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St. Augustine is a city in St. Johns County, Florida, in the United States.
It lies in a region of Florida known as The First Coast, which extends from
Amelia Island in the north south to Jacksonville, St. Augustine and Palm Coast.
According to the 2000 census, the city population was 11,592; in 2004, the
population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau was 12,157. It is the county seat
of St. Johns CountyGR6. It is the oldest continuously occupied
European-established city in the United States.
Florida was a United States territory until 1845 when it became a U.S. state. In
1861, the American Civil War began and Florida seceded from the Union and joined
the Confederacy. Days before Florida seceded, state troops took the fort at St.
Augustine from a small Union garrison (January 7, 1861). However, federal troops
loyal to the United States Government quickly reoccupied the city (March 11,
1862) and remained in control throughout the four-year-long war. In 1865,
Florida rejoined the United States.
Spanish Colonial era buildings still existing in the city include the fortress
Castillo de San Marcos. The fortress successfully repelled the British attacks
of the 18th century, was occupied by Union troops during the American Civil War,
and later served as a prison for the Native American leader Osceola. It is now
the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument.
In the late 19th century the railroad came to town, and led by northeastern
industrialist Henry Flagler, St. Augustine became a winter resort for the very
wealthy. A number of mansions and palatial grand hotels of this era still exist,
some converted to other use, such as housing parts of Flagler College and
museums. Flagler went on to develop much more of Florida's east coast, including
his Florida East Coast Railway which eventually reached Key West in 1912.
The city is a popular tourist attraction, for the rich Spanish Colonial Revival
Style architectural heritage as well as elite 19th century architecture. In 1938
the theme park Marineland opened just south of St. Augustine, becoming one of
Florida's first themed parks and setting the stage for the development of this
industry in the following decades.