Fleetwood Motor Home and RV Park – Jacksonville, FL – August 15-21, 2016

Monday morning we were on the road by 10:30, in 91° heat. Before we left we had to use the dump station in the park, and noticed that the raccoons had had a party on the back of our camper, and on the roof. Talk about dirty! Their paw prints were everywhere! We did hear some noises outside the night before, but we’d become so accustomed to hearing squirrels dancing on our roof we didn’t really pay much attention. Oh, boy...what a mess! The photo we took doesn't show the mess very well, but believe me...

Our drive was just 130 miles, south to Jacksonville, FL. We arrived to our destination, Fleetwood Mobile and RV Park, at 1 p.m. Temp: 95°. Whew! (Whose idea was it to travel through the east and southeast U.S during the summer…?) We had dinner at Applebee's that evening; they have a Monday burger special that we took advantage of.

Fleetwood is an older, but well maintained in-town park. The sites are rather narrow, there are some shade trees, and the pads are concrete Ours is a pull-through. There’s full hook-ups with cable and a strong WiFi—yea! There is a small club house, as well as a large laundry facility. (The parrot belongs to another park guest. His name is Little Bit.)

Tuesday we kicked back and figured out what we wanted to do with the remainder of the week. We did venture out for a few groceries, and an oil change in the big black truck. We also got long-overdue haircuts. Yea!

Wednesday morning after breakfast we headed south to St Augustine, to explore this historic city

Even though Columbus found a large land mass, that would be America, on his first voyage across the big water, his second voyage would bring along his first mate: Don Juan Ponce de Leon, who ultimately became the Governor of Puerto Rico. 

Later, Ponce de Leon would travel north from Puerto Rico in search of gold and a spring that brings eternal youth. Little is known of this journey, but we do know his navigator put them right between present day Ponte Vedra and St. Augustine. The next day he stepped onto land and named it “La Florida” before continuing his exploration for treasure. Although he never discovered the Fountain of Youth or gold, he discovered the Gulf Stream that could shorten the voyage from the New World to Spain by as much as 3 weeks.

The King of Spain had decided that Florida was uninhabitable, after many attempts to do just that. However, a group of French Protestants, called Huguenots, did succeed in establishing Ft. Caroline in Jacksonville, which infuriated the King. He subsequently sent Don Pedro Menendez, one of his best admirals, to rid this new land of the Huguenots, establish a lasting settlement, and bring the Catholic faith to the natives.

Pedro Menendez landed with his army on September 8, 1565 and after holding Mass, he began to accomplish his goals. While he marched his men north toward Fort Caroline to attack the French, the French were sailing south to attack the Spanish. A terrible storm scattered the French leaving 250 shipwrecked survivors clinging to the settlement where Fort Matanzas now stands, just east of St. Augustine on Anastasia Island. Pedro Menendez and his army easily took Fort Caroline, returned to St. Augustine, and continued searching for the surviving French.

The French by this time were exhausted and hungry, and St. Augustine, being a poor settlement, didn’t have provisions to care for 250 prisoners. The Protestant survivors, unwilling to convert to Catholicism, were killed and their bodies dumped into the bay, what became known as Matanzas, meaning slaughter or killing place.

Pedro Menendez subsequently became Florida’s first governor.

The Gulf Stream made St. Augustine a valuable settlement, as it would become the last stop treasure laden ships would make before crossing the ocean. As a result, St. Augustine would be attacked many, many times over the next 150 years. First, it was attacked in 1586 by privateer Sir Frances Drake, who burned it to the ground. Then, in 1668 it was attacked again by pirate Robert Searles, who killed 60 settlers. This prompted the Queen of Spain to demand that a stone fort be constructed to better defend the city. The fort, Castillo de San Marcos, was completed in 1695, and only 7 years later would be attacked again, this time by Governor James Moore from Carolina. His 50-day siege resulted in the city being burned to the ground, but he was unable to take the Castillo. In 1740, General James Oglethorpe (we mentioned him in last week’s blog) attacked St. Augustine, but he too was unable to take the Castillo and retreated after burning the south end of town.

The British finally claimed St. Augustine in 1763, in the Treaty of Paris, in exchange for the return of Havana to the Spanish. Florida remained loyal to the crown during the Revolutionary War, but a second Treaty of Paris returned Florida to the Spanish in 1784. Following this, in 1821 Florida was given to the United States in a peaceful transfer of power, making it the 27^th state in 1845.

Henry Flagler arrived to St. Augustine in 1885, changing it forever. Seeing the potential for a great resort town, that year he began construction on what he envisioned would be the grandest hotel in America. 

The Ponce de Leon Hotel opened in 1888, and St. Augustine became a tourist hot spot. He also built the Grace United Methodist Church in return for land so he could build the Hotel Alcazar, which featured spas, tennis courts, a bowling alley, and the world’s largest indoor swimming pool at that time. This money man then purchased the Casa Monica Hotel and renamed it the Hotel Cordova. He donated land to the Baptists so they could build the Ancient City Baptist Church; he donated money to the Catholics after a huge fire in 1887 damaged their church, so they could remodel what was left. He also built the Memorial Presbyterian Church, which today holds his tomb, that of his 1st wife, and his daughter who is entombed with her day-old daughter in her arms. (His 2^nd wife remarried and is buried in New York.) He purchased small, worn railroads that led to St. Augustine, allowing people to board the railroad in New York and arrive in St. Augustine without having to change trains, and he extended the railroad to Key West, a feat most thought impossible. 

Today, St. Augustine is a vibrant city, continually celebrating and promoting its history. In 1965, St. Augustine celebrated the quadricentennial of its founding. The city has since assumed control of more than 36 buildings that had been reconstructed or restored to their historical appearance, as well as other historic properties. 

We had visited St. Augustine years ago, so it was good to see it again. We decided to take advantage of one of the many tours through the city aboard The Old Town Trolley. We boarded the trolley at the visitor center at the north end of town, for our first day in St. Augustine, just to decide what we wanted to see and where we wanted to spend our time. The visitor center was built in 1938; the exterior is made entirely of coquina.  (Bear in mind that even though there is a nice breeze coming off the water, the temperature is still in the high 90s with a heat index of 3 digits. Ugh!) 

Our trolley ride took us through all of St. Augustine, passing over 23 points of interest; they shared historical information on all. We had a job ahead of us to decide what we really wanted to see! The ride took us past these interesting sites that we probably won’t come back to.

Because we joined the trolley ride at its 3 stop, we had to change trolleys at its depot before continuing on the ride. Among other historic buildings at that site, we saw the old St. John’s County Jail, which was financed by Henry Flagler (so he could control its look and location), and used from 1891-1953, when a new jail was built. The company that built this jail also built Alcatraz in San Francisco Bay. This jail was built in 1891.

The Old Senator is touted as St. Augustine’s oldest living “citizen.” It’s a live oak tree that’s 13’ around and more than 600 years old. It was here for the early residents of the area, the Timucuan Indians, Juan de Leon, Pedro Menendez de Aviles, Henry Flagler, and Dr. Martin Luther King—and us! It also has a palm tree growing from its center. Imagine! 

After our ride aboard the trolley, we stopped off at the Castillo de San Marco, probably the most popular attraction in St. Augustine. Prior to the construction of the Castillo, St. Augustine was guarded by a series of 9 wooden forts, proving very inadequate for the task. Construction of the new fort, built entirely of blocks of coquina, a material naturally formed in the ocean from limestone and fossilized shells. When first quarried, it’s very soft, and is left to dry for 1-3 years so it can be used in building. But, when it is used, heavy cannon balls would sink into the coquina instead of breaking or fracturing the structure. Over 400,000 conquina blocks were used in its construction. These blocks were quarried across the bay on Anastasia Island.

Began in 1672, the fort was completed 23 years later in 1695 at a cost of between $30-35 million by today’s standards.  The fort has never been taken by force, and is the oldest “masonry” fort in the U.S. 

Originally armed with 6- and 18-pounders, the Castillo de San Marcos is still home to one of the finest displays of colonial cannon in the U.S. 

By the time we were through there, it was way past time for lunch, so we opted for "linner," and headed to St. George Street to see what we could find. St. George Street is a pedestrian walkway; no motorized vehicles allowed. We settled on the Bull & Crown Publick House, for a club sandwich and house salad. We decided to split both, and oh, my goodness! The sandwich was HUGE, served on 3 thick slices of toasted wheat bread; and the salad was huge, as well! But, boy, were they good! Good thing we split them. That along with along with a couple of draft Yuengling's helped revive us.

We then walked north on St. George Street, toward the City Gate and Huguenot Cemetery. When the Spanish walled the city in the 1700s this gate was the only way in and out of the city on the north side. The gate was locked every night at dusk and wasn’t opened until morning. (Guess you either made it home before the gate closed, or had to figure out where you were going to sleep that night!) The original gate, built in 1808 was constructed of palm logs, and the pillars are made of coquina. In 1908 the city decided to tear the gate down, calling it an “eyesore,” but the Daughters of the American Revolution protested, parking themselves in front of the gate in funeral clothes, serving tea and cakes to all who passed by, effectively saving the gate. 

The Huguenot Cemetery was established for all non-Catholics (Catholics were buried in nearby Tolomato Cemetery). As a result of the yellow fever epidemic that swept through the city in 1821, at least 1/3 of the population died. Although there are very few headstones in the Huguenot cemetery, some of the graves contain as many as 25 bodies. 

Time was growing late so we headed back to the visitor center, where we had parked. We came upon this Spanish Trail marker. The coquina ball marker was erected in 1928 as the Zero Milestone marking the eastern end of the Old Spanish Trail, the first transcontinental road from St. Augustine to San Deigo, CA. There is also a fountain presented as a gift to St. Augustine from Aviles, Spain, their sister city.

Thursday we took it easy. I did laundry, and Dick caught up on some computer work. I did do the wifely thing, however, and made pancakes with bacon and fresh fruit for breakfast. Yum!

Fruday we got an early start as we headed back to St. Augustine, about 45 minutes south of our park.

We boarded the trolley again (our ticket was good for 3-days), getting off at stop #9, at the Flagler Memorial Presbyterian Church. We arrived a bit too early for the doors opening for tours (they opened at 11 a.m.) so we walked across the street to Flagler College. What a beautiful campus! However, Flagler College wasn’t always a college. When it was built in 1888 it was the Ponce de Leon Hotel—the most magnificent hotel in the south!

 

Built by millionaire and Standard Oil co-founder, Henry Flagler, the hotel, completed in 1888, was the first of its kind constructed entirely of poured concrete using coquina as aggregate. And, thanks to Flagler’s friend Thomas Edison, it was wired for electricity. We thought this was funny: Flagler had to hire staff to turn power on and off for his guests, because fearing electric shock they were too afraid to turn the switches on and off themselves. Ha!

In 1964 more than 100 students from all-black Richard J. Murray High School in St. Augustine marched to downtown St. Augustine for a sit-in at the elegant dining room of the hotel. It was the first mass sit-in of the civil rights movement in St. Augustine. This, as well as other sit-ins in the area, contributed to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Then, during WWII, the hotel was used as a Coast Guard Training Center. From 1942-1945 thousands of coast guard recruits received their “boot” and advanced training at the hotel—probably one of the most unusual training stations of WWII!

In 1968 the hotel became the centerpiece of the newly established Flagler College. Embarking on an ambitious campaign to restore the hotel and other Flagler-era campus buildings, the college celebrated the centennial of the hotel in 1988. As an aside, to be a guest at the hotel in its heyday, you needed to commit to staying for the “entire season,” December through April, for a cost in today’s money of $350,000! Today, its home to college students, at a cost of $27,620 per year, for tuition, room and board. 

The stained glass windows in the dining area of the college are Tiffany glass and there are 79 of them, valued at over 300 million dollars! Wow!

These photos were taken during a walk-about in St. Augustine;  most are on the trolley tour.

The top 2 photos are the City Hall; the bottom 2 are of the Spanish Government House, constructed in 1598.

 The following 5 groups of photos were taken in the oldest city park in the United States.

Then, across the street toward the bay stands Juan Ponce de Leon. Though he stood only 4'11" tall, he made quite a huge impression on the new world!

Clockwise: the oldest drugstore in the U.S., built in 1886; the gates to Aviles Street, the oldest street in the US and known as "street of the royal hospital"; one of the 2 Cararra marble lions gracing the entrance to the Bridge of Lions, leading to Anastasia island (this was the same type of marble used in Michelangelo's David; the Tolomato or Santo Domingo Redoubt, a fortification made of dirt and logs, used for protection and defense against the enemy outside the main defensive line.

St. George Street, a pedestrian walkway through the main historical shopping and eating parts of St Augustine.

These next 2 photo groupings, the oldest wood school house in the U.S.,  the Rodriguez-Avero-Sanchez House, and the Avero House/Shrine are just a few of the historical buildings along St. George Street. It's worth a stroll to see them.

Another stop on the historical tour with a story to tell...

For more history on St. Augustine, check out the following link. It’s fascinating! http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/staugustine1.html

The Flagler Memorial Presbyterian Church was the only one open for tours while we were in St. Augustine. We’re so glad we took advantage of the that! Please add it to your bucket list if you ever visit the area. You won’t be disappointed.

The church was built in 1889 by Henry Flagler, who dedicated it to the honor of his daughter Jennie, who died from complications from childbirth the same year. The fabulous Venetian Renaissance-style architecture is evident throughout the church, and you can tell that no money was spare in its construction.

The door to the left leads into the sanctuary; the arch to the right leads into the courtyard and the church gardens.

The docent shared a few facts with us, about the church. All lighting fixtures and pews are original. The pews are made of imported mahogany, as are the choir screen, doors, pulpit, and “sound amplifier” that hangs above the pulpit. The baptism font is carved from a solid piece of marble. The bronze double-cross chandeliers, as well as the 12 torch-like lights at the end of the pews, originally gas, were electrified in the 1920s. (In one of the sanctuary side rooms hangs one of the original chandeliers that has not been updated.) 

There are 92 stained glass windows in the building, all installed between 1896 and 1902, as it took that long for them to be completed. (We included just 1 in our photo array.) The Apostles Creed is contained in them, reading from left to right around to the south part of the sanctuary. Over the years salt air damaged the stained glass windows, so in 2002 the windows were removed, and repaired at a cost of $748,000. They have been reinstalled and are now covered by protective glass. The project was completed in mid-2005.

The current organ is the 3^rd installed in the church. It is an Aeolian-Skinner pipe organ, which has over 5,000 pipes ranging in size from less than 1/2” to 35’. Wish we could’ve heard it being played! It’s housed above the altar; that’s where the choir sits, too, unseen by the congregants.

The dome rises over 100’ overhead, encompassing several religious symbols: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the crown of thorns, the Trinity, and the Hebrew written letters for God (Yaweh). The Latin cross floor plan, Italian marble floor tiles, pointed arches and Byzantine dome are similar to those in St. Marks Cathedral in Venice, Italy.

There are a few historical items that are interesting, as well, and can be viewed in the history room, adjacent to the sanctuary (see photos).

The mausoleum to the right as you exit the sanctuary to the south, holds the remains of Henry Flagler, his 1st wife, his daughter and her infant daughter. Although there are 4 tombs, only 3 are occupied; the 4^th was set aside for Flagler’s 3^rd wife, but her family’s wishes were honored that she be buried in her family plot in North Carolina. (His 2nd wife remarried after his death, so therefore, she's not included.)

Clockwise: a memorial to Flagler is above the entrance to the mausoleum; his tomb is to the right; the 2 tombs together are of his 1st wife and his daughter who is holding her infant daughter in her arms; the mirror reflects the beautiful stained glass dome above the mausoleum; the schematic identifies the tombs.

There are a few other churches in the near vicinity: The Ancient City Baptist Church, and Grace United Methodist, both which Henry Flagler had his hand in in one way or another, and Trinity Episcopal.

Henry Flagler gave the property, on which the Baptist church stands, to the congregation with the stipulation that they had just 2 years to qualify for his gift by erecting their house of worship at a cost of not under $10,000, debt free. The final cost was $14,345.37, meeting Flagler’s challenge. Flagler also stipulated that at no time could they install a bell in the bell tower since its ring might disturb his family and guests in his nearby residence . That holds true today—there is no bell.

In the late 1800s, Henry Flagler built the Grace United Methodist Church, using the same builders used for the Ponce de Leon Hotel. The church was built at a cost of $85,000.

From there we boarded the trolley again, riding to Ripley’s Believe It or Not! near where we parked.

This Ripley’s is the original, and is found in the historic Warden Castle in St. Augustine. The castle was built in 1887 as a winter home by William G. Warden, a business partner of John D. Rockefeller and Henry Flagler. It’s the unique Moorish Revival architecture that first catches your eye, a wonderful example of the post-Civil War era. It was owned by the Warden family through the 1930s. It was remodeled as a hotel in 1941, and after many unsuccessful attempts by cartoonist Robert Ripley to purchase the facility, the family was finally able to secure the building in 1949, following his death. It opened as a museum of the unusual, bizarre and sometimes macabre artifacts.

We didn’t go into that tourist attraction, but did find a few things outside that caught our attention including the "RV-like" redwood log house..

The day was growing late; the temps were in the high 90s, and we were hot, tired, and sweaty. We headed home to rest and recoup, but not before a quick stop at Walmart to pick up a few items.

Saturday was a day to relax and get caught up on computer and blog stuff. That evening we had dinner with friends whom we hadn’t seen in 26 years. Brad and Nancy lived in Connecticut when we were there, and are now living in the Jacksonville area. (His dad married us 34.5 years ago in Connecticut.) What fun! We talked, laughed, relived memories, and shared stories for 4 hours. Nancy served lovely baked salmon, vegies, salad, and rice pilaf for dinner, and fresh fruit with sherbet for dessert. YUM-YUM! What a wonderful evening to get caught up on each others' lives. Thanks, guys! We hope to not let another 26 years go by before we meet up again!

Sunday was another hot, Hot, HOT day, with temperatures in the high 90s, and humidity almost as high. We kicked back and enjoyed watching yet another day of the Olympics. So fun to watch. 

Monday we pack up and drive 230 miles to our next destination, Coastline RV Resort in Eastpoint, FL, located between Panama City and Tallahassee on the Gulf of Mexico. Stay tuned for another report next week on a fun-filled week!

Until then, stay safe, stay well.

Hugs,

RJ and Gail