Frequently Asked Questions

What is Colonial St. Augustine Foundation?

Colonial St. Augustine Foundation is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to engage in and encourage public and private participation in preserving, restoring, and reconstructing the historic colonial resources within the City of St. Augustine. St. Augustine is historically significant chiefly because of its colonial heritage. For over two centuries, the colonial city (1565-1821) served as the capital of the Spanish empire in this part of the continent and for much of that time constituted virtually the only population center in the vast southern region stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Mississippi River. The enormity of St. Augustine's contributions to the architectural and cultural heritage of America can hardly be weighed.

What do those historic resources include?

St. Augustine possesses the largest concentration of buildings, monuments,and archaeological materials in the United States that testify to the contributions of Spain and Spanish-speaking people to the historical and cultural development of the United States. St. Augustine's (and Florida's) colonial era extended from 1565 to 1821. For all but twenty-one years of that time (1763-1784), the city was governed by Spain. The twenty-two block town plan, drawn by the Spanish governor in the 1590s, remains the prevailing grid pattern for the central part of the modern city. Within it are thirty-six buildings and several monuments that originated during the colonial period. A rich and abundant archaeological resource that contains colonial building foundations and cultural materials left over from two-and-a-half centuries of colonial occupation lies close beneath the city's surface.

Why do you say that colonial St. Augustine is in jeopardy?

The early years of the twenty-first century are witnessing the most intensive period of change within St. Augustine and St. Johns County in over a century. The historic city continues to attract visitors in growing numbers, adding pressure for new developments within the colonial town. Such change challenges the integrity, if not the survival, of many historic resources, even colonial buildings and structures.

What can the city government do about that?

The challenges to preserving one of the largest and most significant colonial era resources in the nation exceed the meager financial means of a city as small as St. Augustine. With only 12,000 inhabitants, St. Augustine's financial resources are limited.

Where does the Foundation fit into all of this?

Colonial St. Augustine Foundation, incorporated in 2002, has picked up the reins of a decades-long program to preserve and restore appropriate parts of the colonial city. That program, known locally as "The Restoration," began in 1936 upon the recommendation of a national committee of citizens, public officials and scholars. From 1959 to 1997, the State of Florida administered the Restoration program. During that time, The Restoration's efforts focused on the northern section of the colonial presidio of St. Augustine, adjacent to the Castillo de San Marcos. Upon the state's withdrawal in 1997, the City of St. Augustine took over responsibility for the program. Colonial St. Augustine Foundation was formed to mobilize the support of private citizens to assist the City in preserving and interpreting for its visitors St. Augustine's colonial legacy.

What are the Foundation's plans?

The Foundation has developed a mission statement that explains its objectives. They prominently include promoting national public understanding of St. Augustine's historical significance, acquiring -- when the situation call for such action -- threatened colonial buildings, and pursuing the Restoration program as it was outlined in plans that date back to 1936.

What is the Foundation's initial project?

As its first step, Colonial St. Augustine Foundation undertook to support St. Augustine's most significant historic monument, the Castillo de San Marcos. In concert with the National Park Service and the City of St. Augustine, the Foundation proposes to develop an educational and orientation center for the Castillo.

What is important about that project?

The Castillo de San Marcos is the oldest masonry fort and the best preserved example of Spanish colonial fortification in the continental United States. Begun in 1672 and substantially completed by 1695, the Castillo subsequently enabled the Spanish to withstand two attempts by the English to drive them from St. Augustine and Florida. Since 1821, when the United States took possession of Spain's Florida colonies, the Castillo has been the central historical attraction within St. Augustine. In the past half century, over a half million visitors have crossed its drawbridge each year.

Unfortunately, visitors to the Castillo de San Marcos enter the site coldly unprepared, leaving all but the very well educated unable either to understand its place in history or fully enjoy the experience. The lessons about the past that this historic site, like any other great piece of history, ought to impart are lost upon most. No illustrations, no film, no lectures of any kind prepare the visitor. Especially disadvantaged by the lack of an orientation center are school children, some 75,000 of whom arrive annually on sponsored visits, and the disabled, who cannot gain access to the terreplain or upper level of the Castillo because its features prohibit construction of access-ways for them.

Why doesn't the National Park Service pay for this project?

The Castillo itself and the grounds surrounding it contain no space upon which to erect a center for orienting visitors. For that purpose, the City and the Foundation selected two obvious, well-situated and privately owned parcels adjacent to both the Castillo and the interpretive museum that is administered by the City. The City has already purchased one of those sites. The Foundation has secured from the owner of another an agreement for sale. The City has also undertaken to secure the cooperation of the State of Florida, the owner of the surrounding lots, in this project.

Who else is involved in this project?

This effort to develop a visitor's center for the Castillo is accordingly a partnership in every sense, for it will involve federal, state and municipal governments along with the private sector, represented by the Foundation and the people who contribute to it. All will share in the cost of the center's development. The State of Florida and the City of St. Augustine will contribute land to the project; the Foundation and the Federal Government will contribute the monies for its construction. Congressman John Mica has introduced into the Congress a bill that will authorize an expenditure of $4 million federal dollars. That sum must be matched locally. The City will bear the cost of managing the facility in future years, a not inconsiderable sum given the many millions of people who will enter in that time. The National Park Service will contribute staffing to conduct visitor orientation.

How does this project relate to restoration?

The siting and construction of the center will contribute to the continuing restoration program through the removal of intrusive buildings and their replacement with buildings that in scale and appearance harmonize with the Restoration Area that was created under the auspices of the State of Florida.

What can an individual do to help?

The Foundation must raise $4 million to match the federal appropriation. Every contribution, small or large, is meaningful. Volunteers willing to staff Colonial St. Augustine Foundation's administrative and fundraising office are also welcome.

For further information on how to volunteer with Colonial St. Augustine Foundation, please call 904.825.2158 or click on "Contact Us".