An Oldie But Goodie

April 25 – May 3, 2014

I imagine some of you reading this might be thinking this post is about Tory but it’s not. I might be getting older and certainly hope I am a goodie but it is all about SIT’s time in the Nation’s oldest city, Saint Augustine Florida.

 

The Pirate Ship Awaits

The Tranquil Bay



We spent time in the historic district over a few days and were treated to a great tour via a trolley. Taking the trolley provided you with a narrated adventure of what Saint Augustine was all about and is today. I knew my memory wouldn’t hold all the details that should be added to our blog so we gladly purchased the Essential Guide to St. Augustine.

Hang onto your chairs as you are about to spend time back in the 1700 and 1800’s. Oh yeah, you’ll also get treated to a bit of the 1600’s too.

In 1763, the British finally claimed St. Augustine by pen through the 1763 Treaty of Paris in exchange for the return of Havana to the Spanish. During the Revolutionary War Florida remained loyal to the crown, but after the war ended a second Treaty of Paris returned Florida to the Spanish in 1784. Florida became part of the United States in 1821 and became the 27^th state in 1845.

Now what about the 1600’s? A stone fort was constructed from 1672 through 1695. The Castillo de San Marcos was built to protect treasures carried by the Spanish ships from pirate attacks. The fort has never been taken by force and is the oldest masonry fort in the United States.

Castillo de San Marcos National Monument

One of the reasons the fort is still standing along with other buildings in the town is due to the material it was built with, coquina. Coquina is very soft when first quarried, and so is left to dry for one to three years before use in building. It was handy to build forts with because heavy cannon balls would sink into the coquina instead of fracturing or breaking the structure.

Standing Guard (no not Steve)

Row of Protection

Ready to Load

The Way In

Thick Walls

The Upper Deck



Besides having a fort built in the 1600’s St. Augustine had a visitor in the 1500’s. Ponce De Leon showed up and searched for a fountain the natives had told him about that had the ability to grant eternal youth. Steve and I decided we should go check this place out too. We drank the water but so far I still have gray hair and wrinkles, oh well we enjoyed the grounds, wildlife, and history.

The Fountain of Youth Park commemorates the 1513 arrival of Juan Ponce de Leon in Florida. The park provides the visitor with an over view of what life was like in the mid-1500's. The Timucuan Indian village of Seloy was probably located on the Fountain of Youth site.



Posing

Showing Off

Essentials for living

Making pottery

Their home

The Timucuan Indian Chief

Spanish Soldier



There is much to see and say about the city so boiling it down to some pictures and a few tidbits of history is challenging. If you ever have a chance to come to this part of the country we would recommend spending a few days to take in the history. Besides they have a great beach and restaurants too!

 

The Gates into the City 

Historic Street

As you wander around town you are struck with the beauty and spectacular large older buildings. Flagler College was originally the Hotel Ponce de Leon and the first in the area to have electricity and running water.

Gates to Flagler College

Flagler College

From the Courtyard

 



Across from the college is another large building which was a hotel at one time as well. The Lightner Museum was the Alcazar Hotel which was also built by Henry Flagler. Oh by the way he built the Ponce de Leon Hotel too. This hotel included a large indoor swimming pool, tennis courts, gymnasium, bowling alley, billiard tables, and Turkish and Russian baths. Imagine having all this in 1888.

 

Was the Alcazar Hotel and now the Lightner Museum

The old jail is still around and you are able to tour the inside as well as walk around the grounds. The town truly appreciated their sheriff at the time when the jail was built as they provided living space for the sheriff and his family.  I don’t think I would have wanted to live there though since you were pretty close to the prisoners which didn’t have running water or indoor bathrooms. Plus they were only allowed to take a bath once a month and they had to share the same water. Yuck!

The Chain Gang

Sheriff Perry

I think I want the top bunk

 

Pretty Sure the Prisoners Listened to the Sheriff

The Gallows





They have a nice museum in the complex where the jail is and we found that traveling around the country in an RV started a long time ago.

Glad we have our RV and not this one



When we weren’t touring the town we checked out the beaches and found a place on a bridge to throw our fishing line in. Steve had success with catching one fish. Too bad we weren’t able to get a few more for a fish feed but that’s okay as it was nice day. From the bridge you could see another fort off in the distance. This is Fort Matanzas which was built in 1742 to defend the city of St. Augustine from the British attack and to guard the southern approaches to the city. Matanzas means slaughter in Spanish and unfortunately 250 shipwrecked survivors from the French army were the victims of being slaughtered at the beach near the where the Fort is.

Success

Fort Matanzas

Site of the Slaughter

 

We hopped on the National Park Service ferry to tour Fort Matanzas. The structure was built from coquina but needed a bit of refurbishment when the center of the building started to collapse. Otherwise it is original and you get the feeling of what a soldiers’ life would have been like back in 1742. I would just have volunteered for the job so you could fish all day and enjoy the view! Well maybe not since the cannons were probably pretty loud when fired.



 

Reading About the Fort

Never Penetrated

The Guardian

Your Place to Hang

The Other Kind of Powder Room

On a lighter note, the RV park we stayed in had quite a bit of wildlife including an alligator that guarded the pond so Izzy didn’t get to swim. There was an odd couple though that would get a little excited when Izzy and I would be out on our walks.

Buddies

We waited out the rain before we loaded up and moved down the road to our next stop of Savannah and Hilton Head. Stay tuned for more from SIT.