In 1966 my father was transferred to Atlanta, Georgia. I was 7 years old at the time. While we lived down there we would take driving vacations to Florida. We went to St. Augustine a few times. I have to say, I really liked the place. Even though it was, and still is, a tourist trap, there’s something about it I really like. I remember visiting the alligator farms, the Old Jail and the Fountain of Youth. But for me the biggest attraction (literally and figuratively) was the fort there, the Castillo de San Marcos. I enjoyed walking along the walls and looking out over the water and the land there. As a young boy, it was very easy to imagine being a Spanish soldier besieged in the fort by the English.
It actually successfully withstood 2 sieges by the English.
While going to school in Atlanta we had a course in Georgia
history, and that’s where I learned about James Oglethorpe and the War of
Jenkins’ Ear. Oglethorpe led one of the sieges of the Castillo, which
failed. He later redeemed himself by
turning back a Spanish invasion of Georgia at St. Simons Island.
I was fortunate to visit St. Simons and view
the remnants of Fort Frederica, pictured here.
In addition to the Castillo, the Spanish also built a
smaller fort on the Matanzas river which leads to St. Augustine. The fort was designed to protect the
inlet. Despite many trips as a boy to
Florida, I never saw Fort Matanzas.
Finally, on a trip to Florida with Karen after we were married, we drove
down the east coast of Florida and I saw it.
Alas, it’s only accessible by boat, and there was a thunderstorm in
progress so I wasn’t able to get out there.
Maybe some other time!!!
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