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History of St. Augustine, Florida

St. Augustine was founded by the Spanish. The first Christian worship service held in a permanent settlement in the current United States was a Catholic Mass celebrated in St. Augustine. A few settlements were founded prior to St. Augustine but all failed, including the original Pensacola colony in West Florida (founded 1559), with the area abandoned in 1561 due to hurricanes, famine and warring tribes, and Fort Caroline in what is today Jacksonville, Florida in 1564. The city was founded by the Spanish admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés on August 28, 1565, the feast day of Augustine of Hippo, and consequently named by him San Agustín. Martin de Arguelles was born here one year later in 1566, the first child of European ancestry to be born in what is now the mainland United States. This came 21 years before the English settlement at Roanoke Island, in Virginia Colony, and 42 years before the successful settlements of Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Jamestown, Virginia.

In 1586 St. Augustine was attacked and burned by Sir Francis Drake. In 1668 it was plundered by pirates and most of the inhabitants were killed. In 1702 and 1740 it was unsuccessfully attacked by British forces from their new colonies in the Carolinas and Georgia. The most serious of these came in the latter year, when James Oglethorpe of Georgia allied himself with Ahaya the Cowkeeper, chief of the Alachua band of the Seminole tribe to lay siege to the city.

St. Augustine in 1760, while under Spanish control

In 1763, the Treaty of Paris ended the French and Indian War and gave Florida and St. Augustine to the British, an acquisition the British had been unable to take by force and keep due to the strong fort there. St. Augustine came under British rule and served as a Loyalist (pro-British) colony during the American Revolutionary War. A Treaty of Paris in 1783 gave the American colonies north of Florida their independence, and ceded Florida to Spain in recognition of Spanish success during the war.

Florida was under Spanish control again from 1784 to 1821. During this time, Spain was being invaded by Napoleon and was struggling to retain its colonies. Florida no longer held its past importance to Spain. The expanding United States, however, regarded Florida as vital to its interests. In 1821, the Adams-Onís Treaty peaceably turned the Spanish colonies in Florida and, with them, St. Augustine, over to the United States.

Public Square, St. Augustine, ca. 1858

Florida was a United States territory until 1845 when it became a U.S. state. In 1861, the American Civil War began and Florida seceded from the Union and joined the Confederacy. Days before Florida seceded, state troops took the fort at St. Augustine from a small Union garrison (January 7, 1861). However, federal troops loyal to the United States Government quickly reoccupied the city (March 11, 1862) and remained in control throughout the four-year-long war. In 1865, Florida rejoined the United States.

Spanish Colonial era buildings still existing in the city include the fortress Castillo de San Marcos. The fortress successfully repelled the British attacks of the 18th century, was occupied by Union troops during the American Civil War, and later served as a prison for the Native American leader Osceola. It is now the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument.

In the late 19th century the railroad came to town, and led by northeastern industrialist Henry Flagler, St. Augustine became a winter resort for the very wealthy. A number of mansions and palatial grand hotels of this era still exist, some converted to other use, such as housing parts of Flagler College and museums. Flagler went on to develop much more of Florida's east coast, including his Florida East Coast Railway which eventually reached Key West in 1912.

The city is a popular tourist attraction, for the rich Spanish Colonial Revival Style architectural heritage as well as elite 19th century architecture. In 1938 the theme park Marineland opened just south of St. Augustine, becoming one of Florida's first themed parks and setting the stage for the development of this industry in the following decades.

In addition to being a national tourist destination and the nation’s oldest city St. Augustine was also a pivotal site for the civil rights movement in 1964. Despite the 1954 Supreme Court act in Brown v. Board of Education, which ruled that the "separate but equal" legal status of public schools made those schools inherently unequal, St. Augustine still had only 6 black children admitted into white schools. The homes of two of the families of these children were burned by local segregationists while other families were forced to move out of the county because the parents were fired from their jobs and could find no work. In 1964 a massive non-violent direct action campaign was led by Dr. Martin Luther King and other major civil rights leaders to change the horrific conditions of blacks in St. Augustine.

In 1963 a “sit-in” protest at a local diner ended in the arrest and imprisonment of 16 young black protestors and 7 juveniles. Four of the children, two of which were 16 year old girls, were sent to “reform” school and retained for 6 months. From May until June of 1964 protestors endured abuse, beatings, and verbal assaults without any retaliation. By absorbing the violence and hate instead of striking back the protestors gained national sympathy and, it is thought, were the deciding factor in passing the 1964 Civil Rights Act. King planed nightly marches down King Street and around the old "Slave Market”. The protestors were met by white segregationist and verbal and physical assault on the marchers that resulted in hundreds of arrests and jail sentences. Because of the huge numbers of demonstrators in the jail people were kept in a stockade during the day in the hot sun with no shade. When attempts were made to integrate the beaches of Anastasia Island demonstrators were beaten and driven into the water by police and segregationists, some of the protestors could not swim and had to be saved from drowning by other demonstrators.

The demonstrations came to a climax when a group of black and white protesters jumped into the swimming pool at the Monson Motel, a entirely white hotel where several other protests had been held. In response to the protest the owner of the hotel, Mr. James Brock, who was a usually shy and passive man, was photographed pouring muriatic acid into the pool to get the protestors out. Photographs of this and of a policeman jumping into the pool to arrest them were broadcast around the world and became some of the most famous images of the entire Civil Rights Movement. The photos became fodder for communist countries, who used the images to discredit America’s claims of democracy and freedom.

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Early Exploration and Attempts at Settlement

The vicinity of St. Augustine was first explored in 1513 by Spanish explorer and governor of Puerto Rico, Juan Ponce de León, who claimed the region for the Spanish crown. Prior to the founding of St. Augustine in 1565, several earlier attempts at European colonization in what is now Florida were made by both Spain and France, but all failed.

The French exploration of the area began in 1562, under the Huguenot captain Jean Ribault. Ribault explored the St. Johns River to the north of St. Augustine before sailing north, ultimately founding the short-lived Charlesfort on what is now known as Parris Island, South Carolina. In 1564, Ribault's former lieutenant René Goulaine de Laudonnière headed a new colonization effort. The Laudonnière explored St. Augustine Inlet and the Matanzas River, which the French named the River of Dolphins. There they made contact with the local Timucua chief, probably Seloy, a subject of the powerful Saturiwa chiefdom, before heading north to the St. Johns River. There they established Fort Caroline.

Later that year some mutineers from Fort Caroline fled the colony and turned pirate, attacking Spanish vessels in the Caribbean. The Spanish used this as a catalyst to locate and destroy Fort Caroline, fearing it would serve as a base for future piracy, and wanting to dissuade further French colonization. The Spanish quickly dispatched Pedro Menéndez de Avilés to go to Florida and establish a base from which to attack the French.

Founding of St. Augustine

Pedro Menéndez de Avilés sighted land on August 28, 1565. As this was the feast day of Augustine of Hippo, the territory was named San Agustín. The Spanish sailed through the St. Augustine Inlet into Matanzas Bay and disembarked near the Timucua town of Seloy on September 7. Menéndez's goal was to dig a quick fortification to protect his people and supplies as they were unloaded from the ships, and then to take a more proper survey of the area to determine the best location for the fort. The location of this early fort has been confirmed through archaeological excavations directed by Kathleen Deagan on the grounds of what is now the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park. It is known that the Spanish occupied several structures in Seloy, the chief of which, known as Chief Seloy, was allied with the Saturiwa, Laudonnière's allies. It is possible, but undemonstrated, that Menéndez fortified one of the occupied Timucua structures as this first fort at Seloy.

In the meantime, Jean Ribault, Laudonnière's old commander, arrived at Fort Caroline with more settlers for the colony, as well as soldiers and weapons to defend them. He also took over the governorship of the settlement. Despite Laudonnière's wishes, Ribault put most of these soldiers aboard his ships for an assault on St. Augustine. However, he was surprised at sea by a violent storm lasting several days. This gave Menéndez the opportunity to march his forces overland for surprise dawn attack on the Fort Caroline garrison, which then numbered several hundred people. Laudonnière and some survivors fled to the woods, and the Spanish killed almost everyone in the fort except for the women and children. With the French displaced, Menéndez rechristened the fort as San Mateo, and appropriated it for his own purposes. The Spanish then returned south and eventually encountered the survivors of Ribault's fleet near the inlet at the southern end of Anastasia Island. Menéndez executed most of the survivors, including Ribault; the inlet was thus named for the Spanish word for slaughters, Matanzas.

The first slaves in the territory that we now regard as the United States were brought to St. Augustine on the day it was founded by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés on September 8, 1565. Menéndez’s contract with King Phillip afforded him three years to import 500 African slaves. In 1566, Martín de Argüelles was born in San Agustín, the first European child who was recorded as born in the continental United States. Argüelles was born in San Agustín 21 years before the English settlement at Roanoke Island in Virginia Colony, and 42 years before the successful settlements of Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Jamestown, Virginia. Additionally, the first recorded birth of a black child in the continental United States is in the Cathedral Parish Archives. Augustin was recorded as born in the year 1606, thirteen years before enslaved Africans were first brought to the English colony at Jamestown in 1619. In territory under the jurisdiction of the United States, only Puerto Rico has continuously occupied European-established settlements older than St. Augustine.

Spanish Rule

St. Augustine was intended to be a base for further colonial ventures across what is now the Southeastern United States, but such efforts were hampered by apathy and hostility on the part of the Native Americans towards becoming Spanish subjects. The Saturiwa, one of the two principal chiefdoms in the area, remained openly hostile. In 1566 the Saturiwa burned down St. Augustine and the settlement had to be relocated. Traditionally it was thought to have been moved to its present location, though some documentary evidence suggests it was first moved to a location on Anastasia Island. At any rate, it was certainly in its present location by the end of the 16th century.

The settlement also faced attacks from European forces as well. In April 1568 the French soldier Dominique de Gourgues led an attack on Spanish holdings. With the aid of the Saturiwa, Tacatacuru, and other Timucua peoples who had been friendly with Laudonnière, de Gourgues attacked and burned Fort San Mateo, the former Fort Caroline. He then executed his prisoners in revenge for the 1565 massacre, but he did not approach St. Augustine itself. Additional French expeditions were primarily raids and were unable to dislodge the Spanish from St. Augustine. The English also believed Admiral Avilés and the Catholic Spanish were responsible for the disappearance of the English fishing settlements in America that had been established by John Cabot. Thus, following the disappearance of the Roanoke colony in Virginia, the blame was immediately leveled at St. Augustine. Consequently, in 1586 St. Augustine was attacked and burned by English privateer Sir Francis Drake and the surviving Spanish settlers were driven into the wilderness. However, lacking sufficient forces or authority for permanently establishing a settlement, Drake left the area.

In 1668 St. Augustine was attacked and plundered by English privateer Robert Searle. In the aftermath of his raid, the Spanish began in 1672 the construction of a more secure fortification, the Castillo de San Marcos, which still stands today as the nation's oldest fort. Its construction took a quarter of a century, with many later additions and modifications.

The Spanish did not have as many slaves in Florida as the English Americans had in their colonies to the north, as it was basically a military outpost rather than a plantation economy. As the British settlements moved farther and farther south, the Spanish adopted the policy of giving sanctuary to slaves who could escape from British plantations and make their way to Florida. Thus did it become the focal point of the first Underground Railroad. Blacks were given sanctuary, arms, and supplies if they joined the Catholic Church and swore allegiance to the king of Spain. As the British established settlements closer to Spanish territory, with Charleston in 1670 and Savannah in 1733, Spanish Governor Manual de Montiano in 1738 established the first legally recognized free community of ex-slaves as the northern defense of St. Augustine, known as Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose, or Fort Mose.

In 1740 St. Augustine was unsuccessfully attacked by British forces from their colonies in the Carolinas and Georgia. The largest and most successful of these was organized by Governor and General James Oglethorpe of Georgia who managed to break the Spanish-Seminole alliance when he gained the help of Ahaya the Cowkeeper, chief of the Alachua band of the Seminole tribe.

In the subsequent campaign Oglethorpe, supported by several thousand colonial militia and British regulars along with Seminole warriors, invaded Spanish Florida and conducted the Siege of St. Augustine during the War of Jenkin's Ear. During this siege the black community of St. Augustin proved its worth when during the siege it proved decisive in stopping the city's take-over by the British. The leader of Fort Mose during the battle was the legendary Capt. Francisco Menendez (creole), who was born in Africa, twice escaped from slavery, and played an important role in defending St. Augustine from raid by British colonists to the north. The Fort Mose site is now owned by the Florida Park Service, and recognized as a National Historic Landmark.

British Rule

In 1763, the Treaty of Paris ended the French and Indian War and gave Florida and St. Augustine to the British, in exchange for the British relinquishing control of occupied Havana. With the change of flags, almost all of the population of 3,100 Spaniards departed from St. Augustine.

James Grant was appointed the first governor of East Florida, and served from 1764 until 1771, when he returned to Britain due to illness. He was replaced as governor by Patrick Tonyn.

During this time the British converted the monks quarters of the former Franciscan monastery into military barracks that were named St. Francis Barracks. They also built The King's Bakery that is believed to be the only extant structure in the city built entirely in British period.

The Lieutenant Governor of East Florida under Governor Grant was John Moultrie who was born in South Carolina, he had served under Grant as a major in the Cherokee War and remained loyal to the British Crown. Moultrie's brother William Moultrie of whom Fort Moultrie in South Carolina is named was a general in the Continental Army. His brother Thomas was a captain in the American 2nd South Carolina Regiment who was killed in the Battle of Charleston, while his half-brother Alexander became the first Attorney General in South Carolina and was held prisoner in St. Augustine while John was acting British Lieutenant Governor. Moultrie was granted large tracts of land in the St. Augustine vicinity upon which he established the plantation of "Bella Vista" he owned another 2,000-acre (8.1 km2) plantation in the Tomoka River basin named "Rosetta". While acting as the lieutenant governor he lived in the Peck House on St. George Street.

Another large development effort during the British period was the establishment in 1768 of the colony of New Smyrna, by Andrew Turnbull a friend of Grants. Turnbull recruited indentured servants from the Mediterranean, primarily from the island of Minorca. The conditions at New Smyrna were abysmal, prompting the settlers to rebel en masse in 1777 and walk the 70 miles (110 km) to St. Augustine, where Grant gave them refuge.

The story of the Minorcan colony (as the entire group came to be known) is told, fictionally, in the book Spanish Bayonet by Stephen Vincent Benet, a prominent descendant of one of the leading Minorcan families of St. Augustine. The Minorcans, stayed on in St. Augustine through all the subsequent changes of flags, to become the venerable families of the community, marking it with language, culture, cuisine and customs.

Second Spanish Rule

The Treaty of Paris in 1783 gave the American colonies north of Florida their independence, and ceded Florida to Spain in recognition of Spanish efforts on behalf of the American colonies during the war.

On September 3, 1783, by Treaty of Paris, Britain also signed separate agreements with France and Spain, and (provisionally) with the Netherlands. In the treaty with Spain, the colonies of West Florida, captured by the Spanish, and East Florida were returned to Spain, as was the island of Minorca, while the Bahama Islands, Grenada and Montserrat, captured by the French and Spanish, were returned to Britain.

Florida was under Spanish control again from 1781 to 1821, but St. Augustine since 1784. During this time, Spain was being invaded by Napoleon between 1808 and 1814 and was struggling to retain its colonies. Florida no longer held its past importance to Spain, thus, in 1821 the Adams–Onís Treaty peaceably turned the Spanish colonies in Florida and, with them, St. Augustine, over to the United States as a way of compensating the American government for the civil claims that were in part caused by undefined border areas with Spanish territories.

American Rule

Florida was ceded to the United States by Spain in the 1819 Adams–Onís Treaty, ratification of the treaty took place in 1821 and it officially became a U.S. possession as the Florida Territory, in 1822, with future president Andrew Jackson as the military governor, succeeded by William Pope DuVal as territorial governor. Florida gained statehood in 1845.

After the U.S. took possession of Florida in 1821, the Castillo de San Marcos (British, Fort St. Marks) was renamed Fort Marion for Francis Marion, the "Swamp Fox" of the American Revolution.

During the Second Seminole War of 1835–1842 the fort served as a prison for Seminole captives including the famed leader Osceola, the black Seminole, John Cavallo (John Horse) as well as Coacoochee (Wildcat), who made a daring escape from the fort with 19 other Seminoles.

In 1861, the American Civil War began and Florida seceded from the Union and joined the Confederacy. On January 7, 1861, prior to Florida's formal secession, a local militia unit, the St. Augustine Blues, took possession of St. Augustine's military facilities, including Fort Marion and the St. Francis Barracks, from the lone Union ordnance sergeant on duty.

Crew from the USS Wabash reoccupied the city for the United States government without opposition on March 11, 1862, and it remained under union control for the remainder of the war. In 1865, Florida rejoined the United States.

After the war, former slaves in St. Augustine established the community of Lincolnville in 1866, named after President Abraham Lincoln. Lincolnville, with the largest concentration of Victorian Era homes in St. Augustine, also became a key setting for the Civil Rights Movement a century latter.

After the Civil War, Fort Marion was used twice, in the 1870s and then again in the 1880s, to house first Plains Indians and then Apaches who were captured in the west. The daughter of Geronimo was born at Fort Marion, and was named Marion, though she later chose to change her name. The fort was also used as a military prison during the Spanish-American War of 1898. It was finally removed from the Army's active duty rolls in 1900 after 205 years of service under five different flags. It is now run by the National Park Service, and called the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument.

Flagler Era

Henry Flagler, a partner with John D. Rockefeller in Standard Oil arrived in St. Augustine in the 1880s and was the driving force behind turning the city into a winter resort for the wealthy northern elite. Flagler bought a number of local railroads which were incorporated into the Florida East Coast Railway, which built its headquarters in St. Augustine.

Flagler contracted the New York architectural firm of Carrère and Hastings to design a number of extravagant buildings in St. Augustine, among them the Ponce de Leon Hotel and the Alcazar Hotel built partly on land purchased from Flaglers' friend and associate Andrew Anderson and partly on the bed of Maria Sanchez Creek, which Flagler had filled with the archaeological remains of the original Fort Mose. Flagler built or contributed to several churches, including Grace Methodict, Ancient City Baptist, and, most ornate, the Venetian-style Memorial Presbyterian Church.

Flagler had Albert Spalding design a baseball park in St. Augustine, and the waiters at his hotels, under the leadership of Frank P. Thompson, formed one of America's pioneer professional black baseball teams, the Ponce de Leon Giants. It later became the Cuban Giants, and one of the team members, Frank Grant, has been inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

In the 1880s, there was no public hospital between Daytona Beach and Jacksonville. On May 22, 1888, Flagler invited St. Augustine's most influential ladies to his Ponce de León Hotel and offered them a hospital if the community would commit to operate and maintain the facility. The Alicia Hospital opened March 1, 1890, as a not-for-profit institution, but was renamed Flagler Hospital in 1905.

The extravagant Florida Land Boom of the 1920s left its mark on St. Augustine with the establishment (though not completion) of Davis Shores, a landfill project on the marshy north end of Anastasia Island, which was promised to be "America's Foremost Watering Place". It was reached, from downtown St. Augustine by the Bridge of Lions, billed as "The Most Beautiful Bridge in Dixie".

During World War II, St. Augustine hotels were used for the training of Coast Guardsmen, including the celebrated artist Jacob Lawrence and actor Buddy Ebsen. It was also a popular place for R&R for soldiers from nearby Camp Blanding, including Andy Rooney and Sloan Wilson who went on to write the classic 1950s novel The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit.

Civil Rights Movement

St. Augustine was a pivotal site for the Civil Rights Movement in 1963–1964.

Efforts by African Americans to integrate the public schools and public accommodations such as lunch counters were met with arrests and Ku Klux Klan violence. Non-violent protesters were arrested for participating in peaceful picket lines, sit-ins, and marches. Homes were firebombed, black leaders were assaulted and threatened with death, and fired from their jobs.

In the spring of 1964, St. Augustine civil rights leader Robert Hayling asked the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and its leader Martin Luther King, Jr. for assistance. From May until July 1964, they carried out marches, sit-ins, and other forms of peaceful protest in St. Augustine.

Hundreds of black and white civil rights supporters were arrested, and the jails were filled to overflowing. At the request of Hayling and King, white civil rights supporters from the north, including students, clergy, and well-known public figures, came to St. Augustine and were arrested.

The KKK responded with violent attacks that were widely reported in national and international media. Popular revulsion against the Klan violence generated national sympathy for the black protesters and became a key factor in passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In 2010, former United Nations Ambassador Andrew Young premiered his movie, "Crossing in St. Augustine" about the 1964 struggles against Jim Crow segregation. Young is now working to establish a National Civil Rights Museum in St. Augustine, which could be part of a St. Augustine National Historical Park and Seashore.

Modern Era

The city is a popular tourist attraction, for its Spanish Colonial buildings as well as elite 19th century architecture. The city's historic center is anchored by St. George Street, which is lined with historic homes from various periods. Most of these homes are reconstructions of buildings that had been burned or demolished over the years, though a few of them are original.

The St. Augustine Alligator Farm, incorporated in 1908, is one of the oldest commercial tourist attractions in Florida, as is the Fountain of Youth, which dates from the same time period. The city is one terminus of the Old Spanish Trail, a promotional effort of the 1920s linking St. Augustine to San Diego, California, with 3,000 miles (4,800 km) of roadways.

The city has a privately funded Freedom Trail of historic sites of the civil rights movement, and a museum at the Fort Mose site, the location of the 1738 free black community. Historic Excelsior School, built in 1925 as the first public high school for blacks in St. Augustine, became the city's first museum of African-American history. In 2011, the St. Augustine Foot Soldiers Monument, a remembrance of participants in the civil rights movement, was dedicated in the downtown plaza, a few feet from the Slave Market. Robert Hayling, the leader of the St. Augustine movement, and Hank Thomas, who grew up in St. Augustine and was one of the original Freedom Riders, spoke at the dedication ceremony. Another corner of the plaza was designated "Andrew Young Crossing" in honor of the civil rights leader, who received his first beating in the movement in St. Augustine in 1964. Bronze replicas of Young's footsteps have been incorporated into the sidewalk that runs diagonally through the plaza, along with quotes expressing the importance of St. Augustine to the civil rights movement. That project was publicly funded. Some important landmarks of the civil rights movement, including the Monson Motel and the Ponce de Leon Motor Lodge, had been demolished in 2003 and 2004.

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Ponce De Leon's Discovery

The culture of North America changed forever in the year 1513. In April, the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon landed while searching for the fabled isle of Bimini. The exact landing spot where Ponce and his men came ashore remains unknown, but it was apparently somewhere between the Cape Canaveral area and the mouth of the St. Johns River. Searching for this historic site, archeologists have conducted numerous "digs" at the Fountain of Youth, a National Archeological Park, where a Timucuan Indian village called Seloy was located and where the city of St. Augustine had its beginning.

Ponce de Leon was on a mission of exploration, not settlement, and his visit to northeast Florida was brief. Because he arrived during the Easter season, known as the Pascua Florida, Ponce named his new discovery La Florida – a name still used today. Besides naming the land and claiming it for Spain, Ponce de Leon made a discovery that was to lead to the creation of St. Augustine. Sailing along the Florida coastline, Ponce de Leon realized that a strong current was carrying his ships rapidly northward. This would aid in quickly returning Spanish ships home and was later called the Gulf Stream. Although Timucuans may not have had much contact with the Spanish after Ponce de Leon sailed away, Native Americans in other parts of Florida welcomed, battled with and fled from numerous Spanish expeditions. Ponce turned his attention to the west coast of Florida where he died from a poisoned arrow.

Men like Tristan de Luna, Cabeza de Vaca, and Hernando de Soto followed Ponce de Leon to Florida and reluctantly concluded that major investment in this land was not worthwhile. It was filled with dangerous animals like alligators and snakes, as well as insects. Heat, humidity, hurricanes and other storms were serious unavoidable problems. Some parts of Florida welcomed the Spanish, but it soon became apparent that the war-like natives would not be as easily subdued as those from other parts of the New World. Natives from these far more lucrative areas could be forced to work as slaves while Spain took their gold and silver. Also, European agriculture did not take hold on the coasts. It seemed apparent that a colony would have to depend on help from Spain to survive. Based on these conclusions, the Spanish simply ignored risky Florida.

French Intruders

In 1562, French Protestants known as Huguenots arrived in Florida. Led by Jean Ribault, their goal was to establish a colony in the New World as a possible haven. Despite the Spanish claim to a vast La Florida-- from modern-day Florida to Labrador and as far westward as the King of Spain could imagine-- the Frenchmen established a small settlement near the mouth of the St. Johns River. Unfortunately for them, their food supply shipment never arrived. Though Timucuans happily shared their beans and squash with their visitors, eventually the French faced starvation and mutiny. Thus, the Frenchman devoted their efforts to building a boat and wasted no time in sailing away from Florida.

In 1564, a much larger and better-prepared French expedition -- Huguenots including women and children-- arrived at the earlier settlement. Led by Rene Laudonniere, Fort Caroline was built from the remains of the previous village.

In 1561, Spain’s King Phillip II had declared that no more effort would be made to colonize Florida. It was explained to Phillip by his advisors that the arrival of the French was a trespass on Spanish territory, and as Protestants, they were heretics. Beyond that, the presence of a French base on the eastern shore of La Florida would pose a very dangerous threat to the Spanish treasure fleets returning home.

Diplomatically, the Spanish reminded Queen Catherine of France that the Pope had confirmed that La Florida was the property of Spain. They asked her to remove her subjects, but soon learned that the French were preparing an even larger fleet to sail for Florida. The French would have to be removed by force. King Phillip knew the best man to complete such a task was Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles.

Menendez and his Mission

Admiral General Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles was born in Aviles, Spain in 1519. When Menendez was only 30, King Charles of Spain directed him to pursue and capture a French corsair named Jean Alfonse who had recently seized ten Spanish ships. Although the king provided neither money, ships nor troops for the mission, Menendez headed out to sea where he freed five of the ships and killed Alfonse. In 1554, the king placed him in charge of the treasure fleets sailing between Spain and her colonies in the New World. The Casa de Contratacion, previously in charge, had lost fleets to corsairs. Menendez excelled without bribery and successfully led the fleets on their long journeys. Another war between Spain and France resulted in new duties for Menendez. He distinguished himself in battles, and at the war’s end, he was given the honor of transporting King Phillip home to Spain.

Confident that he had the direct support of the throne, Menendez became more and more disrespectful of the Casa, who had became increasingly annoyed with his success and honesty. In one famous incident, he insulted the Casa members publicly by personally removing the King’s banner from one of their small boats. When he returned from the 1563 voyage, the Casa accused him of numerous infractions and he was imprisoned in the Almohades treasure house in Seville.

Birth of the City of St. Augustine

After twenty months in prison, Menendez received orders from King Phillip to sail for Florida. In an asiento (contract), Phillip directed Menendez to scout La Florida from the Keys as far as its northern boundary in present-day Canada, to report on its coastal features, and to set up a permanent colony. He was told to drive out any settlers or corsairs who were not subjects of the Spanish crown. The King then declared all earlier claims by Spanish explorers to be void and that Menendez and his descendants would rule Florida, signing a contract on March 20, 1565.

On July 28 Menendez set sail from Spain to conquer Florida. Led by his flagship the San Pelayo, the leading ships reached Puerto Rico on August 8. He left Puerto Rico on August 15 with five ships, reached Cape Canaveral on August 25, turned north and spent the next few days looking in vain for the French. Indians directed him north, to what the French called the River of Dolphins. On the feast day of St. Augustine, August 28, he sailed through the inlet and named the area after the saint.

Menendez searched the area for the French. By October 10, after several encounters, Jean Ribault and 70-80 Frenchmen finally surrendered at the inlet and were executed. The inlet was named Matanzas – place of “slaughters”.

Days of Difficulty

Due to a fire in the storehouse at San Mateo, the Spaniards worried about surviving the coming winter without supplies. Menendez decided to sail to Cuba for help. Soon after, many soldiers decided the New World had more fortunes to offer and departed. Then, some of the men stationed at San Mateo mutinied, abandoned the fort, and killed several Timucuan chiefs, losing Indian cooperation. Menendez was able to round up some of the missing ships and supplies from his original fleet, but received no help form the Casa in Cuba.

In May 1566, in response to deteriorating relations with neighboring Timucuans, Menendez withdrew the Spanish community to a more easily defended position on the northern end of Anastasia Island - where a new fort and a town were built. Six years later, the settlement was again relocated to the area just south of the Plaza near the center of today's downtown St. Augustine. The new position gave them protection from the Indians and intruding enemy ships. Satisfied that he had met the initial requirements of his contract with the King, including the establishment of three forts, Menendez returned to Spain in 1567. After several missions, Menendez became ill and died on September 17, 1574.

More Trouble for the Colony

In early 1568, a French force commanded by Dominique De Gourges joined with local Indian warriors to destroy the Spanish fort at San Mateo. In revenge for the killing of the French at Matanzas Inlet, De Gourges hanged his Spanish captives. By 1570, the commander of the Spanish fort at Santa Elena (settled by Menendez on present-day Parris Island, South Carolina) gave up and sailed for Spain with 120 men, hoping to increase the chance of survival for those he left behind. The Jesuit priests also left in 1571 after too many had been killed during their holy mission. The colony's failure to grow crops added to their misery, and colonists began constructing a ship so they could flee.

Fortunately, a new commander was named at this time--Don Pedro Menendez Marquez, nephew of the founder of St. Augustine. He reasoned with the St. Augustine mutineers and promised that if supplies didn’t arrive in time, he would take them to refuge in Cuba. At Santa Elena, in the face of constant Indian attacks, the fort was abandoned and the residents fled to St. Augustine. Menendez Marquez gathered up the pieces for a new fort and sailed to Santa Elena where by he pacified the Indians and re-established the outpost. As a result of his accomplishments, Don Pedro Menendez Marquez was named governor of Florida, a position he held until 1589. After the death of Pedro Menendez, King Phillip decided that St. Augustine was much too valuable as a haven for the treasure fleets to be abandoned, and ruled that the colony would be funded by the crown.

Good Times…and Bad

Peace with the local Indians allowed St. Augustine to slowly develop into a small and prosperous town. However, in 1586, England and Spain were at war and the English corsair Sir Francis Drake was likely to attack on his way home. St. Augustine was fired upon on June 6. The English fleet was huge, forcing Governor Marquez and his people to flee. Immediately, Indians looted the town. When the English arrived, they took what the Indians left behind, and it is said the killing of an English soldier by the Spanish rearguard prompted Drake to issue his dreadful orders- "burn the town!"

As soon as Drake and his fleet set sail, Governor Marquez summoned help from Cuba. News of the disaster led to increased support in Spain for the struggling colony. St. Augustine was given the status of a “presidio” – a city that served as an official military fortress of the Spanish Empire. Soon after the residents of the abandoned Santa Elena arrived, the town of St. Augustine fulfilled one of its major roles – serving as a haven for the treasure fleets on their way home to Spain. Several ships loaded with treasure were wrecked on the Florida coast and the sailors were able to survive thanks to the food provided by the Indians.

When they weren’t converting Indians, rebuilding after storms or burying plague victims, St. Augustine’s residents were busy carrying out their duties to the Spanish crown. Its soldiers escorted missionaries and its sailors traveled frequently aboard ships sailing between St. Augustine and Havana. The town’s garrison was responsible for rescuing shipwrecked Spanish sailors and recovering the treasure and cannons aboard the ships run aground by storms or pirates. With a reputation as a savage wilderness, recruitment for the garrison sometimes took place in Spanish prisons. The viceroy was responsible for sending the annual "subsidy" or payment to the St. Augustine garrison, but in 1586, Sir Francis Drake helped himself to the town's finances. In 1627, the entire treasure fleet was captured by the Dutch corsair Piet Heyn. The subsidy for La Florida and all the presidios in the Caribbean were lost. When funds were short, the capital of La Florida was short-changed on its annual paycheck. As a result, supplies from Havana and New Spain were essential for the town's survival.

English Intruders

It wasn’t long after Drake’s devastating raid that the residents of St. Augustine learned that other Englishmen had arrived in La Florida and this time they weren’t just conducting a raid, they were building a town. In 1607, the English returned and christened their new Virginia colony “Jamestown," after the inhabitants of their first settlement Roanoke (in present-day North Carolina) mysteriously disappeared.

In 1609 and 1611, scouting parties from St. Augustine revealed reports regarding the English intrusion into La Florida. During the mid-1600’s, roving bands of previously unknown Indian tribes, forced southward by the expanding English colony, began raiding Florida and murdering missionaries. St. Augustine’s pleas to strengthen the town’s garrison and fortifications went unanswered. In 1665, King Charles II of England announced that a new province named Carolina was to be created south of Virginia. The fact that the boundaries of Carolina included St. Augustine left no doubt about the ambitious extent of the English plans.

Searles’ Raid

The English privateer Robert Searles captured a Spanish ship headed for Cuba from Florida. He heard from a French doctor onboard that a large amount of silver was being stored in St. Augustine. Searles sailed back up the coast of Florida in May of 1668. Waiting for nightfall, he brought the ship into St. Augustine’s harbor where its residents anticipated the arrival of this "supply ship" the next morning. After midnight, they went on a rampage through the town. The pirates helped themselves to the salvaged silver and ruthlessly murdered sixty residents of the town, including children. They ransomed off hostages and selected those Searles judged to be not of "pure Spanish blood" to be sold into slavery elsewhere in the Caribbean. The Searles Raid awakened the Spanish monarchy to the serious threat of the English colonies. In 1669, Queen Mariana ordered the Viceroy of Mexico to pay for the construction of a massive stone fortress to be as fortified as the most important cities of the Spanish Empire.

Construction of the Castillo

Florida’s new governor, Manuel Cendoya, was responsible for building the new fort. About four o’clock Sunday afternoon, October 2nd, 1672, Governor Cendoya thrust a spade into the earth and thus broke ground for the Castillo de San Marcos. After collecting funds, he found an experienced military engineer, Ignacio Daza, to design it. He recruited large numbers of Indians, slaves, and skilled craftsmen. They discovered a readily available building material on nearby Anastasia Island called coquina: rock composed of tiny seashells concreted together beneath the sea. An elaborate system of ferry boats was required to transport the coquina, and an earthwork surrounding the fort was built from soil removed for a moat. Unfortunately, Daza and Governor Cendoya both died during the first two years of the project, and a huge storm destroyed the existing wooden fort in 1674. Twice, pirates threatened the city and the work had to be stopped. But Governor Quiroga successfully petitioned the King to allow coquina stones, which had been reserved by the crown for use exclusively for the castillo’s construction, to be used in building important buildings in St. Augustine. This huge construction project resulted in a sharp increase in the population of St. Augustine as skilled craftsmen, engineers, laborers and slaves became residents. By August 1695, the massive Castillo was at last complete and it was christened as the “Castillo de San Marcos” or St. Mark’s Castle.

Border Troubles

The English hired Indians to harass Spanish missions in Florida, and Christian Indians were often captured and sold into slavery in the Carolinas. The English Carolinians, offered the Indians cash for Spaniard captives. In the fall of 1686, soldiers from the garrison at St. Augustine sacked the Carolinian settlement at Port Royal. Not long after a boat filled with slaves escaping from the Carolinas arrived in St. Augustine, the slaves were promptly baptized into the Catholic faith and allowed to settle in an area just north of town, and other English slaves attempted to seek freedom in St. Augustine.

Quaker John Archdale, the new governor of Carolina, tried to end Indian enslavement by the English. The two sides soon reached an agreement—the English would return any Christian Indians captured in Florida and the Spanish would return any shipwrecked Englishmen. True to their word, the residents of St. Augustine rescued a large contingent of Quakers during the winter of 1696.

War Comes to St. Augustine

In 1702, the outbreak of the War of the Spanish Succession, known in St. Augustine as Queen Anne's War, raised financial fears for the town's survival. In Carolina, newly appointed Governor Moore obtained the Carolina's Assembly to increase English expansion into La Florida. He put together an army of 600 militiamen and several hundred Indian allies, and boarded 14 ships for St. Augustine in 1702. Spanish governor Zuniga learned of the planned attack and requested troops, weapons, and supplies from Havana.

After burning the Spanish outpost at Amelia Island, Moore sent Colonel Daniel to St. Augustine, and the Carolinian troops arrived on November 10. Daniel's forces advanced on the town from the south, while Governor Moore sailed into the harbor with the main force of Carolinians. 1,500 Spaniards waited out the attack from inside the strong walls of the Castillo, where their biggest fear was not the English cannons but the possibility of starvation. The Castillo's coquina walls made Governor Moore's guns virtually useless, and he requested bigger cannons from Jamaica. While they waited for reinforcements, the English destroyed the town of St. Augustine. Finally two large Spanish warships, under the command of General Berrora, arrived in answer to Zuniga's request. Faced with inevitable failure, the English departed on December 30.

The Walled City

St. Augustinians went to work rebuilding their town with coquina from the Royal quarries. Due to increased attacks by Governor Moore, St. Augustine's defenses were increased by adding a deep moat, earthworks, and defensive walls to protect the city from attackers. The British continued their southward expansion, building Fort King George, which was less than 100 miles from St. Augustine, in 1721. In response to British expansion, Governor Benavides appointed Francisco Menendez to organize former slaves from British colonies into a militia company, now officially recognized as Florida's first National Guardsmen. He paid Yamassee and Creek Indians to attack the fort. British Colonel John Palmer led a force of Carolinians into Florida to attack the Yamassee Indians, and burned the original Mission Nombre de Dios. In 1733, the British founded Savannah and officially proclaimed their new colony to be called Georgia. Manuel de Montiano replaced Francisco del Moral Sanchez as governor in 1737. With the assistance of a military engineer, Antonio Arredondo, Montiano prepared for the British invasion, requesting help from Cuba. Arredondo built bombproof coquina rooms inside the Castillo, rebuilt the mission, and completed a tall watchtower.

In 1739, England declared war against Spain, often called the "War of Jenkin's Ear." Robert Jenkins, captain of the ship Rebecca, claimed that the Spanish coast guard had severed his ear. In 1738 Jenkins exhibited his pickled ear to the House of Commons. The Brtish Prime Minister, Robert Walpole, declared war on October 23, 1739. In 1740, Georgia’s Governor Oglethorpe sailed British troops and captured the two small forts guarding St. Augustine. In May, Oglethorpe returned with an army of some 1,500 men and a naval force under the command of Vincent Pierse. On June 23, Oglethorpe positioned cannons and mortars near present-day Vilano Beach and Anastasia Island, and had his naval force block the inlet. For the next 27 days, the English fired upon the city of St. Augustine. On the night of June 25, Montiano launched a surprise attack on the British garrison occupying the captured fort. In the early morning hours, the Spaniards killed 111 of their enemies at Fort Mose – including Colonel Palmer who had burned the Mission Nombre de Dios 12 years earlier. Oglethorpe ineptly decided to send Montiano a formal demand that he surrender the city to the British.

Faced with a lack of annual subsidy for the past two years, Governor Montiano wrote Cuba about his new plan to arm a ship as a privateer. "Privateers" were independant pirates sanctioned by their respective governments, and required to share their booty with their government sponsors. Montiano decided it would be the best way to provide food for the city of St. Augustine. In October, St. Augustine’s privateers sailing aboard the Campeche, captured a ship filled with rice off Charleston, South Carolina. By the end of the year, more than forty English ships had been captured and their cargoes sustained the Spanish population.

Montiano soon learned that seven supply ships sailing from Cuba had managed to elude the British and were at Mosquito Inlet, about 70 miles to the south. Within days, these small boats delivered supplies needed to re-fill the nearly empty storehouses at the Castillo. On July 20, the Spanish defenders of St. Augustine awakened to find their enemies had vanished during the night. Oglethorpe's attack had only killed two Spanish soldiers, and the naval force under Pierse had given up and left.

In 1740, the Spanish built Fort Matanzas to protect the southern border. Governor Montiano then launched an attack on the British at Fort Frederica. The resulting Battle of Bloody Marsh ended in a serious defeat for the Spanish forces. Governor Oglethorpe then decided it was time for another attack on Spanish Florida. In 1743, he brought his army quickly southward in an attempt to catch the Spanish off guard. Unable to draw the Spaniards from their defenses, Oglethorpe eventually gave up and returned to Georgia.

War and the Great Exodus

When the Seven Years War broke out between England and France in 1756, England place an embargo on the export of goods to neutral ports. New York merchant William Walton convinced the English that the flow of supplies to St. Augustine was essential to the welfare of New York. The French soon found that the harbor was a perfect location for conducting raids on their enemy’s merchant fleet, and by late 1758, the French were arriving on a weekly basis with a newly captured English ship. When Spain joined with France in the war against England in January of 1762, all trade stopped between La Florida and the British colonies to the north, and Havana was captured by the English.

Pablo Costello, a military engineer, arrived on one of the last ships to leave Havana. In addtion to other improvements, he organized a construction crew to build a massive earthwork, known as a "glacis," designed to force attacks directly into the line of fire of the cannons. Once again, St. Augustine turned to privateering to battle starvation. In only ten days, the San Christoval captured three English ships filled with essential food. Unfortunately, two of their prizes sank while trying to cross the bar at the inlet and never made it into the harbor. Three more privateers eventually joined the San Christoval and despite several setbacks, were able to feed the residents with captured English supplies.

In February 1763, England and Spain signed the Treaty of Paris ending the conflict, and St. Augustine was given to England. After 200 years spent building their city, the residents of St. Augustine would have 18 months to dispose of their property and leave Florida. In exchange, the English were returning Cuba to Spain. In accordance with instructions from Spain, Governor Felio arranged for many men of the garrison and their families to leave on April 1. The King of Spain had agreed to purchase land for the residents in Cuba, but few were enthusiastic about their forced departure. On July 20, the first regiment of British soldiers arrived from Havana and the next day Governor Felio turned over the Castillo’s keys to their commander. On August, 1,300 St. Augustinians sailed away from their hometown – most went to Cuba, but some headed for the West Indies and Mexico.

Beneath the British Flag

Until the arrival of a governor on August 29, 1764, nothing was done to maintain St. Augustine. Colonel James Grant was named governor of East Florida. He named his Carolinian friends to his governing council and provided them with free land. He brought James and John Moultrie, who were influential in getting other planters to bring slaves and money to East Florida for their free land. Grant ignored claims of Spanish ownership of nearly two hundred buildings. He also obtained land from the Creek Indians in 1765.

Grant promoted East Florida by offering free transportation on his schooner and used his plantation as a training facility to help newcomers. While Grant was away in England seeking medical attention, John Moultrie was placed in charge of East Florida. Moultrie supervised the construction of an outstanding road stretching southward to beyond the plantation at New Smyrna. The Government House on the plaza was remodeled and strengthened while Grant sent church bells and a town clock to St. Augustine.

After the capture of a British supply ship in 1775, St. Augustine became a place of refuge as well as a rallying point for rebels in Georgia. Nearly everyone profited by meeting the needs of the Royal Navy, the British Army and the refugees. Despite the quality of life in East Florida, there was growing discontent over the continuing dominance of Grant’s friends in the governing of the colony. St. Augustinians wanted to elect a House of Assembly, and in 1781, the Council was joined by an elected House of Commons. In May, 1781 they received shocking news that the neighboring colony, West Florida, had fallen to Spanish forces. Although there had been little contact between the two colonies, the fact that Pensacola was now in the hands of an enemy was a disturbing turn of events. Then, in October, word arrived from Virginia that Lord Cornwallis had surrendered his entire army to George Washington and the rebels. In June, 1783, the official word on their fate reached St. Augustine from Paris. The colony was to be returned to the Spanish. The British were forced to sell or leave their homes, but the Menorcans decided to stay. Most of them spoke a form of Spanish were Catholic and many had established successful businesses in St. Augustine.

Spanish Once More

In June 1784, Governor Zespedes and 500 Spanish soldiers arrived from Cuba to take over the colony. In November, the last refugee ship departed carrying Governor Tonyn, his staff and the few remaining British subjects away to England. Within weeks, the bustling economic activities of St. Augustine had ended and the town returned to serving as a remote outpost of the Spanish Empire. The population of St. Augustine decreased from 17,000 to about 3,000, with the majority being the Menorcans. Less than 100 British subjects had abandoned their allegiance to King George in order to continue living in Spanish Florida.

In 1796, a new governor, Enrique White, arrived in St. Augustine. Under his leadership, new homes were built, the Cathedral was completed and both the morale and military readiness of the garrison were improved. In 1812, a new group of visitors showed up at the location of old Fort Mose just north of the city’s fortifications. In cooperation with President James Madison, these armed men called themselves “Patriots” and demanded that St. Augustine be surrendered to them. Determined to end the continued escape of their slaves to Spanish Florida and to put an end to Indian raids from Florida into Georgia, the Patriots planned to overthrow the government of Florida and then “invite” the U.S. government to take over the territory. Governor Estrada refused to surrender and it quickly became apparent that the Patriots would never be able to breach the city’s strong defenses. 100 American soldiers showed up to help, but the “invasion” had by then become an embarrassment and President Madison ordered the troops to withdraw from Florida.

The Treaty of Ghent that ended the War of 1812 allowed the United States to keep large areas of West Florida that were occupied by the Americans during the war. The American government demanded that Spain reimburse slave owners for the loss of slaves who fled to Florida for their freedom and to also pay for property destroyed by Indian raiders based in Florida. To resolve the dispute, negotiations began in 1819 and two years later the two nations ratified the Onis-Adams Treaty. Negotiated for the United States by Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, the treaty gave Florida to the Americans in exchange for dropping their $5 million claim against Spain.

Under the Stars and Stripes

The Spanish rule in Florida came to an end on July 10, 1821 when a small detachment of American soldiers marched into St. Augustine and were given possession of the Castillo de San Marcos. Land speculators, and Americans seeking fame and fortune quickly came to see the latest addition to the United States. Unfortunately, a yellow fever epidemic swept through town and killed many residents, including several of the new American administrators. The number of fatalities was so great that a new cemetery, called the Huguenot, was opened just outside the city gate. Americans also faced ongoing attacks from Indians. In effort to stop Seminole attacks on settlers, the U.S. government met with the Indians for several days of negotiations just outside St. Augustine. The resulting Treaty of Moultrie brought peace between the two groups. In exchange for weapons, food, blankets and a guaranteed grant of land for their use in central Florida, the Seminoles agreed to stop their war-like activities.

With the adoption of Tallahassee as the new capital of Florida, more travelers, especially people suffering from tuberculosis and other respiratory ailments, came to Florida to escape the cold weather. Some of the invalids arriving in St. Augustine were people of some wealth and influence and their impressions of the city continued to spark interest among other potential visitors. Among these was a young Ralph Waldo Emerson who described St. Augustine as “a queer place…full of ruins, chimneyless houses, (and) lazy people.” But, he added, “the air and sky of this ancient, fortified, dilapidated sandbank of a town are delicious” and credited it with restoring his health. Achille Murat, the nephew of Napoleon and the reported heir to his empire, lived in the city for about a year beginning in 1824.

The Seminole War

Americans gradually began to encroach on the lands given to the Seminoles under the terms of the Treaty of Moultrie. In 1835, the Seminoles decided to fight against the continued incursion on their land, defeating a U.S. Army detachment of 110 men traveling between forts in the vicinity of present-day Tampa and Ocala. Within days, the Seminoles were burning farms and settlements throughout North Florida. One after another, the best generals in the U.S. Army came to Florida only to be frustrated by the demands of unconventional warfare. It took 20,000 troops seven years to kill or capture enough Seminoles to stop the fighting. Even then, some Seminoles withdrew into the Everglades where they continue to live on a reservation today. In October 1837, Seminole Chief Osceola and seventy of his warriors arrived for negotiations with U.S. officials, and were captured by General Hernandez without regard to their flag of truce. A month later, twenty of the Seminoles made a miraculous escape from their prison, but in December more Seminole leaders and 78 warriors were again captured under a white flag of truce. Although the 1,500 casualties suffered by U.S. forces in combat against the Seminoles was distressing, the $20 million spent to conduct the war was a boon to St. Augustine. As the headquarters for the campaign against the Seminoles, the city received numerous improvements courtesy of American taxpayers.

Civil War

Florida was admitted as a slave state, with help from St. Augustine resident, David Levy Yulee. He was elected as the territory's Congressional delegate and helped unite east and west Florida. Residents of central Florida, many with plantations, were convinced succession was necessary. On January 10, 1861 the delegates voted and overwhelming approved secession by a count of 62 in favor and 7 opposed. In compliance with Governor Perry’s orders, the Castillo was quietly taken over and put into the service of the Confederacy. The initial enthusiasm for the war began to fade when residents of St. Augustine realized their fledgling tourist industry had abruptly ended. To make matters worse, the Confederate Government soon imposed a steep tax on residents in order to finance the war effort.

On the morning of March 11, 1862, federal gunboats anchored just outside the inlet. In anticipation of their arrival, the Confederate troops protecting the town abandoned their posts and marched off along with some of the town’s leading citizens into Florida’s interior. A rowboat brought U.S. Navy Commander Rodgers under a flag of truce to the town wharf where he met Acting Mayor Bravo. The city council quietly signed a surrender decree and turned St. Augustine over to northern forces, who remained in control throughout the remainder of the war. On January 1, 1863 Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation was read to slaves within the city. Many of St. Augustine’s freed slaves enlisted in the U.S. Army serving in several regiments made up of African-Americans. Three black St. Augustinians also served in the Confederate Army. The city also contributed three generals to the conflict –William Wing Loring, Edmund Kirby-Smith, and Stephen Vincent Benet. Some 16,000 Floridians served in the Confederate forces and about 5,000 gave their lives during the war. The names of the 46 St. Augustinians who died in the defense of the South are inscribed on the Confederate War Dead monument in the Plaza.

Reconstruction

The end of the Civil War came during the city’s 300th birthday, but there was little cause for celebration. The war had devastated the fledgling tourism industry and created a new social system that was totally alien to most residents. St. Augustine was selected as headquarter for the U.S. Army's construction efforts.

Fortunately, St. Augustine was spared much of the violence and hatred that Reconstruction brought to much of the South. The presence of Northerners, even Northern landowners, was nothing new to St. Augustine. The economic benefits of having Northerners visit or even purchase property in the community were well-known by most residents long before the War. As a result, the level of resentment toward “carpet baggers” and northern land speculators was not as severe in St. Augustine as in other parts of the South. The strong presence of the U.S. Army also helped discourage the types of violence associated with Southern Reconstruction.

By 1869, tourists, land developers and Northerners who planned to take up permanent residence in the city began flooding into town. A new road leading northward from the city gate was built and paved with oyster shells. New arrivals bought lots along the road from developers and the suburb became known as North City. On the opposite end of town, freed slaves took up homesteads, building homes and churches in Lincolnville. To accommodate the surge of people coming to visit or stay, the massive Hotel St. Augustine was built. In 1883, access to St. Augustine improved dramatically when the Jacksonville, St. Augustine and Halifax River Railroad opened a line that carried visitors directly from a steamboat landing on Jacksonville’s south side to the oldest city.

The Flagler Era

One of the visitors to St. Augustine during the winter of 1884 was Henry M. Flagler, a co-founder of Standard Oil of New Jersey and one of the richest men in America. The following year, Flagler returned and this time he looked at St. Augustine as the setting for a business venture - the ultimate, American luxury resort. To turn his dream into reality, Flagler immediately hired O.D. Seavey, the manager of the San Marco Hotel, and construction company that built the hotel. He also enlisted Franklin Smith, a wealthy businessman. Smith had recently built a home called Zorayda Castle based on the design of the Alhambra Castle in Spain. Flagler noted the strength of his "poured concrete" home, and decided to use this building technique. He also recruited resident Dr. Andrew Anderson, architect Thomas Hasting, and his associate John Carrere.

Skilled workmen from the United States and Europe labored to create the Ponce de Leon Hotel, beginning in 1885. The hotel with its massive twin towers was constructed in Spanish Renaissance style, with windows created by Louis Comfort Tiffany and the interior 540 guest rooms designed by Bernard Maybeck. When the Ponce de Leon opened on January 10, 1888, America’s wealthy elite rushed to see the red-tiled roofs, magnificent gardens, and lavish dining room. At night, the electrical lights powered by the hotel’s generator created a glowing wonderland that attracted visitors from far and wide. To help accommodate the over-flow crowd from his main hotel, Flagler constructed the Alcazar Hotel, featuring elaborate steam rooms, one of the largest indoor swimming pools in the world, and a bowling alley. Flagler bought Franklin W. Smith's Casa Monica Hotel, which was across the street from the Ponce de Leon, and renamed it the Cordova. By 1889, Flagler owned three of the country’s most impressive hotels. Flagler also built a railroad bridge across the river, linking St. Augustine all the way to New York.

In order to build his resort, Flagler funded the construction of replacement churches for the ones he demolished with his projects. He financed Grace Methodist Church and Memorial Presbyterian Church, a modern hospital and the City Building. The population of St. Augustine soon doubled, and improvements in street paving, law enforcement, and fire protection had to be expanded through increased taxes. Faced with the realities of an economic depression and competition from other resorts, St. Augustine saw fewer and fewer visitors. Although St. Augustine’s Flagler Era had begun to fade as soon as the trains began taking winter visitors to more southern destinations, it permanently ended on May 20, 1913 when Henry Flagler died in Palm Beach.

World War

When fighting broke out in Europe in 1914, news stories about the horrendous casualties on the Western Front seemed unrelated to life in the Oldest City. With European resorts closed by the fighting, St. Augustine soon received enough royalty and millionaires to revive all of the attractions that had proved so popular twenty years earlier. By mid-1917, the economic benefits of the war paled in comparison to the loss of America lives. Young men from St. Augustine were drafted or volunteered and the local National Guard units were mobilized. After their arrival in France, letters home described the terrible fighting and the people of St. Augustine became vitally interested in the war that had once seemed so far away. Many residents responded by buying Liberty Bonds, contributing to Red Cross programs and coping with food shortages. When the armistice final arrived, the St. Augustine Record reported that the city “went wild with patriotic enthusiasm”.

A Decade of Progress

In 1914, despite the distractions of “the War to End All Wars,” St. Augustine embarked on an improvement program that would be long referred to as the “decade of progress”. A huge fire that year destroyed much of the area just north of the plaza, and the city began rebuilding after replacing horse-drawn fire pumps with the very latest motorized fire engines. In 1915, local leaders approved funding for the paving of 64 miles of roadways throughout St. Johns County. Inspired by the success of their road and the rapidly growing number of automobiles on the roads, St. Augustine’s managers embarked on their first promotional program designed to attract automobile-owning families to the city and its beaches for a summer-long vacation. A paving program for city streets was conducted and gas street lamps illuminated the city's districts. St. Augustine's fishing fleet continued to grow, and a new city ice plant allowed the catch to be transported. Water and sewer systems were upgraded, electricity came into widespread use and the telephone system was expanded to include hotel rooms throughout St. Augustine.

Boom and Bust

In 1925, developers D. P. Davis turned his attention to St. Augustine and revealed his ambitious plans for using the same dredging techniques he had mastered in Tampa to develop the marshy swamp at the end of Anastasia Island – an area clearly visible from downtown St. Augustine. Although Davis Shores was a major failure in the 1920s, it was revived thirty years later and now exists as one of the city’s most popular residential areas. Davis’ project was also largely responsible for the beautiful Bridge of Lions, completed in 1927 to provide easy access between the downtown area and the upscale homes that were expected to be built at Davis Shores.

During the Depression, St. Augustine's residents simply decided to work together until better days arrived. Fishing remained both a viable industry and a way to supplement the family’s diet during hard times. Flagler’s Florida East Coast Railroad continued to provide steady employment. With coordination and support from local churches, various organizations devoted to helping out during difficult times were quickly organized. The main Visitor Information Center at the intersection of Avenida Menendez and Castillo Drive was constructed as a civic center as part of the Works Progress Administration – a massive public works program designed to create jobs and make improvements to American communities. The same program also provided for significant improvements to the Government House.

World War II

With the news of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the reality of wartime economies became a major concern. Gasoline rationing was a threat to visiting families and tourism. Reluctantly, St. Augustinians adopted wartime measures that effectively ended tourism. Waterfront lighting was eliminated and even the lighthouse’s beacon was dimmed from 20,000 to 5,000 candlepower to prevent its beam from aiding the U-boats in their hunt for merchant ships. As a result, the city lost its appeal to the tourists who, up until the beginning of the war, had provided 80 percent of the city’s income.

During the war, 2,500 Coast Guard trainees arrived for basic training at the Ponce de Leon Hotel. Over the next three years, thousands more followed. This influx of servicemen provided immediate economic benefits to St. Augustine.

Peace and Prosperity

Soon after the Second World War ended, St. Augustine began to experience a tourism boom. Not only had preservation efforts restored many long-neglected buildings, but also on January 1, 1948 the Lightner Museum opened in the former Alcazar Hotel. In 1950, the original Ripley’s Believe-It-or-Not Museum celebrating the worldwide travels of Robert Ripley opened at the former Warden Castle. More than 50 years later, these two attractions remain among St. Augustine’s most popular. The movie “Distant Drums” starring Gary Cooper was filmed in 1951. Sightseeing trains became popular in 1953. Over the past 50 years, the sightseeing trains have become part of the St. Augustine experience for millions of visitors.

Civil Rights Battlefield

St. Augustine faced their own racial issues with organized a protests of segregation by the NAACP and picketing at the Visitor Information Center. In 1964, the troubles in St. Augustine gained national attention. That spring, some northern college students on their traditional “spring break” decided to also protest against segregation in the city. Many were arrested, including one of their supporters, Mrs. Malcolm Peabody, mother of the governor of Massachusetts. The national media descended on St. Augustine to get photos of Mrs. Peabody behind bars and to report on race relations in the city. As a result, leaders of both sides of the issue decided to make St. Augustine a rallying point for their causes.

In May, the Reverend Martin Luther King arrived in St. Augustine. Assisted by Andrew Young, King and local black leaders organized series of protest marches. The first march was greeted with violence from whites and many blacks were arrested. Undaunted, the marches and demonstrations continued. The marches and violence became a nightly occurrence in St. Augustine.

Martin Luther King was eventually arrested at the Monson Motor Lodge – the site now occupied by the Hilton Inn. An even more famous incident occurred at the Monson when the manager was photographed pouring what was allegedly acid on to white and black civil rights protesters who had entered the motel’s “Whites Only” swimming pool. That photo appeared in newspapers around the world and is often credited for having helped convince undecided members of Congress to vote in favor of the Civil Rights Act that was passed on July 4, 1964.

400th Birthday

Despite the previous year’s civil rights turmoil and negative publicity, city leaders organized and presented a spectacular 400th birthday party for St. Augustine. The oldest city’s culture and history were presented in a week long celebration featuring parades, re-enactments, concerts and speeches. The St. Augustine Amphitheatre was opened that year on Anastasia Island. Located on the grounds of the old quarries that provided the coquina for building the city, the amphitheatre became the permanent home of the drama “Cross and Sword”. Written by noted playwright Paul Green, the play tells the story of Menendez and the founding of St. Augustine. It was named as Florida’s official drama.

The foundation stone for the Great Cross was also unveiled during the birthday celebration. Located on the grounds of the Mission Nombre de Dios where Menendez landed on September 8, 1565, the steel cross is 208 feet tall and weighs 70 tons. It is the second tallest free-standing cross in the western hemisphere. Many local residents note that St. Augustine has not been hit by a major hurricane since the Great Cross was erected.