From Fort Mose To The Civil Rights Movement: Tracing Black History In St. Augustine

Look past the Spanish fort, ornate Moorish buildings and main plaza to discover Black history in St. Augustine, Florida. More than 450 years ago, the first Africans in North America helped build the ‘Ancient City,’ a Spanish colony that predates the founding of the United States. In addition to impressive architecture, the stories of courage, resilience and perseverance are steppingstones on a St. Augustine Black History Tour.

We explore the region’s rich history chronologically rather than geographically. Once you’ve learned about each site, you can map out the walk from the compact historic area.

Florida Traces Its Black History To Ponce De León

Our Black History Tour, like Florida’s earliest European settlement, dates back to 1513. That’s when the Spanish Crown assigned Ponce de León, Christopher Columbus’ former navigator, to expand routes for their treasure ships in the Americas.

Then the governor of Puerto Rico, Ponce de León and his experienced crew discovered what they thought was an island. They named it la Florida after the season, Pascua Florida, the Easter holiday.

León also discovered the Gulf Stream current which cut travel time by sea to Spain by several weeks.

1.    St. Augustine’s Black History Begins At The Fountain Of Youth

However, he didn’t find gold or the alleged fountain of youth that Caribbean islanders spoke about. Ponce de León returned to la Florida in 1521 with, historians believe, 13 African sailors to claim the first Spanish colony.

Let’s call the present-day Fountain of Youth Archeological Park St. Augustine’s earliest African history site. The 15-acre garden next to the Intracoastal Waterway your grandparents may recall is a popular tourist spot. It offers some history exhibits, the first Christian burial sites of Native Americans dating to 1565, the remains of the Spanish Fort St. Johns of the Pines, and flocks of roaming peacocks.

Grab a paper cup so you can drink from their underground spring and leave more refreshed than when you arrived.

2.   Mission Nombre De Dios Is Part Of St. Augustine’s Black History

In 1565, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés led 700 Spanish soldiers and settlers, including 50 free and enslaved Africans, to Florida. The Catholic priests who sailed with them named this protected bit of coastline after St. Augustine, the saint honored on the day they sighted land. Their Thanksgiving Mass was held at what became America’s oldest Marian shrine, later known as Mission Nombre de Dios.

Another stop on the St. Augustine Black History trail, it’s a popular tourist attraction known for the beauty and tranquility of the grounds.

3.   Menéndez Crew Includes First St. Augustine African Residents

Historians note that the 16th-century Spanish conquistadors, devoutly Catholic, gave their enslaved workers opportunities to become equal in the eyes of God. In Spain, the enslaved were typically prisoners of war of any race or ethnicity who were paid a salary and allowed personal freedoms such as marriage.

Menéndez used his multi-ethnic crew to expand the colony. They cleared the land to plant crops, built fortifications and a church. The growing St. Augustine was soon a melting pot of Europeans, Africans and Timicua Indians who’d converted to Catholicism. There is an excellent display about this period of Florida history at the Fort Mose Visitors Center (stop  #9).

4.   Spain Issues Call Of Freedom To The Enslaved

In 1619, the British brought the first slave ships from Africa to Jamestown, Virginia. Slavery became the backbone of their colonies’ economy. The Spanish and the Catholic Church did not approve.

The National Park Service claims October, 1687 as the date the first escaped slaves from the British colony of Carolina arrived in St. Augustine.

They were put to work building the colony’s ninth fortification, the Castillo de San Marcos. It was the colony’s first all-stone fort, made of the local shellrock called coquina and covered in plaster. When a British official demanded the slaves’ return the following year, the Spanish Governor Diego de Quiroga refused.

Fearing the British would expand into Florida, in 1693, the Spanish king granted asylum to freedom seekers who would convert to Catholicism, join the Spanish militia and pledge their allegiance to Spain.

Carlos II proclaimed: I am “giving liberty to all… the men as well as the women… so that by their example and by my liberality others will do the same.” King Carlos II’s proclamation was likely read throughout the colony.

5.   Castillo de San Marcos, One Of The Top Black History Sites In St. Augustine

By 1695, Castillo de San Marcos, our next stop on the St. Augustine Black History tour, was complete. Allow a half day to tour this National Park Service site, where rangers lead guided tours. Descend from the entryway to see the old Guard Rooms and museum exhibits that chronicle St. Augustine’s mixed Spanish, Native American and African heritage.

Visit the ramparts to watch the cannons firing and understand how this fort protected the fleet of Spanish treasure ships and coastline.

The thick walls of Castillo de San Marcos tell the story of the Africans who helped build them as well as the bravery of escaped slaves who fought to protect them. Word about a new and better life in St. Augustine spread north.

6.   Second Spanish Proclamation Attracts More Africans To Growing St. Augustine

A follow up royal decree in 1733 guaranteed freedom to runaway slaves after four years of service to the Spanish crown. “Freedom” was a tempting proposition for thousands of enslaved plantation workers.

To protect the colony’s north border and provide safe housing, Governor Manuel de Montiano granted land to the new arrivals. They built Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose, on a small island in the marsh. It was known as Fort Mose (pronounced mo-ZAY). Established in 1738, it is the first legally sanctioned settlement of freedom seekers and other Africans in the Americas. 

Fort Mose, a don’t miss stop on your St. Augustine Black History Tour is also considered the earliest stop on the Underground Railroad.

7.   Experience Black Heritage at Fort Mose, St. Augustine

In the 1700s, the dangerous journey south to St. Augustine took several months. Historians have found evidence that Native American tribes who encountered freedom seekers assisted them across rivers and through dense jungles. An estimated 100 runaway slaves survived and moved into what is now Fort Mose Historic Park. They formed 38 households of mixed African, Spanish, Timicua and British backgrounds. Francisco Menéndez, a former slave turned highly regarded fighter, led the Fort Mose militia to several victories against the British.

When la Florida was ceded to Britain in 1763, after the Seven Years’ War, Menéndez and many of St. Augustine’s African community relocated to the new Spanish colony of Cuba.

8. Encounter Black History On Fort Mose’s Pathway To Freedom Trails

The 40-acre Fort Mose Park is open daily. Allow a few hours to absorb the story of the Fort Mose settlement and feel its power. Take the free Pathway to Freedom boardwalk for views of the marsh and the original site of the wooden Fort. It’s now far from land in the marshes where bird-watching is a favorite activity.

Another wooded path lined with historic markers explains the history of the Fort. Stop at each to scan the barcode and watch video reenactments of what happened at the site.

9.   Feel Black History Come Alive In St. Augustine At Fort Mose Museum

The Fort Mose Visitors Center charges a $2 admission (free for ages 6 and under) – well worth it for the informative exhibits about the heroic African, Francisco Menéndez, and the fort. Stand on the floor pads in front of several displays to hear voices of reenactors sharing their stories. The Visitors Center has accessibility tools, a wheelchair and can arrange a sign language interpreter on request.

10.   Experience The Power Of Cannons And Militia At Fort Mose

The first Saturday of every month, the Militia Muster fires their muskets in demonstration. From 9am-11:30am, they train young visitors how to use toy wooden muskets. Fort Mose’s busy calendar of reenactments includes events such as Flight to Freedom (February), Founders Day (March), Battle of Bloody Mose (June) and the First Harvest (November.)

11. Fort Mose Concerts Emphasize St. Augustine’s Strong Black Roots

Every February, food trucks and lawn chairs take over the clearing at Fort Mose for the Fort Mose Jazz & Blues Series. The 2025 Fort Mose series included the legendary brass band Tower of Power. Gladys Knight, Mavis Staples, Common and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis have also performed in the historic space.

Grab a vodka with lemonade to enjoy any one of the many live music events on St. Augustine’s busy festival calendar.

12. Walk In The Footsteps Of The Original Black St. Augustinians

A newly reconstructed replica Fort Mose is expected to open in April 2025 after years of fund-raising. Fortunately for visitors, it’s located closer to the park’s entryway than the original.

Step inside and share the split log walls with other freedom seekers.

The bravery and resilience of St. Augustine’s original Black community comes through loud and clear.

13.   Tour Lincolnville: Black History Landmarks In St. Augustine

Between 1800 and 1821, free Blacks in St. Augustine farmed citrus on Spanish land grants between Maria Sanchez Lake, the San Sebastian River and, to the southwest, the bustling downtown St. Augustine. In 1821, when the U.S. purchase of Florida from the Spanish took effect, slavery was reintroduced. Plantation owners moved south, and Florida became the 27th state in 1845.

Plots of citrus groves eventually became the 140-acre zone of Lincolnville, another essential stop on the Black History Trail. Following the Civil War in 1866, “Little Africa” was given to the newly emancipated people of color in St. Augustine.

14.   Stand Where The Emancipation Proclamation Was Read In 1865

One of the neighborhood’s most historic African American landmarks is on the grounds of the boutique hotel, The Collector, a Luxury Inn and Gardens. In 1865, the Emancipation Proclamation was read aloud on the square-block lot whose historic homes have been converted into hotel rooms. Call ahead to inquire about the hotel’s free tours, typically given Tuesday and Thursday morning.

15.   Explore Neighborhoods With App Of Black History In St. Augustine

Walk the neighborhood to understand how Lincolnville survived several eras of Black American history. During the period of enforced segregation, African American residents built out their home in the prevailing Victorian style to make it one of the most attractive and successful neighborhoods. Use the St. Augustine Black History app maps to discover relevant churches, schools and businesses lining the streets.

Around the 1930s, the neighborhood grew to encompass adjacent streets of white residents and became an important part of St. Augustine.

Since the pandemic, locals say the gentrification of Lincolnville has accelerated. Fortunately, much history remains in the historic buildings converted to Airbnb’s, vacation rentals and cafes.

16.   Lincolnville Museum & Cultural Center Highlights St. Augustine Black History

The Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center illuminates the legacy of Africans who originated in West Africa, settled in Spain, or migrated to the area as freedom seekers from the North.

Lincolnville remained a largely Black neighborhood after the Civil War. The Museum charts its growth.

In 1914, local businessman Frank B. Butler opened the Palace Market on Washington Street. As his business grew, he made many contacts and got involved in real estate. He sold land in Lincolnville to other Black residents saying, “Own Your Own Home: Pay Rent to Yourself and Provide for the Future.”

17. Must-See African American Artifacts at Lincolnville Museum

The Lincolnville Museum is housed in the ca. 1925 Excelsior High School. If you’re short on time, study the handsome building itself. It was the first school dedicated to the free education of black teens in the region.

Head inside to admire the piano belonging to Ray Charles, who went to the Florida School for the deaf and blind in St. Augustine. LMCC’s original Woolworth lunch counter, where four teen girls were arrested for sitting in a segregated section, makes this another must-see stop on your tour.

18.   Beach Hop Over To Butler Beach On Anastasia Island

By 1927, Butler was tired of the segregation that prevented his family from using St. Augustine’s beautiful beaches. He bought some coastal shoreline on Anastasia Island between busy St. Augustine Beach and the quieter Crescent Beach. Butler expanded his stake to the Matanzas River and established the blacks-only Butler Beach. It’s now a landmark on local road A1A.

While there, drop into the “Waves of Change” exhibit at the St. Johns County Ocean Pier Park. It marks where Black St. Augustine activists staged “wade-ins” in the surf off white beaches. It’s also the spot for a perfect family day at a Florida beach.

19. ACCORD Civil Rights Museum And Black History Trail In St. Augustine

Tensions persisted with local whites who did not want Black beaches and businesses to spread. Butler, however, constructed a motel, the Seabreeze Kaseno and private homes at his Butler Beach development. Despite racial incidents and the growth of the local Ku Klux Klan, Lincolnville was thriving.

The ACCORD Civil Rights Museum in Lincolnville exhibits documents and videos about local Floridians who fought in the civil rights struggle. Then there was James Brock, owner of the Monson Motor Lodge, who poured acid into his swimming pool to force Black and white activists out of the water. Many say the widely seen photos of his violent act contributed to the passage of the Civil Right Act.

Look out for the 31 ACCORD Historic Markers that outline these events in Lincolnville and other parts of town.

20.   Black Legacy Attracts Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. To St. Augustine

In 1964, St. Augustine was preparing for its 400th anniversary. This gave Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. an opportunity to shine a light on racial discrimination in the country’s oldest city. Local African Americans rented him a cottage at Butler’s Motel on Butler Beach, which was shot up after his arrival.

The night of June 9, 1964, Dr. King was arrested during a human rights protest.

21.   Plaza de la Constitución And Its Monumental Obelisk

In 1813, the 30-foot-tall Monumento a la Constitución was erected at the Plaza to commemorate four foundational values:  Freedom, Democracy, Human Rights and Compassion. To celebrate the city’s 450th anniversary, prominent artists and local schoolchildren were invited to the Obelisk Art 450 Project. They were asked to decorate replicas – ranging from 4 feet to just 8.5 feet tall – to honor those same principles. Rent bikes to visit the one at the Robert B. Hayling Freedom Park, named for a local activist. See how many you can find in the city.

22.   Rev. Andrew Young Crossing Honors Civil Rights History

Rev. Andrew Young, marching with other civil rights activists, was beaten near the central Plaza de la Constitución. Today’s families can walk in his brave brass footsteps on the square, at the Black History Trail stop called Andrew Young Crossing.

23.   St. Augustine’s Famous Old Slave Market

Allow time to explore the large Plaza de la Constitución, a square framed by the historic Governors House and Cathedral. Look for the Old Slave Market, the name given to the open air pavilion where goods, produce and yes, people, were bought and sold. It was a focal point for protests by King and Young.

24.   St. Augustine’s Foot Soldiers Memorial

In 2011, the city of St. Augustine built the bronze Foot Soldiers Memorial on the southeast side of Plaza de la Constitución. Instead of the pain the Old Slave Market pavilion represents, it honors the hundreds of activists who continued the Civil Rights struggle.

And it honors those local and visiting foot soldiers who continue it still.

Plan Your Black Heritage Tour Of St. Augustine With Care

America’s oldest city is a popular tourist destination for Americans of any race and many foreigners. It’s also one of those places most families choose to stop on a classic East Coast Road trip.

There’s a lot of history to absorb – too much most kids would say. Certainly, there’s more than we can describe in a St. Augustine Black History Tour. We suggest you consider everyone’s interests so you can select which of the 24 stops you want to make.  

Spend a minimum of three days for a St. Augustine Black History Tour and a few more to appreciate the city’s other sites, lounge at the beach, and enjoy a boat ride.  The weather is temperate by Florida standards, so go any time you can.

Best Ways To Get Around St. Augustine, Florida

No need to rent a car in St. Augustine. If you stay close to the historic district, you’ll be able to walk almost everywhere on our St. Augustine Black History tour.

Trolley: Alternatively, get oriented on a city tour with the Old Town Trolley. The 90-minute guided tour makes 22 stops. There are departures every 15 minutes so start early to hop on and off at any stop to see more. Or, stay on like we did to orient ourselves, then take several days to explore. 

Boat: Many families enjoy the boat tours that run along the Intracoastal Waterway to highlight coastal attractions. And let’s not ignore the offshore kayak and canoe excursions you can book.

Uber: To reach Fort Mose, take an inexpensive Uber or local taxi. Quick note:  While Ubers are plentiful, it can take 20 minutes for one to arrive, thanks to the tourist traffic in town.

History Making Places To Stay In St. Augustine’s Historic District

When it comes to historic hotels, you will hear mention of Henry Flagler, the railroad magnate who built grand hotels alongside the tracks for his passengers. Only one of his three very luxurious hotels still accepts guests. That’s the former Cordova Hotel, now Casa Monica, a Marriott Autograph Collection hotel. Drop into the ornate lobby or stop by the bar for a look at a few of the original design details. 

Flagler’s real masterpiece was the Hotel Ponce de León built in 1888. Today, it is the main building of Flagler College, and you can take one of the daily tours for a look inside. The showy Spanish Renaissance Revival style, myriad artworks and Tiffany stained-glass windows were part of the design by Carrère & Hastings.

The same architects designed his next project, the Alcazar Hotel and, later, the New York Public Library. Today, the front part of the ornate Alcazar is St. Augustine City Hall and the back part is the Lightner Museum of Art. You can see many original architectural elements in the museum — and dine in the hall that once held the main swimming pool.

We enjoyed The Collector, a Luxury Inn and Gardens in Lincolnville that just received a Michelin Key award for its “excellence in architecture, interior design, quality and consistency of service, overall personality and character, value for the price” and other factors. (See our video here.) Some of its historic homes have several double rooms, some are made into suites with kitchenettes. All have access to a hot breakfast, fire pit, outdoor pool, workout room and popular bar. Only guests ages 18 and older are welcome.

The New St. Augustine Suits Families

To accommodate the crowds, there are hundreds of other St. Augustine hotels, motels and places to stay in all price points. And, for a town this size, there is a surprising number of very good restaurants.

Families enjoy the Hilton St. Augustine Historic Bayfront, a two-story hotel designed in the Spanish Colonial style. Check out the brightly tiled reception area and fireplace. This Hilton overlooks Matanzas Bay, is convenient to the historic downtown and has a large outdoor pool and hot tub.

The red tile roof and towers of the Best Western Historical Inn also evoke the bygone St. Augustine. Plus, it’s a good budget option only 1.5 miles from the Castillo. Amenities include free continental breakfast, an outdoor pool and hot tub, large family rooms with sofabeds, a fridge and coffeemaker in each room and a welcome sign for pets.  

Go Now Because St. Augustine Never Grows Old

In 2024, plans to build Florida’s Museum of Black History in St. Augustine were announced. While that dream is still in the early planning stages, the opening of the replica Fort Mose is set for April 2025. Now is the perfect time to take a Black History Tour of St. Augustine.

While the African legacy may seem like a narrow view of America’s oldest city, it’s one more way to examine our past and inform our future.

After all, everywhere you turn in St. Augustine, there’s a story of what was there before.