St. Francis Barracks
Encyclopedia
St. Francis Barracks is a historic structure constructed of coquina
stone located on Marine Street in St. Augustine, Florida
named in honor of St. Francis of Assisi. The barracks were constructed between 1724 - 1755 by monks of the Order of St. Francis to replace a series of previous wooden buildings which were destroyed by the ravages of the Florida sub-tropical climate and by fire, both accidental and intentional when the city was razed by the English in 1702.
The barracks were turned into a military structure by the British in 1763 after Florida became a British territory by treaty after the French and Indian War
. The Franciscan monks vacated the city along with the majority of majority of the Spanish citizens of St. Augustine.
The name St. Francis Barracks also came to be applied to the military reservation which was developed around the barracks after it's conversion for military purposes. Included in this military reservation on the shore of the Matanzas River
are several historic structures including The King's Bakery
, believed to be the only extant structure in St. Augustine constructed entirely within the British period of occupation.
Today the St. Francis Barracks serves as the Florida State Arsenal, headquarters for the Florida National Guard
. A portion of the area is the site of St. Augustine National Cemetery
.
founded St. Augustine for the Spanish Crown, Jesuit priests were among the initial colonists to provide for the spiritual needs of the settlers and to help convert the native Timucua
Indians to Christianity. In the 1570s the Jesuits were replaced by monks of the Order of St. Francis who were allocated land in 1588 at the southern end of the city for their monastery
and church, Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion (Our Lady of the Conception).
The original structures on the site were built of logs and palm thatch roofs. Throughout the years a succession of buildings were constructed as replacements. The structures were susceptible to rotting in the humid sub-tropical climate and were highly flammable. In 1702 all the structures in St. Augustine with the exception of the Castillo de San Marcos
were burned to the ground in a raid led by English pirate Robert Searles. After this it was decided to rebuild the monastery with the same durable coquina used in the construction of the fort. Construction finally began in 1735 using coquina stone quarried at the King's Quarry located on Anastasia Island
across Matanzas Bay
from St. Augustine.
The Franciscan monks lived at the monastery until the British took possession of Florida in exchange for occupied Havana
which they seized from the Spanish in the French and Indian War, in which Spain was an ally of the French.
Almost the entire population of Catholic St. Augustine left the city upon the British taking control in 1763 including the Franciscan monks and many of their Native American converts. The British, a large majority of whom were Protestant converted the monks former living quarters into military barracks for the troops stationed at the newly christened Fort St. Marks, the anglicized version of the Castillo de San Marco.
During the British Period of occupation the military constructed an additional wooden barracks behind the coquina stone, St. Francis Barracks. They also constructed The King's Bakery, a coquina stone structure used for baking the bread for the city's garrison. This structure which has been used as a garage by the Florida National Guard since 1930 is located perpendicular to the barracks across Marine Street. It is believed to be the only structure surviving in St. Augustine built entirely during the British Period (1763–1784).
After signing the Treaty of Paris
, the British who conceded defeat in the American Revolution
agreed to relinquish control of the Florida Territory
, restoring Spain's possession of the land. Upon returning the Spanish military continued to use the St. Francis Barracks, as a military installation and troop barracks. During this period known as the Second Spanish Period (1763–1821) the wooden barracks built by the British were torn down.
St. Francis Barracks came under control of the United States Army
when the United States gained possession of Florida in 1821. The Barracks would remain an active U.S. Army installation until it was de-activated in 1900, with the exception of one year between 1861-1862 when it, like the rest of St. Augustine was under control of the Confederate States of America
.
In 1828 a portion of the southern end of the St. Francis Barracks military reservation was set aside as a post cemetery. In 1842 the U.S. soldiers who perished in the 1835 Dade Massacre
were re-interred here under 3 coquina pyramid shaped monument along with over 1,300 other U.S. casualties of the Second Seminole War
. This cemetery would later be designated St. Augustine National Cemetery
.
At the start of the American Civil War
there was only one ordnance sergeant on duty, Sgt. Henry Douglas who was responsible not only for the Barracks but for Fort Marion as well (the American name for the Castillo de San Marcos). On January 7, 1861 before Florida's formal secession from the Union, members of a newly formed local militia unit named the St. Augustine Blues, went to the St. Francis Barracks to demand the keys to the fort. The U.S. sergeant complied with the stipulation he receive a receipt for the fort, which he was given.
Douglas would later report that; “All military stores at this place were seized this morning by order of the governor of the State of FL. A company of volunteer soldiers marched to the barracks and took possession of me, and demanded peaceable possession of the keys of the fort and magazine.”
The U.S. Army deactivated the fort in 1900 and leased it to the Florida State Troops, forerunner of the Florida National Guard in 1907. It was formally given to the State of Florida for use as the State Arsenal in 1921 by an act of Congress. After receiving use of the Barracks via lease in 1907 the buildings were not occupied at that time. In 1915 the St. Francis Barracks were gutted in a fire however the original coquina stone walls remained standing. The building was rebuilt in 1922 using the original walls.
Coquina
Coquina is a sedimentary rock that is composed either wholly or almost entirely of the transported, abraded, and mechanically sorted fragments of the shells of either molluscs, trilobites, brachiopods, or other invertebrates. For a sediment to be considered to be a coquina, the average size of the...
stone located on Marine Street in St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine is a city in the northeast section of Florida and the county seat of St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Founded in 1565 by Spanish explorer and admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, it is the oldest continuously occupied European-established city and port in the continental United...
named in honor of St. Francis of Assisi. The barracks were constructed between 1724 - 1755 by monks of the Order of St. Francis to replace a series of previous wooden buildings which were destroyed by the ravages of the Florida sub-tropical climate and by fire, both accidental and intentional when the city was razed by the English in 1702.
The barracks were turned into a military structure by the British in 1763 after Florida became a British territory by treaty after the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...
. The Franciscan monks vacated the city along with the majority of majority of the Spanish citizens of St. Augustine.
The name St. Francis Barracks also came to be applied to the military reservation which was developed around the barracks after it's conversion for military purposes. Included in this military reservation on the shore of the Matanzas River
Matanzas River
Matanzas River is a body of water located in St. Johns and Flagler counties in Florida. It is a narrow saltwater bar-bounded estuary sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by Anastasia Island....
are several historic structures including The King's Bakery
The King's Bakery
The King's Bakery is a coquina stone structure in St. Augustine, Florida built during the British colonial period in Florida . The building located on Marine Street, with the rear facing Matanzas Bay, was constructed to supply bread to the British troops quartered across the street at the St...
, believed to be the only extant structure in St. Augustine constructed entirely within the British period of occupation.
Today the St. Francis Barracks serves as the Florida State Arsenal, headquarters for the Florida National Guard
Florida National Guard
The Florida National Guard is the National Guard force of the U.S. state of Florida. It comprises the Florida Army National Guard and the Florida Air National Guard.The United States Constitution charges the National Guard with dual federal and state missions...
. A portion of the area is the site of St. Augustine National Cemetery
St. Augustine National Cemetery
St. Augustine National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located in the city of St. Augustine in St. Johns County, Florida. It encompasses , and as of the end of 2005 had 2,788 interments. It is currently closed to new interments.- History :...
.
History
When Pedro Menéndez de AvilésPedro Menéndez de Avilés
Pedro Menéndez de Avilés was a Spanish admiral and explorer, best remembered for founding St. Augustine, Florida in 1565. This was the first successful Spanish foothold in La Florida and remained the most significant city in the region for several hundred years. St...
founded St. Augustine for the Spanish Crown, Jesuit priests were among the initial colonists to provide for the spiritual needs of the settlers and to help convert the native Timucua
Timucua
The Timucua were a Native American people who lived in Northeast and North Central Florida and southeast Georgia. They were the largest indigenous group in that area and consisted of about 35 chiefdoms, many leading thousands of people. The various groups of Timucua spoke several dialects of the...
Indians to Christianity. In the 1570s the Jesuits were replaced by monks of the Order of St. Francis who were allocated land in 1588 at the southern end of the city for their monastery
Monastery
Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
and church, Nuestra Senora de la Concepcion (Our Lady of the Conception).
The original structures on the site were built of logs and palm thatch roofs. Throughout the years a succession of buildings were constructed as replacements. The structures were susceptible to rotting in the humid sub-tropical climate and were highly flammable. In 1702 all the structures in St. Augustine with the exception of the Castillo de San Marcos
Castillo de San Marcos
The Castillo de San Marcos site is the oldest masonry fort in the United States. It is located in the city of St. Augustine, Florida. Construction was begun in 1672 by the Spanish when Florida was a Spanish territory. During the twenty year period of British possession from 1763 until 1784, the...
were burned to the ground in a raid led by English pirate Robert Searles. After this it was decided to rebuild the monastery with the same durable coquina used in the construction of the fort. Construction finally began in 1735 using coquina stone quarried at the King's Quarry located on Anastasia Island
Anastasia Island
Anastasia Island is a barrier island which is approximately long located off the northeast Atlantic coast of Florida in the United States. The island is located east and southeast of St. Augustine. It is separated from the mainland by the Matanzas River, part of the Intracoastal waterway, Matanzas...
across Matanzas Bay
Matanzas Bay
Matanzas Bay is a saltwater bay in St. Johns County, Florida, the entrance to the bay from the South Atlantic is via St. Augustine inlet. Bodies of water that connect to the bay in addition to the South Atlantic are clockwise from the inlet;...
from St. Augustine.
The Franciscan monks lived at the monastery until the British took possession of Florida in exchange for occupied Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
which they seized from the Spanish in the French and Indian War, in which Spain was an ally of the French.
Almost the entire population of Catholic St. Augustine left the city upon the British taking control in 1763 including the Franciscan monks and many of their Native American converts. The British, a large majority of whom were Protestant converted the monks former living quarters into military barracks for the troops stationed at the newly christened Fort St. Marks, the anglicized version of the Castillo de San Marco.
During the British Period of occupation the military constructed an additional wooden barracks behind the coquina stone, St. Francis Barracks. They also constructed The King's Bakery, a coquina stone structure used for baking the bread for the city's garrison. This structure which has been used as a garage by the Florida National Guard since 1930 is located perpendicular to the barracks across Marine Street. It is believed to be the only structure surviving in St. Augustine built entirely during the British Period (1763–1784).
After signing the Treaty of Paris
Treaty of Paris (1783)
The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, ended the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain on the one hand and the United States of America and its allies on the other. The other combatant nations, France, Spain and the Dutch Republic had separate agreements; for details of...
, the British who conceded defeat in the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
agreed to relinquish control of the Florida Territory
Florida Territory
The Territory of Florida was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 30, 1822, until March 3, 1845, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Florida...
, restoring Spain's possession of the land. Upon returning the Spanish military continued to use the St. Francis Barracks, as a military installation and troop barracks. During this period known as the Second Spanish Period (1763–1821) the wooden barracks built by the British were torn down.
St. Francis Barracks came under control of the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
when the United States gained possession of Florida in 1821. The Barracks would remain an active U.S. Army installation until it was de-activated in 1900, with the exception of one year between 1861-1862 when it, like the rest of St. Augustine was under control of the Confederate States of America
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
.
In 1828 a portion of the southern end of the St. Francis Barracks military reservation was set aside as a post cemetery. In 1842 the U.S. soldiers who perished in the 1835 Dade Massacre
Dade Massacre
The "Dade Massacre" was an 1835 defeat for the United States Army that started the Second Seminole War, which lasted until 1842.On December 23, 1835, two U.S. companies of 110 troops under Major Francis L. Dade departed from Fort Brooke , heading up the King Highway on a resupply and reinforce...
were re-interred here under 3 coquina pyramid shaped monument along with over 1,300 other U.S. casualties of the Second Seminole War
Second Seminole War
The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between various groups of Native Americans collectively known as Seminoles and the United States, part of a series of conflicts called the Seminole Wars...
. This cemetery would later be designated St. Augustine National Cemetery
St. Augustine National Cemetery
St. Augustine National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located in the city of St. Augustine in St. Johns County, Florida. It encompasses , and as of the end of 2005 had 2,788 interments. It is currently closed to new interments.- History :...
.
At the start of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
there was only one ordnance sergeant on duty, Sgt. Henry Douglas who was responsible not only for the Barracks but for Fort Marion as well (the American name for the Castillo de San Marcos). On January 7, 1861 before Florida's formal secession from the Union, members of a newly formed local militia unit named the St. Augustine Blues, went to the St. Francis Barracks to demand the keys to the fort. The U.S. sergeant complied with the stipulation he receive a receipt for the fort, which he was given.
Douglas would later report that; “All military stores at this place were seized this morning by order of the governor of the State of FL. A company of volunteer soldiers marched to the barracks and took possession of me, and demanded peaceable possession of the keys of the fort and magazine.”
The U.S. Army deactivated the fort in 1900 and leased it to the Florida State Troops, forerunner of the Florida National Guard in 1907. It was formally given to the State of Florida for use as the State Arsenal in 1921 by an act of Congress. After receiving use of the Barracks via lease in 1907 the buildings were not occupied at that time. In 1915 the St. Francis Barracks were gutted in a fire however the original coquina stone walls remained standing. The building was rebuilt in 1922 using the original walls.