanish sailors which eventually caused a conflict between the two countries in 1739, and in 1740 it involved a failed siege made on St. Augustine.
Historical Highlights Timeline
2400BC - Native American tribe called 'Timucua' occupied the region from present-day Central Florida to Southwest Georgia.
1493 - Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon (XXXX-1521) sailed the Caribbean with Christopher Columbus (1451-1506).
1509 - Ponce de Leon returned to the Caribbean to explore Puerto Rico and became it's first governor.
1513 - After his governorship ended, Ponce secured three ships, the Santiago, Santa Maria & San Cristobal, and decided to explore more of the Caribbean area in search of the 'Fountain of Youth'. Landing upon what he thought was a Caribbean island, he named the new discovery 'La Florida' (Pascua florida) or ("feast of the flowers"), Spain's Easter time celebration). But when he came ashore he found it allready occupied by the Timucua in what they called the village of Seloy.
1521 - After a voyage back to Spain, he returned to 'La Florida' for the final time to establish the first European settlement on the America's. However, a battle with the native Timucua left him wounded and he fled to Havana, Cuba where he died.
1562 - French explorer Jean Ribault (1520-1565) set foot on 'La Florida', about 40 miles North of St. Augustin, and claimed it for France. While Ribault returned to France to get new supplies, another French explorer Rene Laudonnière (1529-1574) also explored 'La Florida' and built Fort Caroline which was the first French settlement in the 'New World' at the mouth of the St. Johns River which he eventually abandoned. Knowing this, Jean Ribault then returned to take control of Fort Caroline.
1565 - Under orders from Spanish King Philip II (1527-1598), 'Saint Augustin' was founded and settled by explorer Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles (1519-1574) of Spain who built housing and a defensive fort (Fort San Juan) made of wood. Don Pedro became the first Governor of St. Augustin and made it his goal to get rid of the French settlers to the North, which started numerous conflicts between the Spanish and the French.
In a failed attempt to do take St. Augustin, Ribault's flagship was the only ship left as his fleet ran aground in a storm when approaching La Florida. Ribault retreated back to Fort Caroline.
Menendez and his troops then went North and destroyed Fort Caroline. They later captured Ribault and what was left of his men and killed them all.
1565 - The Spanish and native Timucuan Indians celebrated Thanksgiving and the first Mass led by Father Francisco Lopez de Mendoza Grajales (abt.1525-abt.1585), the Chaplin who sailed with Menendez.
1586 - Francis Drake (c.1540-1596) of England burned down the old Spanish settlement along with its wooden Fort San Juan that the Spanish had built.
After the English left and sailed North, the Spanish started to rebuild their settlement which would take years to accomplish.
1587 - Nombre de Dios (Name of God) Mission built in St. Augustin was established as the first Catholic mission in the America's by Father Francisco López de Mendoza Grajales, OFM, the chaplain of the original expedition.
1663 - Under direction of Spanish Queen Regent Marianna (1634-1696) she conveyed to the incoming governor of La Florida, Francisco de la Guerra y de la Vega, the thought of a substantial fort be built which would provide a defensive position of the Florida coast. This was planned but not acted on immediately.
1668 - Pirate Robert Searle (aka John Davis) (abt. 1623-abt. 1670) an Englishman sailing out of the Bahamas, arrived at St. Augustine to retaliate against the Spanish for a recent attack on the English in the Bahamas. He destroyed the settlement buildings, then sailed off.
1671 - After the aforementioned battles with the French, then the English, who attacked St. Augustin in 1586, then the pirates in 1668, then current Spanish governor, Francisco de la Guerra y de la Vega had had enough of all these incursions and ordered that a defensive fort be built.
1672 - Under Guerra's successor, Spanish Governor Manuel de Cendoya, a substantial fort was finally started. It was to be call 'Castillo de San Marcos' (Spanish for "St. Mark's Castle") and built of 'Coquina' which was a soft shellrock quarried from Anastasia Island, that was strong enough to withstand any cannon balls that hit it.
1686 - Prior to completion of 'Castillo de San Marcos', French buccaneers Michel de Grammont (1645-1686) and Nicolas Brigaut (1653-1686) attempted a failed attack on the Spanish at St. Augustin but their ships ran aground.
1695 - Castillo de San Marcos was completed.
1702 - Castillo de San Marcos was besieged by English troops during Queen Anne’s War (1702-1713) from South Carolina under the command of Carolina Colony Governor James Moore (1650-1706). The citizens of Spain held off the English for 58 days before the English finally gave up and burned down the adjacent town. This is why there are no buildings in St. Augustine older than 1702.
1702-1704 - The English raids wiped out the Spanish missions in this region – the last of the remaining Timucua would disappear with them.
1738 - The governor of Spanish Florida, Manuel Joaquín de Montiano y Sopelana (1685-1762) built a new settlement two miles North of St. Augustin for the fugitive slaves that had escaped to Florida from the Thirteen Colonies. This new community was called 'Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose', (aka Fort Mose). To live here, the slaves had to enlist in the colonial militia and also convert to Catholicism in exchange for their freedom.
1739 - St. Augustin's North gate was built.
1739 - Great Britain declared war on Spain.
1740 - After the Spanish had completed rebuilding of the settlement of St Augustin, English troops under the Governor of the British Colony of Georgia, General James Oglethorpe (1696-1785) attacked St. Augustine for 27 days before giving up and leaving the area.
1740-1742 - Another citadel named Fort Matanzas was built as a safeguard against further English attacks. It was located on the Matanzas Inlet, made of Coquina, and lasted for 250 years.
1756-1763 - Seven Years' War occurred in which England defeated the French and the Spanish.
1763-1783 - The English took control of Florida under the (1763) Treaty of Paris after defeating France and Spain in the Seven Years War. Most of the Spanish people left Florida and went to Cuba. The English took Castillo de San Marcos and also held Fort Matanzas as well.
1777 - Emigrants from the troubled Turnbull Colony of New Smyrna fled to St. Augustine after Scottish Doctor Andrew Turnbull (1718-1792) did not follow through on his promise to provide them land to own and work. These people consisted of families from not only Minorca and Majorica Spain, but also Italy, Corsica and the Greek islands.
1784-1821 - The Spanish took back control of St. Augustine per the (1783) Treaty of Paris. This was referred to as the 'Second Spanish Period'. The English were given back the Bahamas in exchange.
1791-1797 - The Spanish built Cathedral Basilica in the Spanish Renaissance architecture.
1808 - Coquina pillars were added to the North gate.
1811 - A major Category 4 hurricane hit St. Augustine.
1812 - The Spanish parish church was built to mark the Spanish Constitution.
1819-1821 - America took control of St. Augustine from the Spanish by way of the Adams–Onís Treaty (aka the Transcontinental Treaty, the Spanish Cession, the Florida Purchase Treaty, or the Florida Treaty), negotiated in 1819 and ratified in 1821.
1821 - After the 1819 Adams-Onis Treaty, Castillo de San Marcos was renamed Fort Marion.
1821 - The Trinity Parish Church was founded and is the oldest Protestant church in Florida.
1824 - The new capital of Florida became Tallahassee.
1830's - The Seminole Indians and the U.S. Federal Government were in conflict whereas the government wanted the Indians out of Florida and offered them new land West of the Mississippi River which they did not want.
1837 - About one hundred Seminole Indians surrendered to the U.S Government, and were held captive in Castillo de San Marcos.
1830's, 1840's, 1850's - The city's historic (and endangered) Sea Wall was built in the by West Point engineers.
1840's - An influx of people were coming in from states like Virginia, Georgia, and South and North Carolina increased the population of Florida which expanded to 54,477 people. Half the population were enslaved Africans.
1845 - Florida became the 27th state of the Union.
1861-1865 - During the Civil War period, a militia group called the 'Florida Independent Blues' or the 'Saint Augustine Blues' were formed and were soon joined by the 'Milton Guard'. The Confederate Army remained in control of St. Augustine for only fourteen months. In 1862 Union troops gained control of St. Augustine and controlled it through the rest of the war.
1866 - The black community of Lincolnville was established.
1875-1887 - American Indians from the Great Plains and the Southwest were exiled and held captive in Fort Marion following the 'Red River War' in 1875. The fort was used for the incarceration of 72 Southern Cheyenne, Kiowa, Comanche, Caddo and Arapaho First Americans.
1883 - Co-founder of Standard Oil Company, Henry Morrison Flagler spent the winter in St. Augustine. He enjoyed the warm weather and thought others from the colder Northern territories would to.
1885 - Henry M. Flagler built a bridge over the St. John's River and also started the Florida East Coast Railway to transport holiday makers from the North down into Florida to spend the winter.
1885-1888 - Henry M. Flagler built the 450 room Hotel Ponce de Leon.
1887 - Cathedral Basilica caught fire and was gutted but was salvageable and restored .
1888 - Henry M. Flagler built the 250 room Hotel Alcazar.
1900-1910 - Using mostly convict slaves, the railway was extended further down South to Palm Beach and Miami where the temperatures were even warmer than St. Augustine.
1918 - The town’s first traffic officer was appointed by the Police department.
1927 - Bridge of Lions opened to connect downtown St. Augustine with Anastasia Island. It gets its name from the four granite lions, two on the West end and two on the East end.
1963 - The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing with the African Americans still trying to get St. Augustine to integrate the public schools in the city which was often met with KKK and police violence.
1964 - Marches and protests continued in St. Augustine under the leadership of Martin Luther King (1929-1968) and Dr. Robert Hayling (1929-2015).
1964 - The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed by U.S. President Lyndon Johnson.
1964 - Category 3 Hurricane Dora hits St. Augustine. with 100 mile per hour winds and 12 foot tides.
1965 - The Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board was formed to reconstruct more than thirty-six buildings to their historical appearance.
2015 - St. Augustine celebrated the 450th anniversary of its founding and a visit from Felipe VI of Spain and Queen Letizia of Spain.
2016 - Hurricane Matthew caused widespread flooding in downtown St. Augustine with 7 foot tides.
2017 - Hurricane Irma slammed into St. Augustine and did considerable damage.
Landmarks
[17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47]
Alcazar Hotel c.1889
Location: 75 King Street at Granada Street
Henry Morrison Flagler, co-founder of Standard Oil Company built the Alcazar as a warm weather Winter retreat for residents of the North. Of a Moorish design, the hotel was in operation from 1889 to 1931 and was designed by John Carere and Thomas Hastings.
Even after Flagler's death in 1913, the family kept the hotel going until the Great Depression (1929-1939) came along and they decided to close in 1931.
It sat empty from 1931 until 1947 when Chicago publisher Otto C. Lightner bought it to be used as a museum of Victorian memorabilia.
Today the Alcazar is the Lightner Museum, Alcazar cafe and antique shops, and also houses the city hall.
Avero House aka Casa Avero c.1735-1743, Restored 1979
Location: 41 George Street
With the exception of the British occupation period during 1763-1783, the Avero family lived on this property from 1712 until 1804 even before the existing building was constructed.
Avero House is one of only 30 remaining houses within the historic district that pre-date 1821. It was once the site of a Minorcan Chapel, and today the building is home to the St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine. Today, the building houses a museum which is filled with the stories, artifacts, and treasures of those first brave immigrants to this area from Greece.
The exterior whitewashed walls are made of cut coquina stone which are plastered both inside and out.
A restoration took place is 1979 which included reconstruction of a missing building section that commemorates its use as a place of worship then called San Pedro Church, led by Father Pedro Camps who sponsored a free school in 1787 with classes taught in Spanish until 1790.
The Avero House was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on June 13, 1972.
Acosta House c.1803 and 1812, Rebuilt 1976
Location: 74 St. George Street
This house was built by Jorge Acosta (c.1764-1812), a native of Corsica, and wife Margarita Villalonga who was born in St. Augustine of Minorcan parents.
A restoration took place in 1976.
Bridge of Lions c.1925-1927, Rebuilt 2010
Location: 2010 A1A Scenic and Historic Coastal Byway
Bridge type: Double-Leaf Bascule
Body of water: Matanzas River (Intracoastal Waterway)
Total length: 1,545 feet (471 m)
Width: 34 feet (10 m)
Clearance below: 24.93′
Longest span: 87′
Prior to the Bridge of Lions in 1925, there was a wooden bridge, called simply, "The Bridge to Anastasia Island" aka "South Beach railroad bridge" which was built in 1895. The old bridge had no opening for ship traffic so it could accommodate a trolly car which was added in 1904.
Today, the bridge is of the double-leaf bascule type, aka a drawbridge for ship traffic, and features two marble lions mounted on each side of the Bridge (4 total) to symbolize the guarding of St. Augustine.
The Bridge of Lions was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Father Pedro Camps Memorial c.1975
Location: Cathedral Basilica courtyard, 38 Cathedral Pl. at St George Street
Created by sculptor Joseph Viladomat of Barcelona, Spain.
The three-quarter-life size bronze statue sits on a four-foot coquina base and honors the life of Father Camps who led a flock of Minorcan Greek emigrants in New Smyrna before they fled to St. Augustine.
Canova-Prince Murat - Dow House c. Early 1800's, and Canova-de Medicis House c. Early 1800's
Location: See below
Canova-de Medicis House, #46 Bridge Street
Canova-Prince Murat - Dow House, #42 Bridge Street
Built during the 'Second Spanish Colonial Period' (1784-1821), the Prince Murat house (#42) is one of the remaining Spanish Colonial buildings, built c.1815 by the Huerta family.
The two structures (#42 and #46) have different characteristics between them. One has ashlar scored stucco carrying the British Colonial tradition while the other has beaded weatherboard siding which has more of the Victorian tradition of wood framing and finishes.
Napoleon's nephew, Prince Napoleon Achille Murat (1801-1847), as well as Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1883) were among the guests of St. Augustine native and owner, Juan Antonio Climaco Canova (1817-1879) in 1827 when both visited St. Augustine for their health.
The buildings were purchased and expanded by Amos Spear in 1877. Later owners of #46 included the de Medicis. Kenneth Worcester Dow (1911-2002) and spouse Mary Mohan Dow acquired both properties in the 1940's to ensure their preservation.
Canright House c.Unknown
Location: 5840 Atlantic View, Crescent Beach, South of St. Augustine
In the early 1960's, this house was shelter to many civil rights activists including Dorothy Cotton and C.T. Vivian, Dr. King's right hand man. After Dr. King was invited to visit the house in 1964, the Canright house was shot up, fire bombed, painted with racist graffiti, and the windows were busted out during those times of civil unrest in St. Augustine.
David Manaute and spouse Patti Berry purchased the Canright house in 2021. They've spent their time and a lot money preserving the house and its historical legacy. The Florida couple feel it is an honor to live in a house that has ties to Dr. Martin Luther King, and are trying to preserve the historical aspect of the residence.
Casablanca Inn c.1914
Location: 24 Avienda Menendez
The Casablanca Inn, originally named The Matanzas Hotel, was constructed in 1914 by the architect known as Mr. Butler. The 2-story Mediterranean Revival style building and its carriage house are located on the Matanzas Bay.
As the Matanzas Inn, the original operator Ms. Bradshaw helped bootleggers smuggle alcohol into the city during the prohibition era of the 1920s. She would wave a lantern back and forth to notify the bootlegger’s ships that no government officials or law enforcement were in the area. For her role in this exploit, she was greatly compensated in money and alcohol for her Inn patrons.
After Ms. Bradshaw's death, people reported seeing a white light waving back and forth at night.
It's on the National Register of Historic Places.
Castillo de San Marcos (aka Later 'Fort Marion') c.1672-1695
Location: 11 S Castillo Dr.
Area: 20.48 acres (82879.62 m²)
Built by the Spanish in St. Augustine to defend La Florida, Castillo de San Marcos National Monument is the oldest masonry fort in the continental United States.
The fort's construction was ordered by then Governor Francisco de la Guerra y de la Vega after a raid by the English privateer Robert Searles in 1668 that destroyed much of St. Augustine and damaged the pre-existing wooden fort. Work proceeded under the administration of Guerra's successor, Manuel de Cendoya in 1671, and the first coquina stones were laid in 1672 with the help of African slaves owned by the Spanish, as well as native Americans from three Florida and Georgia tribes. The construction of the core of the current fortress was completed in 1695, although it would undergo many alterations and renovations over the centuries.
It was designed by the Spanish engineer Ignacio Daza, with construction beginning in 1672, one hundred and seven years after the city's founding by Spanish Admiral and conquistador Don Pedro Menéndez de Avilés.
The fort is a 33 foot tall square masonry structure with bastions at each corner, a dry moat, two drawbridges, and a ravelin outer works protecting its entrance. The outer walls vary in thickness between twelve and nineteen feet, and built in a combination of both 'Tabby and Coquina' construction methods (See Description heading above).
The interior features contain two stories of accomodations around the walls with a courtyard in the middle. Some of the rooms were used as prison cells, while others included the canon powder room, chapel, and even a Governors living quarters as well.
Above the accommodation quarters was the gun deck which had up to 60 cannons facing in all directions for protection against enemy forces. Outside was a 'Shot Furnace' which was used to heat up the cannon balls prior to shooting them . The theory is that the hot cannon ball would hit an enemy ship and catch it on fire. (So how did they get the hot cannonball from the furnace to the cannon without getting burned?)
After the 1819 Adams-Onis Treaty, the the United States took possession of the Castillo and changed the name to Fort Marion, in honor of General Francis Marion of Revolutionary fame. Most people today still recognize it as Castillo de San Marcos.
The Castillo was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.
Castle Warden c.1887
Location: 19 San Marcos Ave.
Castle Warden was first built as a winter home for William Warden (1831-1895) of Standard-Oil fame and his family. The structure is a Moorish castle style home which was renovated into a hotel in the 1940's by Pulitzer prize winning writer Majorie Kinnan Rawlings (1896-1953) and her husband Norton Baskin (1901-1997).
In the 1940's, the hotel was a hangout for Robert S. Ripley (1890-1949) who tried unsuccessfully to buy it. Finally in 1950, Ripley's family purchased the Castle Warden and opened the first Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum. The museum is open to visitors, still displaying Ripley's original collection.
Cathedral Basilica c.1797, (Spanish: Cathedral Basílica de San Agustín)
Location: 38 Cathedral Place at St George Street
Taking over five years to build (1792-1797) this is the seat of the Catholic Bishop of St. Augustine, with a congregation that started in the city's founding year of 1565 making it the oldest Christian congregation in the contiguous United States.
Today's 'cathedral' is actually the fifth structure in its history. The first one was wood and burned down by a raid on the city by Sir Francis Drake. The second was made of straw and palmetto only to burn down in 1599. The third was made of wood again but was burnt down in 1702 during a failed English attempt on the city by Carolina Governor James Moore. An attempt to rebuild in 1707 was a failure due to a lack of funds. When the Spanish regained control (following British rule from 1763-1784), the current structure was started in 1792 and completed five years later in 1797. Cruciform in shape, it was built in a combination of Spanish mission and Neoclassical styles.
In 1870, it became a cathedral but In 1887, the old Spanish structure burned once again, but the coquina blocks and cement masonry of the exterior were still salvageable. Rebuilding on what was left of the previous structure started with funds from Henry Flagler (1830-1913) as well as contributions from all across the U.S. Any new walls added, including the bell tower, were made of modern cast-in-place concrete. Noted New York City architect James Renwick, Jr. (1818-1895) was the architect. He added the bell tower which consists of four bells, one of which came from the previous church and another taken from a British cathedral which is inscribed: "Sancte Joseph. Ora Pro Nobis. D 1682.".
It became a minor basilica in 1976.
It became a U.S. National Historic Landmark on April 15, 1970.
Checchi House c. Early 1900's
Location: Charlotte street at St. Francis Street
Checchi house in old town Saint Augustine Florida is a Victorian styled house within a white picket fence that was ordered through the Sears Roebuck catalog.
In the day, entire houses could be ordered and shipped from the 1900s-1940s, with all parts arriving for self assembly.
DeMesa-Sanchez House c.1764, Rebuilt in 1957
Location: 43 St.George Street
The first known owner of the coquina home was Antonio DeMesa who was a Royal Treasury guard. DeMesa lived in the house with his wife and seven children until 1763 when the British possession of St. Augustine started, it then became a government office. In 1784 the Spanish took back the city and the house was bought be Don Juan Sánchez, who added a second floor and a detached kitchen. Part of the house was also used as a Treasury office as well.
James Lisk bought the house in 1835 and made further improvements. In 1957 the house came into the possession of Mr. and Mrs. G.H. Bath who remodeled it to resemble a typical 18th century rural northern Spanish inn, which was opened to the public in July 1959. in 1965, the St. Augustine Restoration Inc. acquired the house and its contents for $115,000. Then in 1977 ownership was transferred to the Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board. Today it is owned by the State of Florida and managed on its behalf by University of Florida Historic St. Augustine, Inc.
Fernandez-Llambias House c.1700's
Location: 31 St. Francis Street
The house was built sometime before 1763 when Spain ceded Florida to Great Britain. It was originally a one-story, two-room, shingle-roofed coquina stone structure owned by Pedro Fernandez.
In 1784, when the Spanish returned, Minorcan settlers and later their decendents took up roots in St.Augustine. Two Minorcan brothers, Joseph and Peter Antonio Manucy, owned the house in 1838, adding the second story and the balcony. Dona Catalina Llambias bought it in 1854 and she and her family owned it for 65 years.
In 1938, the Carnegie Institution of Washington, aided by the St. Augustine Historical Society, purchased the Llambias House and presented it in trust to the City. The structure was restored in 1952-54. The Altrusa Club was named custodian of the property by the Board of Trustees in 1967.
The house was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970.
Flagler College (originally Ponce de Leon Hotel, c.1888)
Location: 74 King Street at Cordova Street
Designed by Carrére and Hastings architects of New York who were two young men right out of college designed the hotel.
It was originally a hotel built by Henry Flagler which he called the Hotel Ponce de León. It was of the Spanish Renaissance style architecture and the first major poured-in-place concrete building in the United States. It is now part of Flagler College and called Ponce de Leon Hall, and is a National Historic Landmark.
As one of the first electrified structures in the U.S., it had thousands of lights as well as steam heating provided by the Edison Electric Company.
The Edison Electric Company powered the hotel with steam heat and 4,000 electric lights, making the 'Ponce' one of the nation’s first electrified buildings.
It had interior features of stained glass by Louis Comfort Tiffany, and murals by George Willoughby Maynard and Virgilio Tojetti.
In 1968, the structure became Flagler College, founded by Lawrence Lewis Jr. (1918-1995) as a small, private college for women, and today is a private liberal arts college and offers 33 undergraduate majors and one master's program.
Flagler Memorial Presbyterian Church c.1889
Location: 32 Sevilla Street at Valencia Street
Designed by John Merven Carrere and Thomas Hastings of Carrere and Hastings architecture firm in New York for a cost of $250,000.
Inspired by St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy in the Venetian Renaissance architecture style, this church was dedicated to the memory of Flagler's only daughter Jennie Louise Benedict, who died following complications from childbirth at sea in March 1889.
Elements of design consisted of Spanish, Moorish, Italian, and Baroque style. The building was constructed by builders McGuire and McDonald using poured concrete mixed with coquina.
It features German handmade stained glass windows, barreled ceiling, hand-carved Santo Domino mahogany pews, detailed terracotta frieze work by Italian artists, Italian marble floors, a baptismal font carved from a single block of Siena marble, and a massive copper dome made in Italy.
Following Hurricane Irma in 2017, its 900 pound cross fell and damaged the copper roof, all of which had to be repaired at a cost of 3.5 million dollars, a far cry from the original cost of $250,000 for the entire building.
Members of the Flagler family are interred in the mausoleum attached to the church.
Fort Matanzas c.1742, (Spanish: Torre de Matanzas (Matanzas Tower)
Location: Matanzas Inlet, at the mouth of the Matanzas River south of St. Augustine.
Designed by Spanish military architect Pedro Ruiz de Olano.
While located away from downtown St. Augustine, this small Spanish outpost was built in 1740-1742 using the labor of convicts, slaves, and troops from Cuba, and played an important part in the protection of St. Augustine. Its function was to guard the Matanzas Inlet, and Matanzas River approach and to warn St. Augustine of British or other enemies approaching from the South.
It was only manned by one officer, four infantrymen, and two gunners and was equipped with five cannons, which included four six-pounders and one eighteen-pounder.
In 1742 it held off the approaching British under their command of General James Oglethorpe.
The fort became a Florida State National Monument on October 15, 1924, and placed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15, 1966.
Fort Mose Historical State Park c.1738
Location: 15 Fort Mose Trail, (US 1A1 at Fort Mose Trail), 2 miles North of St. Augustine, (across from the Shoppes at Northtowne).
Located outside the St. Augustine Historical Downtown, Fort Mose Historic State Park is the site of the first legally sanctioned free African settlement in what is now the United States.
At the end of the 17th century, King Charles II, King of England, Scotland, and Ireland signed a royal decree granting asylum to all runaway slaves in Florida from British colonial rule. The governor of Spanish Florida, Manuel Joaquín de Montiano y Sopelana (1685-1762) chartered the settlement of Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose, (aka Royal grace of Saint Teresa of Mose) aka Fort Mose as a settlement for those fleeing slavery from the English colonies.
It became the home to a hundred or so slaves fleeing British rule in the North, and was the start of the first American 'Underground Railroad' (see Definitions heading above). to gain their freedom the slaves had to declare their allegiance to the king of Spain and became members of the Catholic Church.
A formerly enslaved African named Captain Francisco Menéndez (1700-1770) led the free black militia of Fort Mose. For years, the warriors valiantly protected St. Augustine. However, when Spain ceded all of La Florida to England in 1763, the citizens of Fort Mose once again faced enslavement. They abandoned the fort and sought safety in Spanish Cuba.
Over the years, Fort Mose site was swallowed by marshland, and the important legacy of its community was largely forgotten.
After years of deterioration, a team of archaeologists, historians, government leaders and committed citizens helped restore the Fort Mose site to its rightful place of honor. Today, the park is recognized as a significant local, national and international historic landmark.
In 1994, the site was designated as a National Historic Landmark and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Ponce de Leon Fountain of Youth Archaelogical Park
Location: Magnolia Avenue at Williams Street off San Marco Blvd.
While located outside the St. Augustine Historical Dictrict, this is one of those 'must see' locations.
As previously mentioned, this is the spot where Ponce de Leon first landed in the 'New World' which was occupied by the Timucua tribe. He reportedly marveled at the health of the Timucua people, who thrived on their supply of clean water, fresh game, seafood, beans, squash and maize in which Ponce believed he had found the 'Fountain of Youth' that he was seeking.
The Fountain of Youth site was later claimed by Spain for more than two centuries until Britain reigned for another two successive decades. In 1783, Spain regained dominion of Florida and the site was given to the Arnau family in 1807.
In 1868, Henry H. Williams bought the site from Paul Arnau and began selling cups of the 'youthful' water for 5 cents.
“Luella Day MacConnell then bought the place in 1901. From 1901 to 1927, she was the one that pushed it into attraction status,”
The 'Fountain of Youth' then became associated with the 'Ponce' from that time forward.
Don Toledo/Gaspar Papy House c.1803-1817
Location: 36 Aviles Street
Built in the the 'Second Spanish Period' (1784-1821), this house was of coquina stone and constructed by Gaspar Papy, a Greek emigrant born in Smyrna,Turkey and who left the Turnbull Colony in New Smyrna, Florida for St. Augustine in 1777.
Papy owned the property until after the American Civil War when he marketed it as a tourist spot which belonged to a 16th century man named Don Toledo. In 1928 it was acquired by the Sisters of St. Joseph, rehabilitated to its present form in the 1940's and remains in their possession today.
Gonzalez-Alvarez House c.1723
Location: 14 St. Francis Street
The house got its name from two Spanish owners of the building, those being Tomas Gonzalez y Hernandez who was an artilleryman at the Castillo de San Marcos, and Geronimo Alvarez who was an immigrant from the province of Asturias in Northern Spain.
Gonzalez y Hernandez constructed the original one story coquina masonry building and lived in the house from 1723 to 1763. Gonzalez left and moved to Cuba when Spain ceded Florida to Great Britain in 1763. He left the property in the hands of Jesse Fish who was a real estate agent who had a side job as a dealer of slaves, but it sat empty for 12 years until bought by an English solider named Joseph Peavett.
Peavett was not only a solider but also had a tavern and inn from his house. He was also one of the largest slave owners in the province with 57 enslaved Africans and one White servant. Between 1775 and 1786, Peavett doubled the size of the house by adding a wooden framed second story. After Peavetts death in 1786, his widow married an Irishman named Hudson who had financial issues due to gambling, and eventually she had to auction off the property, which was then purchased by Alvarez.
Alvarez added more rooms which included a chapel, three bedrooms, a loggia, and a pantry. Alvarez, his family, and his descendents lived in the home for almost 100 years (1790-1882).
This house is believed to be the oldest surviving house in St. Augustine, and is now owned by the St. Augustine Historical Society.
It was designated a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1970.
Government House c.1598, (Spanish: Casa del Gobierno)
Location: 48 King Street, at George Street
Overlooking the historic Plaza de la Constitución, the building, historically known as Government House, has a long and fascinating history and has been home to several government offices since 1598.
In Spain's 1573 Law of the Indies (Leyes de los Indies), it specified that colonial town plans must set aside such a plaza for government, church and public use. In the plaza, this building, made of coquina accommodated administrative headquarters and residences of colonial governors appointed by the Crowns of Spain, then Britain, then Spain again. After Spain ceded Florida to the United States in 1821, this current Government House served as a courthouse and briefly as a Capitol of the new Territory of Florida.
In it's history it has been a United States Post Office & Customs House, Offices of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agriculture Extension Service and Postal Inspector, Civil Service Commission, Public Health, and Customs House.
During the British Period, the house was the official residence of James Grant (1720-1806), the British Royal Governor of East Florida (1764–1771). Among his guests were American explorer Daniel Boone (1734-1820), who was in East Florida to inquire about land purchases.
Government House is one of the state-owned buildings managed by the University of Florida.
Government House was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 7, 2014.
Casa Horruytiner
Location: 214 St. George Street, c.1763
Casa Horruytiner is one of the oldest remaining houses in St. Augustine and was built around the First Spanish Evacuation in 1763.
The earliest documented owner is Don Diego Horruitiner y Pueyo, who is related to two Florida Governors, Luis de Horruytiner and Pedro Benedit Horruytiner.
The house passed hands after the First Spanish period to Charles Delap, the second documented owner, who was a Justice of the Peace during the British Period in St. Augustine.
The home features 12” thick exterior and interior walls constructed of coquina. It has survived storms and fires that engulfed the city in earlier years.
In the southeast corner of the courtyard wall is a section of “Tabby” construction which is made of whole oyster shells. It is the last known free-standing wall of this type in St. Augustine dating back to the First Spanish Period.
Lincolnville Historic District
Location: M.L. King Ave near Lincoln Street; Located South of the St. Augustine Historical District.
Located outside the St. Augustine Historical District, this separate district has a lot of history attached to it and worthy of mention within this study.
Lincolnville has lived every phase of America’s racial journey. After the American Civil War ended in 1865, plantation land was subdivided and leased or sold to veterans of the U.S. Colored Troops who were legally free men and women who were able to lease land for $1.00 a year starting in 1866. The neighborhood soon evolved into one of the largest clusters of Victorian homes in the city and was home to many prominent African American business owners and professionals.
The historical district of Lincolnville spans 45 blocks, consists of 548 historic buildings, and sits on the southwest peninsula of the "nation's oldest city". During its hayday it was home to two orange plantations. The initial inhabitants called the settlement 'Africa' or 'Little Africa'.
When they finally put in streets around 1878, it took the name Lincolnville on city maps. Henry Flagler filled in Maria Sanchez Creek from King Street to St Francis, which expanded Lincolnville to the East.
During the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950's and 60's, Lincolnville was ground zero for activists working towards the end of racial segregation in St. Augustine.
Documenting more than 450 years of African-American history in St. Augustine is the Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center, in the former 1925 Excelsior High School building, the city’s first black public high school (aka 'School #2' or 'the Colored School'), located at #102 ML King Ave. and Moore Street. This center is a great place to learn more about the history of Lincolnville. If you are looking for a history of the Civil Rights movement in St Augustine, also check out the Accord Civil Rights Museum nearby at #79 Bridge Street, and Oneida Street.
Also in this district is the 'Civil Rights House' at 160 ML King Ave. (between South Street and Duero Street). It was firstly the home of white segregationist, and 1st Circuit Court Judge Leo L. Fabisinski who led the 'Fabisinski Committee' on race relations, and later the home of black civil rights leader, Dr. Robert B. Hayling. There is no other house in St. Augustine that has sheltered the two opposite sides of that great conflict, the civil rights movement, that shaped our modern democracy.
Lincolnville was designated as an historic district in 1991 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Casa Monica (aka Hotel Cordova) c.1888
Location: King Street at Cordova Street
Henry M. Flagler (1830-1913) owned the lot and sold it to Franklin Webster Smith (1826-1911) in 1887 who was a noted Civil War-Era abolitionist and social activist with a deep interest in Victorian architecture. A native Bostonian, Smith decided to build such a magnificent building because of the rise in Florida tourism at the end of the 19th century. The result was a Moorish Revival and Spanish Baroque Revival architecture masterpiece.
After completion, he soon ran into financial problems and turned back to Henry Flagler for help. Flagler bought the hotel from Smith for $325,000 dollars, renamed it the Hotel Cordova, and made a successful venture of it. It later became the property of legendary travel agent, Ward G. Foster who established it as the headquarters of his soon-to-be-famous travel agency, “Ask Mr. Foster”.
In 1962, after sitting for empty for 30 years, the building was purchased by the St. Johns County Commission for $250,000 dollars and after six years of renovation finally opened in 1968 as the St. Johns County Courthouse. Two notable features were interior murals by artist Hugo Ohlms (1904-1990), whose work also appeared in the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge and the neighboring St. Benedict Catholic Church. Another fascinating aspect was the stained-glass door panels at the front entrance that displayed the scales of justice.
In 1997, Richard Kessler (b. 1946) who had previously worked with the Days Inn Hotel chain and later founded the Kessler Collection, fell in love with the building’s gorgeous historical architecture. He purchased the building from the St. Johns County government for $1.2 million and immediately began remodeling the historic structure, transforming it back into a magnificent resort hotel. Kessler hired architect Howard W. Davis to spearhead the redesign, which focused on saving the building’s Moorish Revival-style architecture. Taking two years to complete, the brilliant structure opened as the Casa Monica Hotel in the winter of 1999.
Noted guests include including South African civil rights activist Desmond Tutu, King Juan Carlos I of Spain, and former U.S. President Bill Clinton. It went to 'the dogs' in 1964 when the lobby was used as a kennel for police dogs which were brought in during local civil right demonstrations.
Nombre de los Mission and Shrine of our Lady of la Leche c.1609
27 Ocean Ave. at San Marco Ave
The National Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche is a Catholic Marian shrine located at the Nombre de Dios Mission in St. Augustine.
Spanish explorer, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés and Fr Francisco López de Mendoza Grajales, OFM, arrived in northern Florida in 1565. Grajalez celebrated here the first Mass in what would become the United States. The mission established here, Nombre de Dios, was also the first in the U.S.
The settlers brought with them the Spanish devotion to Nuestra Señora de La Leche y Buen Parto ("Our Lady of the Milk and Good Delivery"). The name comes from the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary nursing the infant Jesus, hence the reference to "la leche"—i.e., (breast) milk.
The original shrine was destroyed in 1728 by British invaders from the north, and was rebuilt in 1875. The chapel seats about 30 and was built in 1914.
It became a National Shrine in 2019 and received a canonical coronation in 2021.
North Gate c.1739
Location: Orange Street at Castillo Drive
The city had protective gates and wall to the North, South, and West. The gates were of a log and earthen construction. Coquina pillars were added in 1806.
The wall that ran from gate to gate were of palm logs. The remnants of this North wall can still be seen which runs from San Marco Ave to Castlllo de San Marcos.
Old Senator Live Oak
Location: 137 Florida 1A1 at Villa 1565 parking Lot
In the middle of the (currently Villa 1565) hotel’s parking lot stands the live oak tree, “Old Senator.”
With a circumference of more than 21 feet, this majestic tree is over 600 years old.
Old Jail (1891)
Location: 167 San Marco Ave. , St. Augustine
Henry Flagler, a key figure in St. Augustine’s development, built the structure in 1891.
Located outside the historical district, St. Augustine’s Old Jail is one of the most haunted locations in the city. Listed on the Florida and National Register of Haunted Places, tourists and locals alike visit the Old Jail to experience the supernatural stories firsthand.
Conditions for prisoners were notoriously inhumane. Some of the most dangerous criminals were housed in the jail’s maximum-security area, and eight men were hung from the gallows.
The historic building housed prisoners from 1891 to 1953 when it was closed due to its deplorable conditions and the inflicted cruelty on its residents.
Old Spanish Trail Zero Milestone c.1929
Location: South Castillo Drive, just North of the Huguenot Cemetery
Also known as 'The Old Spanish Trail' (OST) transcontinental highway It connects the old Spanish colonial towns of St. Augustine, Florida on the Atlantic coast to San Diego, California on the Pacific coast. FYI - the OST is not same as the 19th century cattle trail of the same name that wound from Santa Fe to Los Angeles.
This trail was one of the country’s original interstate routes and the highway’s name pays homage to the Spanish heritage and missions of the southwest and the south.
This marker is a spherical monument made of coquina shells.
Oldest Wooden School House in St. Augustine c.1788
Location: 14 St. George Street, just inside the North gate.
Made of Cypress and red cedar woods, this is the oldest school house in St. Augustine, not the U.S. It started out as a home back in 1740, and was sold to Juan Genopoly in 1780. He added a second story as his private residence, and used the first floor as a co-ed school starting in 1788.
Costs to attend were 12-1/2 cents for the younger students and 25 cents for the older, but that did include schools supplies too.
The last class to attend graduated in 1864.
Oliveros House c.1798
Location: 59 St. George Street
Pedro González, a native of Galicia, Spain owned the original dwelling. González was married to Isabel Rodríguez of St. Augustine in 1733.
After the González family died off, the property was sold to Sebastian de Oliveros, who was a Corsican mariner and trader who tore the house down and built a new house in 1798 of coquina. he died at sea in 1804 at the hands of pirates. His widow Usina González rented it to a Gaspar Arnau, a mariner and ship owner, who eventually purchased the property.
The house survived until 1908 when it was reconstructed by L.C. Ringhaver in 1965 using the original foundation footprint.
Today the building is owned by St. Augustine Restoration, Inc.
O'Reilly House, aka Father Miguel O'Reilly House Museum, aka House of Don Lorenzo de Leon, c. 1691
Location: 32 Aviles Street.
This house is said to date to 1691 during the 'First Spanish Period', and known to be the residence of Lorenzo Jose de Leon in 1725.
Father Miguel O'Reilly, an Irish priest in the service of the Spanish crown, bought the property in 1785 at the beginning of the 'Second Spanish Period', and it became the parish rectory.
When Fr. O'Reilly died he left it to the Sisters of St. Joseph which later became the St. Joseph Academy from 1876-1920.
In 2003, it opened as a museum.
It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Place in 1974
'Casa Nicolas de Ortega c.1740, Rebuilt 1967
Location: 70 St. George Street
Built by Nicolas de Ortega, Armourer
This house represents the first Spanish period with minor British modifications. The reconstruction of this residence in 1967 was made possible from contributions of A.D. Davis and J.E. Davis of Winn Dixie Stores, Inc.
Pena-Peck House aka Treasury/Dr. Peck House aka Dr. Peck House c.1750
Location: 59 Treasury Street at St. George Street
This house represents three different eras in local history. The first floor's L-shaped plan of coquina in 1750 was during the First Spanish Period, an eastern wing built in the British Period, and the upper story added during the U.S. Territorial Period.
The Pena-Peck House (aka Old Spanish Treasury), was built as the Spanish Treasury and would house the Royal Treasurer, Juan Esteban de Peña. During the British Period it served for a time as the home of Governor John Moultrie (1729-1798). In 1837 Dr. Seth S. Peck (1790-1841) purchased the house and it remained in the Peck family under granddaughter, Anna Gardener Burt who inherited the house and lived there 81 years. She willed it to the City in 1931. A generous grant from the Flagler Foundation permitted extensive restoration in 1968.
Plaza de la Constitución and Monument c.1812
Location: King Street and Charlotte Street, (Harbor front)
In the 1500's-1700's, before it became the 'Plaza', this plot of land was not only used as a market place for food products, but also used as a slave market as well.
The Constitución Monument in the plaza is an obelisk constructed in 1812 in celebration of the newly formed government in Spain. In 1813, Spanish King Ferdinand VII ordered all such monuments be destroyed. St. Augustine city leaders failed to comply with this.
The public square has been the setting for numerous historic events in the history of the city, Florida and the country. It was the site where representatives from both governments officially transferred control of Florida from Spain to the United States in 1821. The scene of numerous rallies leading up to the Civil War, the plaza was the location where Union naval officers reclaimed the city from the Confederacy in 1862. During the struggle for civil rights, the plaza, which once served as a slave market, was the setting for numerous peaceful protests. Robert Hayling, a young Black dentist, led the first protest on Labor Day in 1963. In 1964 Dr. Martin Luther King was arrested here as he led another march.
The plaza was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970.
Prisoners of War in St. Augustine During the American Revolution c.2011
Location: Marker in the Plaza de La Constitución, King Street at St. George Street.
From the onset of the American Revolution in 1775, the British Crown Colony in East Florida was a Loyalist bastion where the British held many American Patriots and their French allies as prisoners. By the end of 1780, these prisoners included three signers of the Declaration of Independence,Thomas Heyward, Jr.(1746-1809), Arthur Middleton (1742-1787), and Edward Rutledge (1749-1800).
Sanchez House c.1809
Location: 7 Bridge Street, at Avenida Menendez
This house was built by Francis Xavier Sanchez and his wife, Mary Hill of Charleston, South Carolina. That is the probable reason for the English colonial interior rather than the usual Spanish.
Segui-Kirby House c.1770's
Location: 12 Aviles Street
This is one of the 36 Spanish Colonial houses remaining in St. Augustine. The house dates from the late 1700s.
In 1786 it became the home of Bernardo Segui, a prosperous merchant of Minorcan descent who was also baker to the garrison and a Spanish militia official.
Judge Joseph Lee Smith, first Judge of the Superior Court for East Florida, rented the home about 1823 from Segui's heirs, and in time the family purchased it. Offspring General Kirby Smith and his sister sold the home in 1887 to E.P. Dismukes. In 1894, Mr. and Mrs. John L. Wilson bought the home and used it as a city library.
In 1895, the Wilson's gave the building in trust to a private organization for use as a free public library.
It is currently owned and operated by the St. Augustine Historical Society and is home to the St. Augustine Historical Society Research Library.
Spanish Military Hospital Museum c.1700
Location: 2 Aviles Street
The museum is housed in is a reconstruction of a Military Hospital that was on the same site in the late 1700s. It features ward beds, surgeon’s tools and even the mourning room where patient’s last rites were performed. A bell would ring to summon mourners; this practice inspired the phrase “For whom the bell tolls".
Aviles Street was originally known as Hospital Street because the medical facility was situated along the roadway. The medical clinic treated military personnel during St. Augustine’s Spanish and British Colonial periods. The West Wing, built during the First Spanish Period, burned down in 1818. The British constructed the East Wing and Apothecary. The hospital was closed two years after the United States assumed control over Florida. A fire destroyed the East Wing in 1895 and was replaced, but that to was torn down in 1960.
During the rebuilding, workers discovered thousands of human bones buried underneath the hospital. After some investigating, they learned that the hospital sat on a Timucuan burial ground – the Indians that were native to St. Augustine in its earliest years.
Spanish Public Well c. bef.1763
Location: Marker is at King Street and St. George Street
Historic Marker reads: "Spanish Public Well, Constructed prior to 1763, Filled and partially destroyed during British Occupation 1763 –1784".
St Francis Barracks c.1724-1755
Location: 104 Marine Street
The St. Francis Barracks is a historic structure constructed of coquina stone and named in honor of St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226).
As a barracks were turned into a military structure at the start of the British period of occupation in 1763, at the conclusion of the French and Indian War. At that time, the Franciscan friars vacated St. Augustine along with a majority of the other Spanish residents.
Today the St. Francis Barracks is a U.S. military installation and part of the Florida State Arsenal nearby which serves as the headquarters for the Florida National Guard and its two subordinate organizations, the Florida Army National Guard, and the Florida Air National Guard. A portion of the military reservation is also the site of the St. Augustine National Cemetery (see description below).
St. Augustine Foot Soldiers Monument
Location: King St. and Charlotte St. in the Southeast corner of the Plaza de la Constitución.
This monument honors the men and women who engaged in various forms of peaceful protest to advance civil rights in the 50's and 60's.
Its 675-pound bronze sculpture by Africa American artist Brian Owens (b. 1958) was unveiled in 2011 and depicts four figures of various ages and races including a white male in his 30's, a black male in his 30s, a black woman in her 60s, and a black teenage girl. The figures are facing away from where early slave trading took place in the plaza centuries before, and toward the building where the first attempts occurred to integrate drug store food counters in the city.
Attempts by protesters to peacefully demonstrate for civil rights were also met with threats and violence which encouraged President Lyndon Johnson to sign the Voting Rights Act in 1964.
Dr Martin Luther King and his followers were known for their strategy of encouraging social change through non-violence, even in the face of police harassment and intimidation. St. Augustine was the only Florida city where King was ever arrested.
St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum c. 1871-1874
Location: 100 Red Cox Drive, at Ocean Vista Ave.
Located outside the downtown historical district, the St. Augustine Light Station is today, a U.S Coast Guard maintained aid to navigation and an active, working lighthouse in St. Augustine, and stands at the North end of Anastasia Island.
A wooden watchtower was constructed by the Spanish in the late 1500's to be used as a lookout for enemy shipping as they approached the area. By 1737, the Spanish replaced the original watchtower with a new 30-foot watchtower made of coquina (shell rock) and wood.
During the British Period (1763-1783), another 30 feet was added to the Spanish coquina tower using wood.
In 1783 when the Second Spanish Period started, the Spaniards removed the British wooden upper 30 feet and refortified it with coquina.
In 1852, the light tower at St. Augustine was raised another 10 feet in an effort to improve visibility. Finally, by 1853, the St. Augustine tower held a new fourth-order Fresnel lens, designed by Frenchman Jean Augustin Fresnel (1788-1827). A single lard oil lamp, fueled by whale oil was used for light.
During the American Civil War, (1861-1865) Confederate sympathizers living in St. Augustine removed and hid the lens in order to block Union shipping. The victorious American government re-lit the beacon in 1867.
The U.S. Lighthouse Service began construction on a new 165-foot tower in 1871 and did not finish until 1874. Workers from from all walks of life in St. Augustine included whites, African American, and Minorcan residents. On October 15, 1874, the first lighthouse keeper, William R. Russell lit the oil lamp inside a new, first-order nine foot tall Fresnel lens for the first time. This same lens is still in use today.
In early 1942 as WW II commenced, a lighthouse keepers station was built near the lighthouse and the towers light (candle power) brightness was reduced for safety. With U-Boats on the prowl up and down the East coast, every precaution was taken to prevent any attacks.
In 1980, the the lighthouse keepers station was ready for demolition, but was saved and is now a museum of the lighthouse history.
In 1991 the U.S Coast Guard wanted to replace the bullet riddled Fresnel lens with an airport beacon but the original lens was restored and re-lit in 1993.
The current lighthouse tower remains a part of an aid-to-navigation system which supports military defense, travel, trade, fishing, boat building and pleasure boating.
During its long history, several tragic events have occurred that many feel attribute to the unusually high level of paranormal energy and ghost sightings within the lighthouse and on its grounds.
One of the first was when the lighthouse keeper Mr. Andreu fell to his death while painting the tower. During one of the visits from the Ghost Hunters show, they captured an apparition on film that many believe to be the old keeper’s ghost, still watching over the lighthouse.
Another horrific event was the death of two young girls who drowned when the handcart they were playing in broke and fell into the ocean. Many have seen at least one of the girls roaming about and others have heard the voices of children playing inside and outside the building.
The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1981.
Casa de Sueños c.1904
Location: 20 Cordova Street at Saragossa Street
The one-story wood-frame residence stands atop land once owned by Henry Flager’s real estate company.
Built as a single-family home in 1904, Casa de Sueños now welcomes guests as a quaint Bed & Breakfast. Before offering fresh linens and a free buffet, the house catered to a different clientele; the dead (see below).
During the first Spanish occupation, the people of St. Augustine sought ways to protect their beloved city from British invasion and created a natural barrier using razor-sharp cactuses and yucca gloriosa, known as the 'Spanish dagger' for its skin-piercing edges. This defensive wall was known as the Rosario Line. Its western border once resided where Casa de Sueños stands today.
George Colee, whose family started a prosperous horse carriage company in the 1880s, called the Casa home in the early 1900s.
In the 1940's, the P.F. Carcaba family later moved in and spent their successful cigar manufacturing money on an elaborate expansion that transformed the structure into the grand Mediterranean-Revival home it is today.
Also, sometime in the 1940's, the Casa passed from cigar factory owner Carcabra to undertaker William McGrath. McGrath converted the building into the Garcia Funeral Home, which operated successfully until the ‘60s. Kathleen Hurley of New York, transformed the former funeral home into a B & B in the 1990s. The day she signed the lease, former mortician. McGrath passed away peacefully as if he knew the house was in good hands.
In the 1970s, an association for the intellectually disabled took up residence before the building was converted into office space.
Today it is a favorite city inn that is rumored to have paranormal activity around the establishment that ranges from the light-hearted moving of objects to full-body apparitions.
Tovar House c. early 1700's
Location: 22 St. Francis Street at Charlotte Street
This corner house was built sometime after 1702 during the first Spanish occupation period of 1565-1763, and it is known that Infantryman Jose Tovar lived here in 1763.
During the British occupation years of 1763-1784, Scottish merchant John Johnson was the resident.
When the second Spanish period started in 1784, Jose Coruna, a Canary Islander with his family and Tomas Caraballo, an assistant surgeon, occupied the house.
Geronimo Alvarez who lived next door in the Gonzalez-Alvarez House, purchased the property in 1791. It remained in his family until 1871.
A later occupant was Civil War (Union Army) Brigadier General Martin Davis Hardin (1837-1923) who is interred in the St. Augustine National Cemetery on Marine street.
The house was conveyed to the St. Augustine Historical Society in 1918.
Triay-Hall House aka Casa de Triay, c.1807
Location: 42 Spanish Street
This original Minorcan home constructed of coquina stone was owned by members of the Triay family until 1885. The Antonio J. Triay House is one of a limited number of St. Augustine houses that remain from the town's Second Spanish Period (1784-1821).
Restored in 1951 by the St. Augustine Historical Society.
Acquired by Robert Gudrun Hall in 1963, it was sold again in 2022 for $850,000 and re-evaluated in 2023 at nearly 1 million dollars.
It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
Trinity Episcopal Church c.1821 / 1903
Location: 215 St. George Street at King Street
Trinity Parish was established when Florida became a territory of the United States. The founding pastor, Rev. Andrew Fowler, and Fowler’s replacement, Rev. Mellish Motte, incorporated the church in 1823.
Constructed of coquina, the original structure was 36 feet wide by 50 feet long. Bishop Nathaniel Bowen of South Carolina formally consecrated it on June 5, 1834, the year windows were first installed.
In 1895, under Rev. C. M. Sturges, he began a six-year effort to obtain funding to enlarge the structure. Work began in early 1902 and the first services were held in the “new” church, a cruciform structure, on January 17, 1903. The Rev. L. Fitz-James Hindry served as Rector from 1904 until 1936, the longest tenured leader.
The Rev. Charles Seymour was called to Trinity and served between 1949 and 1964. Under his direction a two-story education facility and parish hall were added in 1955.
in 1960, a new parish hall, kitchen, classrooms administrative offices and a nursery were added. And in 1966 an Aeolian-Skinner organ was added.
United Grace Methodist Church c.1887
Location: Carrera Street at Cordova Street
Designed by architect's John M. Carrere and Thomas Hastings, of Carrere and Hastings architecture firm in New York, and constructed by contractors James A. McGuire and Joseph E. McDonald in the architectural style of Spanish Renaissance Revival with Moorish elements, this church was built for $85,000 dollars.
The sanctuary features Louis Comfort Tiffany stained glass windows.
In 2011, Grace UMC merged with Christ Church, another Methodist church in St. Augustine.
It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on November 29, 1979
Upham Winter Cottage c.1893
Location: 268 St. George Street
One of the most interesting 'winter cottages' of the Flagler era, this was built for Colonel John J Upham, who was a veteran of the Battle of Gettysburg and the Plains Indian wars. after his marriage in 1891 he and his wife built a new house on the site which featured a conservatory, ballroom and roof garden. It even had a glass-roofed Moorish extension with horseshoe arches.
The 12-room Victorian cottage was changed to an apartment building some time in its past, but was restored back to a private residence in the 1970s. It is not open to the public. It is said to be haunted by a pretty young woman named Claire who likes to play harpsichord music. Legend has it that her sea captain husband kept Claire imprisoned in the attic while he was away, and during one of his trips, she died there.
It is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Villalonga House c.1820 / 1976
Location: 72 St. George Street
This was the home of Bartolome Villalonga (1789-1825), son of Juan Villalonga of Minorca, and husband of Maria Acosta, of Corsican Greek parentage.
The current house was reconstructed in 1976.
World War I Memorial c.1923
Location: Cathedral Place and Avienda Menendez (State Route 1A1)
Donated by Dr. Andrew Anderson, this memorial is dedicated to those who served during during World war I.
Dr. Anderson's plaque at the base denotes "The city of St. Augustine 'Fiel-y-Firme' (translates as Faithful and Firm). Dedicated to victory, to peace, and to the youth of this city who served their country in the World War 1917-1918".
World War II Memorial c1946
Location: Plaza de la Constitución, St. Augustine, Florida
The St. Augustine Pilot Club presented this monument in 1946 to memorialize the citizens of St. Johns County who gave their lives during World War II. Later, bronze plaques were added to the six-foot square, stucco-finished masonry shaft to include those from the county who also died in Korea and Vietnam wars.
Ximenez-Fatio House c.1798
Location: 20 Aviles Street
The Ximenez-Fatio House Museum is one of the best-preserved and most authentic Second Spanish Period (1784-1821) residential buildings in in the city.
The two-story main house and detached kitchen was built by Andres Ximenez (an alternate spelling of Jimenez), a Spaniard who married Juana Pellicer, daughter of Francisco Pellicer, a leader of the Minorcan community in St. Augustine.
It was constructed of coquina, rock quarried on nearby Anastasia Island in a style which blends elements of Spanish Colonial architecture with more elegant Federal-style architecture introduced during Florida's British Period (1763-1784).
The Ximenez family did not occupy the house for long. By 1806, both parents and two of their five minor children had died. For a number of years following, Juana's father managed the property on his remaining grandchildren's behalf.
The house then went through three more (women) owners, all of whom operated it as a boarding house.
In 1830, Margaret Cook purchased the Ximenez House from its heirs. Cook had relocated to St. Augustine from Charleston, South Carolina with her second husband Samuel in 1821 and converted the house to add extra bedrooms. Still owning the house, Cook hired Eliza Whitehurst, a widowed friend from Charleston who may have also been a close relative, as manager and opened the house to boarders as 'Mrs. Whitehurst's Boarding House'.
When Mrs Whitehurst died in 1938, Cook sold the boarding house to Sarah Petty Anderson for $4,000.
By the end of the 1830s, Anderson was a widow living in St. Augustine. In the early 1840s, she hired Louisa Fatio to manage the Ximenez House as a boarding house. She retained Fatio as manager until 1855 when Fatio purchased the house for $3,000, and continued to run it as a boarding house which was known as 'Miss Fatio's'. The establishment was a fixture in St. Augustine until her death in 1875.
Since 1939, the property has been privately owned and managed by The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in The State of Florida.
The house was recognized in 1936 by the Historic American Buildings Survey, in 1973 by the National Register of Historic Places, in 1984 by the St. Augustine Town Plan National Historic Landmark District, and in 2012 as a Florida Heritage Landmark.
Andrew Young Crossing (Marker c.2012)
Location: Marker and Memorial in the Plaza de La Constitución, King Street at St. George Street.
The civil rights movement of the 60' was called the “the great moral drama”.
At this plaza on June 9th, 1964, Civil Rights Movement Leader Andrew Young (b. 1932) led a march from the black enclave of Lincolnville to the Plaza de la Constitución where they met violent opposition. Young had been sent to St. Augustine by the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., a close friend and fellow advocate, to organize a peaceful protest for human rights. When Young led the group of demonstrators across the street to this location, he was beaten by a large white mob that had been waiting for the marchers to arrive. Young recalls being struck down several times in the melee.
The activists, being true to Dr. King's non-violent strategy simply walked away. Civil rights historians agree that this was one of the pivotal events that eventually lead to the passage of the Civil Rights legislation. National press coverage of the protests in 1964 helped break Congress' filibuster on the Civil Rights Act vote. On July 2nd, 1964, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Bill into law.
A commemorative marker and the spot where Young’s progress was halted has been memorialized with bronze footsteps across panels of coquina stone. Each panel features a different civil rights goal and quotes from King, Young, and President Johnson.
Villa Zorayda c.1883
Location: 83 King St
The Villa Zorayda was built in 1883 by wealthy hardware merchant, Franklin Webster Smith (1826-1911) as his winter home.
Smith tested and utilized his own innovative method of construction know as, poured concrete and crushed coquina shell and therein designed his winter home in the Moorish Revival style of architecture by replicating details of the Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain.
In 1903, the building was leased out and transformed into the Zorayda Club, a restaurant and club where the most prominent guests enjoyed a night out with friends.
In 1913, 2 years after Smith’s death, the building and part of Smith’s estate were sold to Abraham Mussallem (1871-1941), an immigrant from Lebanon, who was an authority on oriental rugs and Egyptian artifacts.
In the 1920s, the Zorayda Club became a gambling casino and speakeasy, and by the late 1920's, Abraham and his wife, Olga, decided to close the club and live in the building as their residence with their family. After a few years, the Mussallem's realized how important the building was to St. Augustine’s history, and in 1933, they opened it as a museum, the Villa Zorayda Museum.
In the 1960's the sons of Abraham and Olga, Edward and Walter Mussallem restored the museum and renamed it Zorayda Castle. Zorayda Castle closed in the year 2000 and underwent an extensive 8 year restoration financed by son Edward, who was a former Mayor of St. Augustine. Overseeing the restoration was Edwards daughter, Marcia Mussallem Byles, and her husband, James Byles.
In 2008, the Villa Zorayda reopened once again as a museum going back to the original name given to it by Franklin Smith.
For over 105 years and three generations of the Mussallem/Byles family have been the guardians of the Villa Zorayda.
Today, the historical significance of the building to the city with its unique and magnificent architecture, visitors can tour the villa which features the priceless antique collections of both Franklin Smith and A.S. Mussallem. One of our most discussed pieces on display is the “Sacred Cat Rug” which is over 2400 years old and made from the hairs of ancient cats that roamed the Nile River.
Historic Street Names
Numerous streets in St. Augustine listed below are named after some of the pioneers, solders, activists, and even a country, and a king too.
Aviles Street - Named for Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles (1519-1574) Admiral; 16th-century colonial governor of La Florida and Cuba, in New Spain; explorer and conquistador.
Avenida Menendez - Named for the Spanish founder of St Augustin, Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles (1519-1574).
Castillo Drive - Named for Castillo de San Marcos.
Cathedral Place - Named for the Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine.
Flagler Ave. - This is located on Anastasia Island just off the 1A1, and named for Henry M. Flagler.
M.L. King Avenue - Named for civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King (1929-1968).
Ponce de Leon Blvd. - Named for the early explorer of the same name, this is part of U.S. 1 is on the West side of St. Augustine, and borders the San Sabastian River.
Spanish Street - Named for the country of Spain that founded the city.
Other Spanish Streets - There are numerous streets that also reflect cities in Spain, such as Malaga St., Cordova (Cordoba) St., Granada St., Sevilla St. (Seville), Cadiz St., Valencia St., and Carrera St. (La Carrera).
St. George Street - Named during the British Period in honor of the reigning monarch of Great Britain and Ireland from 1760 -1820, King George III (1738-1820). In 1783, during Spanish control, the name was Calle Jorge.
Treasury Street - The narrowest street in America at only six - seven feet wide, the Spanish Treasury was located here. The brick street was designed to make it more difficult for raiders to loot and abscond with the treasure.
Cemeteries
Huguenot Cemetery aka St. Augustine Public Cemetery, near the North city gate (c.1821-1884)
Location: South Castillo Drive and Orange Street
This cemetery was the final resting place to those who were of the Protestant faith since the nearby Tolomato cemetery was reserved for Catholics only.
It was acquired by the Presbyterian Church in 1832 and was maintained by them until it closed in 1884.
This ancient burial ground is believed to hold approximately 436 bodies and was open for burials until its closure in 1884. Even though it was named 'Huguenot Cemetery', it isn't believed to contain any members of the Huguenots who were a French Protestant sect started in the 16th century.
Today, it is home to a variety of ghosts who’ve been spotted by visitors at all times of the day and night, and is referred to as 'Spirit Central'. One such spirit is that of Judge John B. Stickney (1830-1882) who can be seen walking around looking for the grave robbers who stole his gold teeth.
It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2021
St. Augustine National Cemetery c.1828
Location: 104 Marine Street (Next to St. Francis Barracks)
Located on the grounds of the active military installation known as St. Francis Barracks, the state headquarters of the Florida National Guard, it encompasses 1.4 acres (0.57 ha), and as of the end of 2005 had 2,788 interments.
The first interment took place in the cemetery in 1828 when it was then used as the post cemetery for the St. Francis Barracks who were veterans of the Indian Wars, including many that were transferred from burial grounds in what was then Seminole controlled territory.
During the American Civil War, St. Augustine was claimed by the Confederates, as well as the Union forces, so the cemetery became the resting place for both. The cemetery also contains the graves of five British Commonwealth servicemen of World War II, a soldier of the Royal Corps of Signals and four aviation officers of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve.
The 'Dade Monument' herein are three coquina pyramids erected in 1842 to mark the end of the second of the Seminole Wars. Beneath them are the remains of 1,468 soldiers who died during these wars.
Two notable interments in the cemetery are Major Francis L. Dade (1792–1835), (namesake of Dade County, Missouri, Miami-Dade County, Florida, and Dade County, Georgia), who was a veteran of the Indian Wars. The second is Brigadier General Martin Davis Hardin (1837–1923), Civil War Union Brigadier General. He is known to have lived at 22 St. Francis Street.
This is one of only ten national cemeteries that displays an illuminated flag, twenty-four hours a day.
In 1881 it became a National Cemetery, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.
Tolomato Cemetery (Spanish: Cementerio de Tolomato) (c.1737-1884)
Location: 14 Cordova Street
Started by Father Pedro Camps during the 'First Spanish Period, this cemetery was the former site of "Tolomato", a village of Guale Indians that converted to Christianity, and the Franciscan friars who ministered to them. It was for Catholics only and was in use until 1884.
Burials include 1000 graves of people from Spain, Cuba, Ireland, Minorca, Italy, Greece, Africa, Haiti, France and the American South and Northeast - as well as the graves of soldiers from both sides of the Civil War, and also the burial place of Father Felix Varela who was a man importantance in the history of Cuba.
A portion is also set aside for former American black slaves, who had converted to Catholicism after escaping bondage in the Carolina's. America's first black general, Jorge Biassou is laid to rest here as well.
The first Bishop of St. Augustine, Augustin Verot (1805-1876), is interred in the mortuary chapel at the back of the cemetery. Father Camps (1720-1790) was originally buried at Tolomato, then re-interred 10 years later at the newly built Cathedral Basilica. Félix Varela, a Cuban priest and social reformer, was buried at Tolomato for 60 years until his remains were disinterred and taken back to Cuba.
Notable Men
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Dr. Andrew Anderson Jr. (1839-1924) Doctor, Philanthropist, and City Mayor of St. Augustine
Born: St. Augustine, Florida
Died: St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: Evergreen Cemetery, St. Augustine.
Bio Summary: Dr. Andrew Anderson Jr. donated the World War I Memorial and flagpole (1923), as well as the statue of Juan Ponce de Leon, and two bridge lions (West end) to the city.
He didn't serve in the military in the American Civil War, but did pay for a substitute in the St. Augustine Blues (Third Florida Inf., Co. B) as was an accepted custom at the time. He also volunteered his services to the Union as a physician treating the wounded at the Second Battle of Fredericksburg. In 1865. After the South's capitulation he interned at St. Luke's Hospital in New York City.
Anderson would be a principal partner along with Frank H. Palmer and Edward E. Vaill in the construction of the St. Augustine Hotel, the most opulent hotel in the city before the construction of the San Marco Hotel. In 1880 he entertained President Ulysses S. Grant, whose sister Julia was married to the post commander of St. Francis Barracks, upon Grant's visit to St. Augustine.
Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles (1519-1574) Admiral; 16th-century colonial governor of La Florida and Cuba, in New Spain; explorer and conquistador
Born: Avilés, Asturias, Spain
Died: Santander, Cantabria, Spain
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Founded the first European settlement in St. Augustine in 1565 in what was known as 'La Florida' as named by Ponce de Leon in 1513. Menendez was governor of La Florida from 1565-1574.
The French had previously established their claim to Florida and even built a fort (Fort Caroline) about forty miles North of St. Augustine. Menendez and his troops marched to the fort and destroyed the settlement there and killed more than 100 French solders who were guarding the fort. Menendez renamed Fort Caroline, 'Fort Mateo'.
Under the leadership of Jean Ribault (1520-1565), the French sailed to St. Augustine to retaliate against Menendez but three of their ships ran aground on the (now) Ponce de Leon Inlet. Ribault's flagship was grounded near present-day Cape Canaveral as well. Ribault was later killed by Menendez .
Richard Boone (1917-1981) Actor
Born: Los Angeles, California
Died: St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: His ashes were scattered in the Pacific Ocean off Hawaii
Bio Summary: Boone was an American actor who starred in over 50 films and was notable for his roles in Westerns, including his starring role in the television series 'Have Gun – Will Travel' and 'Paladin'.
Frank Bertran Butler (1885–1973) Prominent Civic Leader
Born: Du Pont, Georgia
Died: St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: Woodlawn Cemetery, West St. Augustine, Florida
Bio Summary: A prominent African American realtor, businessman, and merchant who established Butler Beach for African Americans in northeast Florida during the segregation era.
He acquired land on Anastasia Island stretching between the Atlantic Ocean and Matanzas River on which he established the beach area resort. It was the only beach open to the blacks between Jacksonville area and Daytona Beach during the segregation period.
Additionally, he built a beach-side motel called Butlers Beach Inn and Motel. Martin Luther King Jr. and his associates Andrew Young, Ralph Abernathy, and C. T. Vivian stayed in Butler's motel during their civil rights visit to St. Augustine in 1964. Butler was appointed to the first biracial committee to discuss racial problems following the civil rights protests in St. Augustine.
Frank b. Butler County Park at 399 Riverside Blvd, Anastasia Island, St. Augustine is named in his honor.
Father Pedro Camps (1720-1790) Cathoilic Priest
Born: Mercadal, Minorca
Died: St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: Cathedral Basilica, St. Augustine
Bio Summary: Father Camps led a group of Minorcan colonists in both New Smyrna and St Augustine, and kept the Catholic faith alive during the British occupation that ended in 1784.
Major Francis L. Dade (1792–1835) American Military Officer
Born: King George County, Virginia
Died: Sumter County, FLorida
Resting Place: St. Augustine National Cemetery
Bio Summary: Namesake of Dade County, Missouri, Miami-Dade County, Florida, and Dade County, Georgia. He was a veteran of the Indian Wars.
Alexander Hanson Darnes (c. 1840 – 1894) Doctor
Born: St. Augustine, Florida
Died: Jacksonville, Florida
Resting Place: Old City Cemetery, Jacksonville, Florida
Bio Summary: Born into slavery in St. Augustine of mixed race, he was the son of Violet Pinkney, a domestic servant in the family household, and an unnamed father. He and his mother were owned by Joseph Lee Smith, a judge, and Frances Kirby Smith, at what is now known as the Segui-Kirby Smith House at 12 Aviles Street.
Darnes earned his undergraduate degree at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania and a medical degree from Howard University in 1880. He returned to Florida, settling in Jacksonville, where he set up a practice.
Brigadier General Martin Davis Hardin (1837–1923), Civil War Union Brigadier General
Born: Jacksonville, Illinois
Died: St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: St. Augustine National Cemetery
Bio Summary: After retiring in December 1870, he became a lawyer in Chicago, and had a winter home in St. Augustine, Florida.
Sir Francis Drake (c.1540-1596) English Sailor, Privateer
Born: Tavistock, United Kingdom
Died: Portobelo, Panama
Resting Place: Buried at sea off Portobelo, Panama
Bio Summary: He started sailing as a teenager and was a seaman on at least two slave trading ships between between 1562 and 1569.
He quickly rose through the ranks to command his own ship and eventually ended up attacking Spanish ships for their gold and silver, becoming rich in the process.
Drake led a successful English circumnavigation of the globe during the years of 1577–1580.
Drake then raided Spanish settlements in the Caribbean including Santiago, Santa Domingo, and Cartagena, as well as St. Augustine (in present-day Florida).
Jesse Fish (1724/1726-1790) Shipmaster, Slave Merchant, Realtor
Born: Newtown on Long Island, New York
Died: (Likely) Anastasia Island
Resting Place: Crypt near his house on Santa Anastasia Island, Florida
Bio Summary: Fish was a schemer involved in contraband trade and illegal real estate deals, and operated as a slaver, smuggler, and usurer (loan shark).
He owned a substantial amount of properties in St. Augustine, Anastasia Island, and Cuba, and profited from their resale to others.
He was accused of spying for England and Spain as a double agent during the 'Seven Years’ War', but there is no evidence to support the claim.
Henry Morrison Flagler (1830-1913) Businessman, Entrepreneur
Born: Hopewell, New York
Died: Palm beach, Florida
Resting Place: Memorial Presbyterian Church, St. Augustine, FLorida
Bio Summary: A wealthy man who was co-founder of Standard Oil Company, he visited St. Augustine in 1883 and found it a nice warm climate away from the harsh winters of New York. He concluded that others from the Northern cold would also come to Florida if there was transportation and accommodations for them.
He invested in St. Augustine by building the 'Hotel Ponce de Leon' and the 'Alcazar Hotel' as well. He then bought a local railroad and expanded it down into Florida via a new bridge over the St. John's River. He later expanded that railroad to include further South to Miami. He also built additional hotels along the train route, and then further expanded down to Key West as well.
Father Francisco López de Mendoza Grajales (abt.1525-abt.1585) Catholic Priest
Born: Jerez de la Frontera, Spain
Died: Nicaragua
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Grajales was the Chaplin on the initial expedition voyage with Pedro Menéndez de Avilés in 1565, and actually stepped ashore one day before Aviles did.
He established the Mission of Nombre de Dios (Spanish for God) in St. Augustine which was the first Catholic mission in the U.S. which made him the first parish priest in the U.S. as well.
Father Grajales celebrated Mass at an altar made of wood on September 8, 1565, and Pedro Menéndez hosted a meal of thanksgiving with the native Timucuan people. This meal of thanks was celebrated 56 years before the Puritan Pilgrim thanksgiving in October 1621 at Plymouth, Mass.
Dr. Robert Bagner Hayling (1929-2015) Dentist and Civil Rghts Activist
Born: Tallahassee, FLorida
Died: Fort Lauderdale, FLorida
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: He began his dental practice on Bridge Street in St. Augustine, becoming the first African-American dentist to be elected to the American Dental Association.
He supported the growing cause of civil rights, and became actively involved in protests during the 'St. Augustine Movement of 1963/1964', and is often referred to as "The Father of the Civil Rights Act of 1964".
The city has also recognized Hayling by naming the street where he once lived Dr. Robert B. Hayling Place, and by awarding him the city’s two highest honors, the de Avilés Award in 2011, and the Order of La Florida in 2013. Hayling is the only person to receive both awards.
Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908-1973) 36th President of the United States
Born: Stonewall, Texas
Died: Johnson City, Texas
Resting Place: Johnson Family Cemetery, Lyndon B. Johnson Historical Park, Stonewall, Texas
Bio Summary: Visited St. Augustine in march, 1963.
he signed the Civil Rights Act on July 2, 1964 into law which prohibited discrimination in public places, provided for the integration of schools and other public facilities, and made employment discrimination illegal. It was the most sweeping civil rights legislation since the Reconstruction.
William Stetson Kennedy (1916-2011) Author, Folklorist, Human rights Activist, Informant
Born: Jacksonville, Florida
Died: Baptist Medical Center South near St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Being rejected for military service in WW II, Kennedy decided to put his energy towards ending racial injustices in the Jim Crow era.
Kennedy and writer Zora Neale Hurston worked together to capture the traditions, songs, tales, and anecdotes of the African American people of Florida.
He went so far as to join the KKK under the name John Perkins so he could learn more about their activities, he then shared the Klan's information with police and human rights organizations. In the 1940s, Mr. Kennedy used the “Superman” radio show to expose and ridicule the Klan’s rituals.
He became so hated that the KKK even put out a contract on him so he went to France, and in 1954, wrote his sensational exposé of the workings of the Klan, 'I Rode With The Ku Klux Klan' (later reissued as 'The Klan Unmasked', which was published by Jean-Paul Sartre.
Married multiple times, his seventh wife, Sandra Parks grew up on St. George Street in St. Augustine, so it was natural that Kennedy would go there and see first hand, all the activities of the early 1960's. Kennedy reportedly had a residence on Valencia Street at one point.
Dr. Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968) Baptist Minister, Civil Rights Activist
Born: Atlanta, Georgia
Died: Lorraine Motel, Memphis, Tennesee
Resting Place: Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park, Atlanta, Georgia
Bio Summary: Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr., was an American Baptist minister and activist who was one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968.
King was the 1st President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC).
In March 1964, King and the SCLC joined forces with Robert Hayling's racial reform movement in St. Augustine to march through the city, "often facing counter demonstrations by the Klan, and provoking violence that garnered national media attention" and many of the marchers were arrested and jailed.
King received the Nobel Peace Prize (1964), the Presidential Medal of Freedom (posthumous, 1977) and the Congressional Gold Medal (posthumous, 2004).
Ponce de Leon (1474-1521) Spanish Explorer
Born: Santervás de Campos, Valladolid, León, Spain
Died: Havana, Cuba
Resting Place: San José Church in San Juan, Puerto Rico (1559 to 1836). His remains were later exhumed and transferred to the Cathedral Basilica Menor de San Juan Bautista also located in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Bio Summary: As a volunteer, nineteen year old Ponce de Leon actually arrived in Florida in 1493 as part of Christopher Columbus' second expedition to the 'New World'.
Around 1506-1508 he was ordered by the Spanish governor of Hispaniola to explore, settle, and conquer the island of Puerto Rico, for which he became its first governor.
Setting out from Puerto Rico with a small fleet of only three ships he sailed the waters of the Caribbean and finally on April 2, 1513 he spotted a new land he called 'La Florida'.
He came back to 'La Florida' in 1521 but was met by angry native Indians in which a battle ensued and Ponce was wounded. He retreated and sailed to Havana, Cuba where he died.
James Moore (c.1650-1706) Carolina Colony Governor
Born: England
Died: Charleston, Berkeley, South Carolina
Resting Place: Unknown, but likely South Carolina.
Bio Summary: He became Governor of the Carolinas in 1700 until 1703. One of his accomplishments was to divide up the state into North and South.
The when the 'Queen Anne's War' (French-Spain-Britain) started in 1702 Moore's task was to get rid of any Spanish habitats he could find. Whe he came to St. Augustine, he was not able to breech Castillo de San Marcos so he burned down the nearby town (St. Augustine) instead. This is why there are no buildings in St. Augustine older than 1702.
After his dismal failure in St. Augustine, he led an expedition to Western Florida which led up to the to the 'Apalachee Massacre' in January, 1704.
He died in 1706 of yellow fever.
General James Oglethorpe (1696-1785) Governor of the British Colony of Georgia, British soldier, Member of Parliament, and Philanthropist
Born: Godalming, Surrey, England
Died: Cranham, Essex, England
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: During the 'War of Jenkins Ear' (1739-1748), he led British troops in Georgia against Spanish forces based in Florida. In 1740, he led a lengthy Siege of St. Augustine, which was unsuccessful.
Juan José Eligio de la Puente y Regidor (1724–1781)
Born: St. Augustine, La Florida
Died: Havana, Cuba
Resting Place: Capilla de la venerable orden tercera de Servita, Havana, Cuba
Bio Summary: He held the position of Chief Auditing Officer of the Royal Accountantcy of Florida.
As one of his official duties, he drew a plan map of St. Augustine and its existing structures which included very detailed information about almost 400 properties in the city, including lot sizes, the names of property owners, lot dimensions, and materials used to construct the buildings such as wood, stone, or tabby.
Jean Ribault (1520-1565) French Explorer, Naval Officer, Navigator, Colonizer
Born: Dieppe, France
Died: Fort Caroline, Jacksonville, FL
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: A French Huguenot himself, Ribault arrived at the mouth of the St. Johns River, which he called the 'Riviere de Mai' (River of May) because he discovered it on May 1 (1562). He was there to establish a settlement for French Huguenots.
When Ribault sailed back to France for fresh supplies, another French explorer, Rene Laudonnière (1529-1574) also landed at the same spot and built Fort Caroline which he eventually abandoned. When Ribault returned and found a ready-made fort for himself and his men, he was thrilled.
Ribault undertook a mission to sail South to La Florida and attack the settlement of Pedro Menendez, but ran into bad weather where all but his flag ship was wrecked. Ribault retreated and headed back North to Fort Caroline where his flagship was grounded near present-day Cape Canaveral as well. Ribault survived and headed to his fort.
Spanish leader Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles and his men marched from St. Augustine and killed Ribault and took possession of Fort Caroline which he renamed 'Fort Mateo'.
Ray Charles Robinson (aka Ray Charles) (1930-2004) Entertainer
Born: Albany, Georgia
Died: Beverly Hills, California
Resting Place: Inglewood Park Cemetery, Inglewood, Los Angeles, California
Bio Summary: Ray Charles Robinson was not born blind. At just five years old Charles had to endure the trauma of witnessing the drowning death of his younger brother in his mother's large portable laundry tub. Soon after the death he gradually began to lose his sight and by 7 years of age Ray Charles was totally blind.
Charles was accepted as a charity student at St. Augustine's school for the deaf and blind, where he learned to read Braille and to type. Having started to play the piano at five, Ray was allowed to further develop his great gift of music at the school, learning alto saxophone, clarinet, trumpet, and organ.
Charles left the school to try and make a living as a musician. It was in Seattle's red light district at age 16 where Ray Charles met a young Quincy Jones only 14 himself who taught Charles how to write music and arrange. It was a friendship that lasted a lifetime with the two working on many sessions together later in their careers.
Robert Searle (aka John Davis) (abt.1623-abt.1670) English Buccaneer out of Jamaica.
Born: Unknown
Died: Serle's Key, Gulf of Campeche, Honduras
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: While Searle was anchored in the Bahamas he witnessed a Spanish force attack the English settlement there and took an English doctor hostage.
Later in 1668, Searle took it upon himself to sail for La Florida and attack the presidio of St. Augustine and help free Doctor Henry Woodward (1646-1690) who was being held at St. Augustine. Searle helped Woodward escape and Woodward was so thankfull that he then served as a surgeon on privateer ships going forward.
Franklin Webster Smith (1926-1911) American Idealistic Reformer, Hardware Merchant. Early abolitionist, Author, and Architectural Enthusiast
Born: Boston, Massachusetts
Died: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Resting Place: Mount Auburn Cemetery at Cambridge, Massachusetts
Bio Summary: Smith and his bother ran a succesful hardware company which supplied a substantial amount of goods to the U.S. Navy. When he found misuse of funds by navy personnel he reported it. The navy brass did not like the fact that he was 'accusing' them of dishonesty, and they went after the Smith brothers with a fine tooth comb in their dealings with the navy.
The navy had him and his brother arrested for "fraud upon the United States" and "willful neglect of duty as a contractor" with the navy.
Smith, who expected to be tried in United States federal courts was instead sent to a military general court-martial in Philadelphia because an act of Congress on July 17, 1862, stated that "any civilian who supplied material under contract to the military became a member of the military and was subject to court-martial".
After a four months, the the trial ended in a judgment against the defendants, who were sentenced to two years in prison and fined $25,000, however President Lincoln got involved and vacated the sentence.
Smith then went to Europe to study architecture. When he returned to St. Augustine, he built Villa Zorayda.
Manuel Joaquín de Montiano y Sopelana (1685-1762) Royal Governor of Spanish Florida,
Born: Bilbao, Spain
Died: Madrid, Spain
Resting Place: Church of San Martín, Madrid, Spain
Bio Summary: During the British-Spanish War, Englishman General James Oglethorpe set out from the colony of Georgia to invade as many Spanish occupied territories as possible.
After capturing four Spanish forts he marched his troops toward St. Augustine and set up his troops on nearby Anastasia Island. On June 13, 1740, Oglethorpe blockaded the city including the Matanzas Inlet, and the Castillo de San Marcos.
Oglethorpe's cannon balls could not penetrate the coquina walls of the Castillo, and had hoped that then Governor Montiano would just surrender, but that was not the case. After almost one month of back and forth hostilities, Oglethorpe finally gave up and left the area.
Richard Aloysius Twine (1896-1974) Photographer
Born: St. Augustine
Died: Miami, Florida
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Twine was a black professional photographer in the Lincolnville section of St. Augustine, Florida (now the Lincolnville Historic District) in the 1920's, and owned his own photography studio at 62 Washington Street.
He was born in St. Augustine but at five years there he moved to Miami and worked at a restaurant before establishing a hotel.
He was the president of the NAACP division in St. Augustine, where he and his wife were among those who contacted and facilitated Dr. Martin Luther King coming to St. Augustine in 1964.
Father Felix Varela (1788-1853) Catholic Priest, Educator
Born: Havana, Cuba
Died: St. Augustine, FL.
Resting Place: Tolomato Cemetery, St. Augustine, then dis-interred and reburied in Aula Magna, near Havana University, Cuba in 1913.
Bio Summary: Born in Havana when Cuba was still part of New Spain, he was raised in St. Augustine by his grandfather, Lieutenant Bartolomé Morales, the commander of military forces in Spanish Florida, who was stationed there.
Varela had a normal childhood to the age of 6, then studied under Father Miguel O'Reilly from 1794-1802 in St. Augustine. He then went back to Cuba as a young man of 14 to study at the San Carlos Seminary there.
In 1811, at the age of only 23, Varela was named Professor of Philosophy in the Seminary of San Carlos and San Ambrosio of Havana where he became a priest. Varela was multi talented and taught Philosophy, Chemistry, Physics, Theology and Music.
In 1816, a compilation of earlier written works was published under the title "Doctrinas de Lógica, Megafisica y Moral" (Doctrines in Logic, Moral and Metaphysical.
In 1821, Varela was elected to the Spanish Cortes (the legislature), where he recommended that Spanish colonies in Latin America be considered independent. He also asked for Cuban self-rule and an end to slavery. Because of his involvement in the cause for freedom and independance, the Spanish Crown condemned him to death, but he escaped and made his way to New York, where he arrived in December 1823. He lived the rest of his life in the U.S.
In 1824 he began to publish an independent journal: El Habanero, which ran for 7 issues and was regularly smuggled into Cuba.
In 1837, Varela became Vicar General of the Diocese of New York State which included the Northern half of New Jersey, where he played a significant role in how the American Church dealt with the tremendous influx of Irish refugees, which was beginning at the time. His gift for languages, allowed him to master the Irish language to communicate more efficiently with many recent Irish arrivals.
In 1848 he retired to St. Augustine and died five years later in 1853 at the age of 65.
In 2000, Felix Varela High School, which opened on SW 96th Street in Miami, Florida, is dedicated in his memory.
"Varella Avenue" in St. Augustine, is a misspelled tribute to the priest who spent his early and last years there. And "Padre Varela" Street, more commonly known by its old name of Belascoaín, is also a main north-south street in Centro Habana.
Notable Women
Many women, whose names are lost to history, are responsible for the survival and success of St. Augustine. They served their families, cooked, cleaned, raised children, nursed the sick, grew crops, mended and washed clothes, took care of entire households, served their community, and kept taking on responsibilities. They became business women, leaders, voters, artists, activists, and more.
If noted in early history books, they were often recorded in support roles as someone's wife, mother, daughter, or sister, but rarely did their names and contributions shine as they should, for they helped St. Augustine survive and grow into what it has become today.
The following are but a handful of St. Augustine's notable women.
Martha B. Aikens, National Park Service (Dates Unknown)
Born: Unknown
Died: Unknown
Restong Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Martha B. Aikens became the first female woman of color to be superintendent of Castillo de San Marcos National Monument (1980-1983).
Aikens was with the National Park Service for over 30 years and received the Distinguished Service Award, the highest Departmental honor award.
Maria Mestre de los Dolores Andreu (1801-1871) Lighthouse Keeper
Born: Unknown
Died: Unknown
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: In 1859 St. Augustine, Maria Mestre de los Dolores Andreu became one of the nation's first female lighthouse keepers upon the death of her husband and keeper Joseph Juan Andreu
She was also, the first female Hispanic-American lighthouse keeper, and the first to command a federal shore installation.
Doña Antonia (1560's) Educator
Born: Florida
Died: Cuba
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: When Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded the city of St. Augustine, the Calusa indian tribe on the southwest coast of Florida was governed by a chief named King Carlos XXXX-1567). Menendez was introduced to King Carlos and his sister whose Indian name is not known, but when she was presented to Menéndez as a wife, she was baptized Antonia.
When Menéndez died, Antonia remained with her people for a time, teaching them the Catholic religion, and eventually went to Havana, Cuba, where she died.
Doña Sebastiana Olazarraga y Aramburu (1670's) Tribal Leader
Born: Unknown
Died: St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Sergeant Major Manuel de Cendoya was appointed Governor of La Florida with responsibility of overseeing the building of Castillo de San Marcos. When Cendoya passed away in 1673, Doña Sebastiana, his widow, married a Spanish soldier named Clemente de Vernal.
By 1606 she had become the ruler of the Timucuan tribes extending along the coast between St. Augustine and approximately Cumberland Island, Georgia, possibly through Spanish intervention.
Antonia Avero (1717-1792) Property Owner, Slave Owner
Born: Unknown
Died: Cuba
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: The Avero Family lived near the fort, on today's St. George Street, not too far from the City Gate. Antonia married Captain Don Joseph Guillen and mothered five children. When her husband died in 1743, she inherited several houses, enslaved men, and one sloop.
She then married Joaquin Blanco, an administrative elite of St. Augustine. During the 1763 evacuation of the town, when Florida was traded from the Spanish to the British, she was forced to sell her property and flee to Cuba.
One of the Avero homes can be visited today, as it became St. Photios Greek Orthodox National Shrine, dedicated to America’s first Greek immigrants that landed on our shores in 1768.
Wilma E. Davis (1890-1992) Church Deacon and Elder
Born: Unknown
Died: Saint Augustine, St. Johns County, Florida
Resting Place: Evergreen Cemetery, Saint Augustine, St. Johns County, Florida,
Bio Summary: When Wilma E. Davis was baptized in Grace Methodist Church in 1893, it marked the beginning of life lifelong association with the Methodist Church.
At a time in which women ministers were rare, she was ordained a deacon in the Florida Conference of Methodism in 1924.
Five years later she was ordained an elder, becoming the first woman to receive this certificate.
Mary Evans Fenwick, (1730-1792) Midwife, Tavern / Inn Keeper
Born: Unknown
Died: Unknown
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: The "Oldest House," known today as the Gonzalez-Alvarez House, is the oldest surviving Spanish colonial dwelling in St. Augustine built in 1723. It's most famous resident was Mary Evans Fenwick.
Major Joseph Peavett, paymaster for the English military, purchased this house then married Mary Evans Fenwick (1730-1792), a widow and midwife. Upon the Major's death, she remarried and became Mary Evans Fenwick Peavett Hudson. In addition to her business as a midwife, she operated an inn and tavern in what is today thought to be the oldest house in Florida.
Lenna (born Marion) Geronimo (1886-1919)
Born: Fort Marion, St. Augustine, Florida
Died: Mescalero, Otero County, New Mexico
Resting Place: Mescalero Indian Cemetery, Mescalero, Otero County, New Mexico
Bio Summary: Lenna Geronmio was born the daughter of famous war Indian leader Geronimo and his wife Ih-tedda (Kate).
Along with over 500 Apache, Geronmio and his wife were imprisoned in 1886 at Fort Marion for over a year as the U.S. Government attempted to prevent their resistance to the reservation system.
When Lenna was born, the Army medical staff named her Marion, after the fort; she later changed it back to Lenna.
Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) American Author, Anthropologist, and Filmmaker
Born: Notasulga, ALabama
Died: Fort Pierce, Florida
Resting Place: Sarah's Memorial Garden, Fort Pierce, Florida (North 17th Street and Avenue 'S').
Bio Summary: Zora grew up in St. Augustine and went on to become an icon of the Harlem Renaissance, as well as being involved in the birth of the blues.
She was then raised in Eatonville, Florida, and went to school in Jacksonville which she had to leave because of non-payment of tuition. After working jobs here and there to survive she somehow found herself blessed with full scholarship to Columbia University in New York studying culture, history, and languages.
She went on to write books and essays (Sweat) 1926; (How it Feels to be Colored Me) 1928; (Their Eyes Were Watching God) 1937; and (Dust Tracks On A Road) 1942 just to name a few which focused on the songs and life stories of the illiterate Southern African Americans.
She died a forgotten author and was buried in an unmarked grave (which has now been recognized).
She is remembered however in a park at US1 and West King Street, and also a marker on her house on West King Street in St. Augustine.
Sarah Ann Mather (1818-1894) Educator, Author
Born: Chester, Massachusetts
Died: Hyde Park, Massachusetts
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Sarah Ann Mather started a school for the children of formerly enslaved people in St. Augustine. She later became teacher for the Plains Indians who were incarcerated at Fort Marion from 1875-1878.
Her friend and fellow educator, Harriet Beecher Stowe was a teacher at Mather' school.
Over the course of her career, Sarah published several books. Two of her earliest were books of Christian literature, 'The Itinerant Side, or, Pictures of Life in the Itinerancy' published in 1857 and 'Hidden Tteasure or, The Secret of Success in Life' two years later. Both books were published by the New York firm of Carlton & Porter.
Frances Kirby Smith (1785-1875) Confederate Spy
Born: Connecticut, United States
Died: St. Augustine, Florida
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Mother of Edmund Kirby Smith, the highest ranking Confederate officer from Florida and the last Confederate general to surrender in the Civil War, Frances Kirby Smith, was rumored to be a Confederate spy and was banished from St. Augustine during the Union occupation.
Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896) American Abolitionist, Author, and Educator
Born: Litchfield, Connecticut
Died: Hartford, Connecticut
Resting Place: Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts
Bio Summary: Harriet Beecher Stowe is most remembered for authoring Uncle Tom's Cabin in 1852, a novel advocating the end of slavery.
In the late 1800's, Mrs. Stowe and her friend Miss Sarah Ann Mather taught Plains Indians who were their pupils at Mathers school at Fort Marion in St. Augustine. She wrote extensively about the Plains Indian incarceration period (1875-1878), in a memoir titled 'The Plains Indians at St. Augustine'.
Katherine Alice Twine (1925-2002) Civil Rights Activist
Born: Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida
Died: Flagler Hospital, St Ausustine, Florida
Resting Place: St. Augustine Memorial Park, Forida
Bio Summary: Mrs. Katherine Twine, came to be known as the "Rosa Parks of St. Augustine" for her leadership in the civil rights movement.
She was arrested so many times that she began to carry a large-brimmed hat which she called her "Freedom Hat" with her whenever she thought she would be arrested in order to have some shade from the sun in the outdoor stockade at the crowded jail.
She and her husband, who was the president of the NAACP division in St. Augustine, were among those who contacted and facilitated Dr. Martin Luther King coming to St. Augustine in 1964.
Nansi Wiggins (c.1755-1840) Ranch Owner, Slave Owner
Born: Senegal, West Africa
Died: Unknown
Resting Place: Unknown
Bio Summary: Wiggins, also known as Ana Gallum, came to America from Senegal as an enslaved person. She was purchased by an English planter, Job Wiggins, who had a plantation near Rollestown, Florida.
Sometime around 1778, Job freed Nansi, then married her in a Protestant ceremony. They had six children before Job died in 1797, and left the plantation to Nansi.
She managed 1,400 acres of land, a hundred head of cattle, 14 enslaved people, and was frequently in St. Augustine selling horses and enslaved people.
The Great Depression
The Great Depression came early to St. Augustine with the end of the Florida land boom in 1926, followed by the stock market collapse in 1929.
Hotels closed, a major bank failed, subdivisions folded, and tourism was reduced to a trickle. The city’s main employer, the Florida East Coast Railway, went into receivership in 1931, and public works projects sought to bring relief to the unemployed.
The economy slowly improved toward the end of the 1930s, but it was World War II that brought economic recovery to the town. Local hotels were taken over for military training, and servicemen on leave from nearby military bases flooded the town, bringing prosperity once again to the ancient city.
War Years
Second Seminole War (December 23, 1835 – August 14, 1842)
The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict in Florida between the United States and groups collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Native Americans and Black Indians. It was part of a series of conflicts called the Seminole Wars.
In accordance with the 'Indian Removal Act' of 1830, the Seminole Tribe was told that they must leave Florida and relocate to Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma). Standing up for their right to stay on their homeland, the Seminoles ignited a resistance that culminated in a seven-year war called 'The Second Seminole War', which was one of the deadliest and costliest American Indian Wars ever fought on US soil.
During this war, a group of over 200 Seminoles, including Seminole war leader, Osceola, were captured and brought to St. Augustine and retained as prisoners at Fort Marion (Castillo de San Marcos).
The war between the Seminole Tribe and the US Army concluded in 1842, but there was never an official treaty ending the conflict. In that year, many of the surviving Seminoles in Florida fled south, seeking refuge in the Everglades, and the Army gave up their effort to remove them from the territory. To this day, the Seminoles still call themselves the 'Unconquered People'.
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – April 9, 1865)
The Florida state militia took then Fort Marion (Castillo de San Marcos) from a small U. S. Army garrison (one soldier), who actually gave the militia the gate key on January 7, 1861. Three days later the state of Florida seceded from the United States, and St. Augustine celebrated with ceremonial flag raisings, church bells, and musket volleys, followed that night by torchlight parade and bonfires.
Union troops reoccupied the city on March 11, 1862, putting St. Augustine under their control. The city was never retaken by Confederate forces.
On March 9, 1863, a small skirmish occurred when 80 Confederate troops attacked an advanced picket guard just north of St. Augustine. They were driven off by 120 men from the 7th New Hampshire Infantry.
Many black Union soldiers either came from St. Augustine, or settled there after the war and many of the city's old cemeteries feature the distinctive marble tombstones marked simply 'USCT' (United States Colored Troops).
World War I (July 28, 1914 – November 11, 1918)
In 1916, St. Augustine got its first school of aviation, which trained Canadian flyers for military service in Europe. A small golf course at the south end of the city was taken over by the army, leveled and marked to become the cities first landing field. It was completed in November 1918, just as the armistice was signed, so it saw little use and was soon returned to recreational purposes.
A 1923 memorial at Cathedral Place and Avienda Menendez (State Route 1A1) was presented to the city by Dr. Andrew Anderson Jr. and is dedicated to those who served during this war.
Note Dr. Anderson's plaque at the base denotes "The city of St. Augustine 'Fiel-y-Firme' (translates as Faithful and Firm). Dedicated to victory, to peace, and to the youth of this city who served their country in the Woirld war 1917-1918".
World War II (September 1, 1939 – September 2, 1945)
In St. Augustine, a new U.S. Coast Guard training center for both men and women (SPARS) ("Semper Paratus—Always Ready"), was the women's branch of the United States Coast Guard Reserve. Whe it was established, it brought much-needed income into the city.
Between 1941 and the end of World War II in 1945, the Ponce de Leon Hotel (aka the Ponce) was taken over by the federal government. During this time the hotel served as both a training facility for Coast Guard recruits as well as their living quarters—with up to 2,500 trainees living here at any given time.
Most of the Coast Guard’s women’s reserve lived and trained at the hotel as well. St. Augustine is considered the birthplace of the Coast Guard Reserve as its first graduates completed training here in 1941 with thousands more receiving basic and advanced training onsite.
Just a few blocks from the 'Ponce', Coast Guard recruits would march over to the Castillo de San Marcos to complete drills, boot camp, and other training. The Fort grounds were used daily with up to eight companies onsite most days. With permission from the National Park Service, four of the Castillo de San Marcos' ammunition rooms were converted into classrooms and the courtyard set the stage for graduation ceremonies.
Following the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, a Coastal Lookout Building was constructed on the grounds of the Lighthouse. From here,'Coasties' could survey 14 miles to the horizon to seek out German U-Boats targeting cargo ships importing British supplies.
U-Boat 123 operator Korvettsenkapitan Reinhard Hardegen mentioned St. Augustine’s “slender lighthouse” in his log while patrolling the Atlantic shoreline during Operation Drumbeat. The U-123 log book shows it sank 51 foreign vessels over its lifetime of service to Germany.
In the Plaza de la Constitución in downtown St. Augustine you’ll find a small memorial to those from St. John’s County, Dedicated in 1946 to those who gave their lives while serving during World War II.
Slavery Years
History Summary
In 1492, Juan Las Canaries, was a black sailor who served on Christopher Columbus' flagship the Santa Maria with other blacks who came to the 'New World'.
In 1513, Africans also arrived in Florida with Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León, the first European to lay claim to Florida. For over 300 years, ships brought 12 million Africans to be enslaved in what is now the United States, about a quarter of slaves were children taken from their parents. Millions of others didn’t survive the trip. This was known as the 'Middle Passage'.
in 1527, an African slave named Estevanico, accompanied Spanish explorer Andrés Dorantes de Carranza (1500-1550) on an expedition around Florida. And yet another African slave served as interpreter on Coronado’s’ expedition through southwest North American.
When Pedro Menéndez de Avilés established St. Augustine in 1565, he was accompanied by 50 free and enslaved Africans. They worked on early fortifications, sawed timber, and built several structures, including a church, a blacksmith shop, and an artillery platform. They also cleared land for planting and harvested the crops.
St. Augustine was no stranger to slavery with slave labor being extensively used to build many of the historical structures in town, include Castillo de San Marcos starting in 1672.
In October 1687, the first recorded fugitive slaves from Carolina arrived in St. Augustine. Governor Diego de Quiroga dutifully reported to Spain that eight men, two women, and a three-year-old nursing child had made good their escape in a boat. Six of the men were put to work on the new Castillo de San Marcos, while two others were assigned to work with a blacksmith. The women became domestics in the house of the governor. All were reportedly paid for their labor.
When an English official arrived the next fall to claim them, Governor Quiroga refused to release them on the grounds that they had been converted to Catholicism, had married in the town, and were usefully employed. Thus a fugitive slave policy began to evolve in the Florida colony. In 1693, King Charles II issued the first official position on the runaways, “giving liberty to all…the men as well as the women…so that by their example and by my liberality others will do the same.”
In the decades following the King's decree, many more enslaved Africans escaped from the Carolinas and found refuge in Spanish Florida through what was called the 'Underground Railroad', prompting additional royal decrees in 1733 reinforcing the offer of freedom, prohibiting the reimbursement of the English for escaped slaves, and requiring four years of service to the Crown in order to become free. So many freedom seekers came to Florida, that in 1738, Governor Manuel de Montiano granted them a plot of land about two miles north of St. Augustine where they could build their own settlement and fort. The people became Catholics and adopted Spanish names and Spanish culture with an African flavor. This settlement, Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose, or Fort Mose, (mo-say) became the first legally-established free African settlement in North America. Enslaved Africans risked their lives to escape English plantations in the Carolinas and find freedom among the Spanish living at St. Augustine. Little did they know that their labor would be exploited to the maximum.
At the center of the historic quarter of St. Augustine, before the Plaza de La Constitución existed, this vacant lot was used as the 'old slave market', an open-air pavilion where enslaved Africans were slaves were dragged into the market, some locked to chains, whipped, bought and sold.
A historical marker, 'Public Market Place', just south of the pavilion erected in 1970 by the St. Johns County Historical Commission details only the weights and measures first established there and omits any mention of slavery. Like much of St. Augustine's tourist infrastructure, the 1970 sign highlights Spanish colonial accounts, not African American history.
Slaves were sold in and around the public market, while most slave sales in pre-Civil War St. Augustine took place at plantations, in homes, or on ships. Public transactions usually occurred on the steps of the Government House directly west of the plaza. While visiting St. Augustine in 1827 for his health, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote of the slaves he saw auctioned in the Government House yard, including the sale of "four children without the mother who had been kidnapped therefrom." "One ear therefore heard the glad tidings of great joy," he wrote, "whilst the other was regaled with "going gentlemen, going!" Witnessing slavery firsthand confirmed his staunch abolitionism.
In addition to auctions, the market place was often the site for public corporal punishment. In August 1849 'a negro man named Daniel, the property of M. Antonio Bouke, was to receive thirty-nine stripes on his back in the public market for escaping' and 'a negro man named Joseph received the same punishment in the public market' one week later. The market also hosted meetings of the slave patrol, white citizens who apprehended "all slaves or free persons of color, who may be found in the streets thirty minutes after the ringing of the Bell without having a proper pass from their masters or guardians."
Numerous white St. Augustine residents sought to bury the "slave market" myth, including Anna M. Marcotte (1842-1935), editor and proprietor of The Tattler, the journal of "Society in the South." Marcotte saw the "slave market" as an ugly detraction from her city's image, and her Tattler articles denounced claims of those horrible times in history. Even today, like the holocaust, some people deny that the slave market in St. Augustine ever existed. How sad is that......
Civil Rights Movement
aka The St. Augustine Movement [74][75][76][77]
The 1960's
Referred to as '“the great moral drama', the 'St Augustine Movement' of 1963–1964 directed national attention to the brutal effects of segregation in Florida and contributed directly to the signing of the Civil Rights Act.
In 1963, local black dentist Dr. Robert Hayling had organized the Youth Council of St. Augustine's NAACP chapter. As St. Augustine prepared for its four-hundredth birthday, the town's Quadricentennial Commission organized a dinner at the Ponce de Leon Hotel hosting President Lyndon Johnson. The guest list of local luminaries failed to include any African Americans. Hayling and other NAACP activists including Clyde Jenkins, James Jackson, and James Hauser organized nonviolent demonstrations over the next year.
On July 18, 1963, when a sit-in protest at a local Woolworth’s lunch counter ended in the arrest and imprisonment of 16 young black protestors and seven juveniles, the protestors were offered plea deals but refused them. Four of the arrested juveniles, JoeAnn Anderson, Audrey Nell Edwards, Willie Carl Singleton, and Samuel White, became known as the 'St. Augustine Four'. They were sent to reform school for six months. When their case was publicized by Jackie Robinson, the NAACP, and the Pittsburgh Courier, local authorities released them.
Dr. Robert Hayling was an advocate of 'armed self-defense' against the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). In September 1963, Hayling, Clyde Jenkins, James Jackson, and James Hauser, were kidnapped and beaten by the KKK. Florida Highway Patrol officers rescued the four men and St. Johns County Sheriff deputies arrested a Klansman for the beating but charges against him were dismissed. In contrast, Hayling was convicted of criminal assault against KKK members. After that incident, Hayling began calling for black self-defense and because of his stand, would be removed as head of the Youth Council by national NAACP leaders.
In 1964 northern college students traveled to St. Augustine for a spring break protest. Martin Luther King, Jr. visited at Robert Hayling's request and was arrested for trying to eat lunch at the Monson Motor Lodge restaurant, one block north of the 'slave market'. Police also thwarted attempts to integrate St. Augustine's beaches on Anastasia Island, and a "swim-in" at the Monson ended when hotel owner James Brock poured acid into the demonstrator-filled pool. Images of confrontations between protestors and segregationists provoked national outrage.
Civil rights protestors including Martin Luther King, Jr., and Andrew Young led nightly marches around the marketplace, enduring physical violence and arrest. The former 'slave market' became the focal point for the early 1964 'St. Augustine Movement' which was a clash between nonviolent protestors and segregationists prior to President Lyndon Johnson's signing of the Civil Rights Act on July 2, 1964.
Memorials
Located directly south of the former "slave market," the plaza's first civil rights memorial, the 'St. Augustine Foot Soldiers Monument', overlooks a former Woolworth's (across the street) where the afore mentioned desegregation sit-ins occurred. Four sculpted heads, an unnamed African American man, woman, and teenage girl, and a white male college student, represent the protesters who fought for an end to segregation in St. Augustine.
A marker in this location is also dedicated as the 'Andrew Young Crossing', a monument to the well-known activist who led protests at the former 'slave market' for its symbolism of racial oppression and who was beaten here by segregationists. This memorial features bronze replicas of Young's footsteps alongside quotes by him, President Lyndon Johnson, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
While not as well known as those of other cities, the civil rights demonstrations in St. Augustine, situated at the former 'slave market'. were crucial to the movement's success.
St. Augustine's former 'slave market' remains an ambiguous structure, its historic and present meaning muddled by conflicting public markers and contrasting popular opinion.
The Green Book
The Negro Motorist Green Book was a travel guide published during the segregation era in the United States from 1937-67. The book was written by a Black, Harlem-based, postal carrier named Victor Hugo Green.
It identified businesses which didn’t discriminate against African-Americans, including restaurants, boarding homes, and salons. The purpose of the guide was to make travel safe and comfortable for black people in America, who often had to be mindful of discrimination and prosecution.
While the first Green Book focused on businesses in New York, follow-up travel guides extended to all states and participating cities, including St. Augustine, Florida.
In The Movies
St. Augustine was a popular locale for movie makers. Memorable flying scenes in the classic silent screen serial, "The Perils of Pauline" were shot here with local residents as extras in the cast.
The 1914 American melodrama film serial produced by William Randolph Hearst (1863-1951) and released by the Eclectic Film Company of New York, shown in bi-weekly installments, featured actress Pearl Fay White (1889-1938) as the title character, an ambitious young heiress with an independent nature (in the time before women could vote in the United States) and a desire for adventure.
Festivals of St. Augustine
Some of the more historically oriented festivals are as follows:
Flight To Freedom (Slave related reinactment) (February)
Spanish Food and Wine Festival (February)
Searle's Sack of St. Augustine (March)
Minorcan Heritage Festival (March)
Minorcan History and Culture Month (March)
Spanish Serenade Wine Tasting (April)
Drake's Raid (May)
Unidos en la Música (United in Music): A Latin American Festival (May)
Battle of Bloddy Mose (June)
Founders Day Celebration (September)
Greek Festival (October)
Visitation
Visitors are always welcome to this unique city to explore its rice history.
Summary
Much thanks to all the online and printed sources for their abundance of reference material used in this OPS.
Considering all the historical sites in America that helped build this country, St. Augustine is the founding city with a most exciting and historical presence behind it. From explorers to pirates to industrialists, they truly are the front-runners in the history of Florida and the U.S.
Sources
- ↑ U.S. Decennial Census
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ City of St. Augustine Visitor Booklet; St. Augustine.com
- ↑ St. Augustine's History; https://www.floridashistoriccoast.com
- ↑ St. Augustine Sightseeing Tours; https://www.trolleytours.com
- ↑ Google; https://www.google.com
- ↑ Google; https://www.google.com
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ National Park Service; https://www.nationalparks.org
- ↑ Britannica; https://www.britannica.com
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ City of St. Augustine Visitor Booklet; St. Augustine.com
- ↑ Visit St. Augustine; https://www.visitstaugustine.com
- ↑ Exploring Florida; https://fcit.usf.edu
- ↑ Florida -Backroads-Travel; https://www.florida-backroads-travel.com
- ↑ Wikitree; https://www.wikitree.com
- ↑ City of St. Augustine Visitor Booklet; St. Augustine.com
- ↑ Visit St. Augustine; https://www.visitstaugustine.com
- ↑ Google maps; https://www.google.com
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ The Ocean gallery; https://www.theoceangallery.com/
- ↑ The Historical Marker Database; https://www.hmdb.org
- ↑ hero's, Heroines, and History by Jennifer Uhlarik, 2021; https://www.hhhistory.com
- ↑ St. Augustine Sightseeing Tour; https://www.trolleytours.com
- ↑ National Park Service; https://www.nationalparks.org
- ↑ Florida State Parks; https://www.floridastateparks.org
- ↑ Fort Mose Historical Society; https://fortmose.org
- ↑ St. Augustine Historical Society; https://staughs.com
- ↑ Historic St. Augustine, The University of Florida; https://staugustine.ufl.edu
- ↑ Oldest Wooden Schoolhouse; https://oldestwoodenschoolhouse.com/
- ↑ St. Augustine Lighthouse and maritime museum; https://www.staugustinelighthouse.org/
- ↑ Trinity Parish; https://www.trinitysta.org
- ↑ Villa Zorayda; https://villazorayda.com
- ↑ University of North Florida; https://digitalcommons.unf.edu
- ↑ Ghost City Tours of st. Augustine; https://ghostcitytours.com
- ↑ Historic Hotels; https://www.historichotels.org
- ↑ History of Cuba; http://www.historyofcuba.com
- ↑ Exploring Worlds Old and New; https://exploringworldsoldandnew.com
- ↑ First Coast News article by Tristan hardy dated August 19, 2022
- ↑ flickr; https://www.flickr.com
- ↑ Haunted Places; https://www.hauntedplaces.org
- ↑ Ghosts and Gravestones; https://www.ghostsandgravestones.com
- ↑ Historic Coast Culture; https://www.historiccoastculture.com
- ↑ Ponce de Leon Fountain of Youth Archaelogical Park; https://www.fountainofyouthflorida.com
- ↑ A well of history at Florida’s St. Augustine fountain article by Patrick Connolly Orlando Sentinel Nov. 22, 2020
- ↑ History; https://www.history.com
- ↑ The West Augustine News Connection ; https://www.westaugustinenewsconnection.com
- ↑ Tolomato Cemetery Preservation Association; http://www.tolomatocemetery.com/
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org/
- ↑ Ghosts and Gravestones; https://www.ghostsandgravestones.com
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ Goggle; https://www.google.com
- ↑ Gannon, Micheal V., The Cross in the Sand, 1983
- ↑ St. Augustine Sightseeing Tours; https://www.trolleytours.com
- ↑ St. Augustine Entertainer article by Lauren Melton, March 2023
- ↑ Wikitree; https://www.wikitree.com
- ↑ The Historical marker database; https://www.hmdb.org
- ↑ Floridian nature; http://www.floridiannature.com
- ↑ New York Times article, Aug 28, 2011; https://www.nytimes.com
- ↑ Florida memory - State library and archives of Florida; https://www.floridamemory.com
- ↑ National Park Service; https://www.nps.gov/
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org/
- ↑ , Bowen, Beth Rogero and the St. Augustine Historical Society; St. Augustine in the 1930s and 1940s, 2019, Arcadia Publishing; https://www.arcadiapublishing.com
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org/
- ↑ Google; https://www.google.com
- ↑ National Park Service; https://www.nps.gov
- ↑ Internet source title unknown; https://www.flynf.com
- ↑ St. Augustine Lighthouse; https://www.staugustinelighthouse.org
- ↑ Destination WW II article by Ashley Smith, February 2, 2020; https://destinationwwii.com
- ↑ Historic Coast Culture; https://www.historiccoastculture.com
- ↑ Google; https://www.google.com
- ↑ Goldstein, Holly Markovitz, St. Augustine's "Slave Market": A Visual History article (excerpts), 2012 online by Southern Spaces Journal; https://southernspaces.org
- ↑ National Park Service; https://www.nps.gov
- ↑ Google; https://www.google.com
- ↑ Goldstein, Holly Markovitz, St. Augustine's "Slave Market": A Visual History article (excerpts), 2012 online by Southern Spaces Journal; https://southernspaces.org
- ↑ National Park Service; https://www.nps.gov
- ↑ The Black Past; https://www.blackpast.org
- ↑ Wikipedia; https://en.wikipedia.org
- ↑ City of St. Augustine Visitor Booklet; St. Augustine.com
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