At first glance, Gallegos House seems like an ordinary St. Augustine casa from the First Spanish Period (1513-1763). Juan Josef Elixio de la Puente on his 1764 map recorded the rectangular home built of ripio. He noted it belonged to Juan Garcia Martínez Gallegos. Almost two centuries later, the Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board set …
Continue reading A History Mystery: Who was Juan Garcia Martínez Gallegos?
Here at Governor’s House, we spend a lot of time researching and talking about the buildings that the Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board restored and reconstructed, but lately we’ve become interested in learning more about the people who made the dream of San Agustín Antiguo, their museum village, possible. One couple in particular, Kjell and …
If you're following along with our ABC's of St. Augustine Architecture on Instagram (@govhouselibrary), you'll already know that "B" is for Balcony! As you walk down St. George Street, or most any street in the historic downtown, the overhanging balconies automatically stick out, literally and metaphorically, as a recurring feature in our city's architecture. These …
Continue reading A Birds’ Eye View of History: The Balconies of St. Augustine
Archaeological sites are places where the present meets the past. Through digs the people of today connect with the people of the past. There they can unearth their heritage. In 1989, the Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board used a dig at the Ribera Garden as an opportunity to educate the public about historical archaeology. An …
Not all archaeologists wear fedoras and carry whips like in the movies. Our real-life heroes are more likely to use trowels and notebooks. Let us take a look at some of the archaeologists featured in the collections of Governor's House Library: Hale G. Smith Hale G. Smith at Arrivas House in its early stages of …
It's Florida Archaeology Month! Every March, Florida celebrates the rich archaeological heritage of our state. Join us as we explore the archaeology collections of Governor's House Library all month long. To kick-off the celebration, we are highlighting one of our favorite structures - the Arrivas House. The Arrivas House was the first archaeological project completed …
Government House not only contains objects related to St. Augustine and Florida. It also stores items related to Spain and its former colonies collected by the Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board. This particular piece we are highlighting today comes from Mexico. It exemplifies a long tradition of paper making in the Americas - known as …
The sound of a blacksmith's hammer once rang out from what is now Crucial Coffee Cafe. Fifty years ago the wood frame structure on Charlotte Street operated as a blacksmith shop. The Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board based the reconstruction on a blacksmith shop from the late 1700s. The shop operated as part of the …
"Wood" you have ever guessed that carpenters built Crucial Coffee Cafe by hand? The Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board employed traditional woodworking skills on the wood frame structure fifty years ago. They based the reconstruction on a blacksmith shop from the late 1700s. The project aimed to exemplify the craftsmanship of both colonial and contemporary …
Did you know that St. Augustine is laid out in accordance with the typical Spanish town plan? This means that each town should feature a large plaza area in the center of the town, flanked by a religious center (the Cathedral) and governmental offices. Government House stands at the west end of our Plaza at …
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