St. Augustine, which is situated on the northeastern coast of Florida, is considered the oldest European tapered city in the United States.
St. Augustine was founded in 1565 by the Spanish explorer, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés; the colony was initially set up as a military fort and the Roman Catholic mission. It was strategically located, making it a stronghold of the Spanish while they tried to protect their territories in the New World from other colonial masters, especially the French and the British.
History has it that the city of St. Augustine has come under the dominion of so many empires: the Spanish, the British, and again the Spanish, then finally the United States in 1821. There is a rather mix of Spanish and Dutch colonial architecture here, but there are also the buildings of British and early American colonial architecture styles.
Some of the most well-known structures in St. Augustine include the Castillo de San Marcos; this is an espaniol construction that can be dated back into the late 17th century; it served the purpose of a fortress to guard the city from pirates and other foreign incursions. The Castillo was built from coquina, a soft limestone that was made from fragments of shells, and this has been able to stand several sieges, and it has a very good state of preservation.
St Augustine for instance has a cobble stone street whereby individuals visiting this place can be able to have a view of some of the oldest buildings in the region. Clearly defined attractions it provides are the Oldest Wooden Schoolhouse which gives information about colonials beginnings to school and Flagler College, it was once the Ponce de Leon Hotel that was once an ostentatious world class structure established by Henry Flagler. The city leaves colonial history behind; it is also relevant throughout the Civil Rights Movement where St. Augustine is a focus of the integration fight with Martin Luther King Jr visiting the city in the 1960s.
Thus, history enthusiasts will experience tremendous interest in having a tour in St. Augustine, as the place is full of historical events and remarkable architecture. It is a vibrant historical site that encapsulates the earliest encounters between Europeans and the indigenous people, empire building, and the part played by the city in the making of the United States of America.
Mark