Many Indigenous peoples and cultures called Florida home for thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans. The Indigenous people, known as the Timucua, inhabited present-day North Florida and South Georgia. But they did not refer to themselves as "Timucua." In the 1500s, the Spanish applied the name to a wide swath of communities that …
In the early 1700s, the Spanish built Fuerto Picolato (Fort Picolata) on the east bank of the St. Johns River - about 18 miles from St. Augustine. The small outpost guarded a narrow point on the river. Native Americans and later the Spanish used this natural feature as a ferry location. Some historians think the …
On April 23, 1967, St. Augustine's former post office reopened to the public as Government House under the management of the St. Augustine Historical Restoration and Preservation Commission. The renovated building now included a gallery, auditorium, offices, and a research library. To mark the occasion, the Commission celebrated Pan American Week (April 14-23) at Government …
Set in 1717, the comedy series Our Flag Means Death loosely follows the misadventures of gentleman-turned-pirate Stede Bonnet and his crew aboard the Revenge. Each episode takes inspiration from historical events, figures, and places - including St. Augustine. While we are not pirate experts here, we could not resist exploring the show's depiction of Spanish …
Continue reading St. Augustine in Pop Culture: Our Flag Means Death
Though we think of coquina, tabby also played an important role in the modernization of St. Augustine's architecture. The Spanish often referred to tabby by many names, including: cal, tapia, ostión, and ripio. The recipe for tabby involves combining equal parts lime, water, sand, oyster shells, and ash. Like concrete, the mixture pours into molds …
From May 26 to July 5, 1823, the "Old Government House" (known today as Governor's House Cultural Center and Museum) was the center of Florida lawmaking. The second session of Florida's Territorial Legislative Council was held in St. Augustine for its five-week meeting. Before Florida became a U.S. territory, St. Augustine and Pensacola served as …
Continue reading Commemorating the Bicentennial of Florida’s 1823 Territorial Legislative Session
University of Florida graduate Mikayla Martin (BA '23) started as a volunteer with Governor's House Library in the summer of 2022. Over the past year, she helped transcribe metadata for the recently digitized Allen Lastinger Postcard Collection. This collection contains over 500 postcards depicting St. Augustine's tourism industry over the 20th century. The project also …
Continue reading Q & A with Governor’s House Library Volunteer Mikayla Martin
The pitter patter of little goat feet joined San Agustin Antíguo in March 1968. The living history museum housed a colony of two nanny (female) goats - named Josephina and Maria - on St. George Street. The arrival of Josephina's two kids (baby goats) surprised the staff members, who did not know of her pregnancy. …
"I tell them never to underestimate the power of a woman -- especially one wearing an Archie Eason hat," reported Elizabeth Towers to The Florida Times-Union on August 31, 1965. Towers, a Jacksonville philanthropist, dedicated herself to historic preservation in St. Augustine. At that time, she served as the only woman on the St. Augustine …
On November 18, 1963, President John F. Kennedy made a five-hour trip to Tampa, Florida. From his family's winter home in Palm Beach, Kennedy flew into MacDill Air Force Base. The president then toured Tampa International Airport before embarking on a 28-mile motorcade through downtown Tampa. Thousands of people came out to see the 35th …
Governor's House Library 