« Previous   

   Next »

The St. Augustine area. Click on image for a larger version.

    From the mouth of the great St. Johns River south along the Atlantic coast runs 100 miles of sandy shoreline with only one navigable inlet, that at St. Augustine. Beginning with the establishment of the small Spanish outpost in 1565, St. Augustine was the focus, and almost the entire extent, of European occupation in the Florida peninsula for 200 years. Although its inlet is naturally restricted by a shallow bar, limiting the size of ships that could enter the protected harbor, the port of St. Augustine was the link between Spain’s province of La Florida on the continent, and the rest of the Spanish Empire. Throughout its early history, St. Augustine was threatened from without, by other European powers, and from within by lack of a viable economy. The inlet and the residents were protected by the formidable stone fort, Castillo de San Marcos, from repeated British attacks over land and by sea, and in the nineteenth century from Seminole Indian raids.

    St. Augustine’s harbor is small but well protected by the sandy barrier beaches, Anastasia Island south of the inlet, and a long stretch of uninterrupted shore north to the St. Johns River. The back of the Anastasia Island barrier is Matanzas River, with its small and dangerous Matanzas Inlet, while the back of the northern barrier beach is Tolomato River. Neither river supported substantial navigation, but the complex of bays, rivers and creeks behind the barriers is well suited for small boats throughout the Florida peninsula and in the Georgia Sea Islands. In a few places where there is no natural lagoon or river parallel to the coast, the Intracoastal Waterway was dug in the early 20th century. It is now possible for small vessels to navigate from Boston to Key West along this protected coastal waterway.

    St. Augustine’s inlet and harbor have been marked by lights since the 16th century when Spanish soldiers built a watchtower. The present day St. Augustine Lighthouse, built in 1874 on the north end of Anastasia Island, offers a panoramic view of the town, harbor, inlet, fort, rivers, and shoreline from its 165 foot tower. There is no better vantage point from which to contemplate the grand mosaic of people, land and water that have developed here over thousands of years. Other key locations are the seaward rampart of the Castillo de San Marcos, where you can see how the artillery in the fort protected the inlet and the harbor. The inlet, with its dangerous currents and shoals is best seen from the north side at Vilano Beach, which is now reached by a high rise bridge over North River that also affords a wonderful view of the coastal geography.