St. Augustine in St. Johns County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
The Historic St. Augustine Seawall
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, December 12, 2018
1. The St. Augustine Seawall Marker
Inscription.
The Historic St. Augustine Seawall. .
The Seawall in St. Augustine History. St. Augustine's history has been shaped by the sea since its founding in 1565. Over the centuries, colonial explorers, pirates, and seafaring merchants have found their way into Matanzas Bay, known today as America's Oldest Seaport. The historic Seawall has long been an integral part of the city's fabric, a coquina sentinel guarding against rough waters, and a promenade for romantic strolls and waterside socials. , The Spanish built the first seawall between the Castillo de San Marcos and the Plaza from 1695 to 1705, a structure that lasted over a century. When Florida became a territory of the United States in 1821, the seawall had deteriorated considerably. In the 1830s and 1840s, graduates from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point built a new seawall south from the Castillo to what is today the Florida National Guard Headquarters. , The historic seawall is testament to sound 19th-century engineering, but it has been battered by time, tide, and numerous storms. In 2001, during Tropical Storm Gabrielle, a portion of the wall collapsed, and in 2008, Tropical Storm Fay caused considerable flooding. ,
Fortifying America's Oldest Seaport. The Territorial Period seawall, some seven feet in height, was made out of coquina, a soft limestone of sand and broken shells. It was laid in ashlar stonework, topped with granite stones, and supported by a massive coquina foundation. The new wall is being constructed 12 feet into the water from the old wall to protect all aspects of the original historic seawall. It will use concrete and reinforced steel, and the gap between the two walls will be filled in and paved so it can once again serve as a waterfront promenade with a paved walking path, new streetlights and landscaping. , The City of St. Augustine began the construction of a new seawall in 2012. The $6.7 million project, funded with assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), was designed to protect the historic seawall and the surrounding waterfront neighborhood. It is the culmination of more than a decade of research, advocacy, public input and the tireless efforts by many dedicated people. Following its July 2013 completion, the area around the seawall will be better protected from storms and Category 1 hurricanes. ,
St. Augustine's history has been shaped by the sea since its founding in 1565. Over the centuries, colonial explorers, pirates, and seafaring merchants have found their way into Matanzas Bay, known today as America's Oldest Seaport. The historic Seawall has long been an integral part of the city's fabric—a coquina sentinel guarding against rough waters, and a promenade for romantic strolls and waterside socials.
The Spanish built the first seawall between the Castillo de San Marcos and the Plaza from 1695 to 1705, a structure that lasted over a century. When Florida became a territory of the United States in 1821, the seawall had deteriorated considerably. In the 1830s and 1840s, graduates from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point built a new seawall south from the Castillo to what is today the Florida National Guard Headquarters.
The historic seawall is testament to sound 19th-century engineering, but it has been battered by time, tide, and numerous storms. In 2001, during Tropical Storm Gabrielle, a portion of the wall collapsed, and in 2008, Tropical Storm Fay caused considerable flooding.
Fortifying America's Oldest Seaport
The Territorial Period seawall, some seven feet in height, was made out of coquina,
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a soft limestone of sand and broken shells. It was laid in ashlar stonework, topped with granite stones, and supported by a massive coquina foundation. The new wall is being constructed 12 feet into the water from the old wall to protect all aspects of the original historic seawall. It will use concrete and reinforced steel, and the gap between the two walls will be filled in and paved so it can once again serve as a waterfront promenade with a paved walking path, new streetlights and landscaping.
The City of St. Augustine began the construction of a new seawall in 2012. The $6.7 million project, funded with assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), was designed to protect the historic seawall and the surrounding waterfront neighborhood. It is the culmination of more than a decade of research, advocacy, public input and the tireless efforts by many dedicated people. Following its July 2013 completion, the area around the seawall will be better protected from storms and Category 1 hurricanes.
The Avenida Menendez Seawall Project is a project of the City of St. Augustine made possible through Florida Division of Emergency Management with funds provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) Flood Mitigation Assistance Grant program.
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St. Augustine Historical Society
2. Marker detail: View from St. Augustine marina facing north to the Plaza de Constitución circa 1880
Location. 29° 53.46′ N, 81° 18.607′ W. Marker is in St. Augustine, Florida, in St. Johns County. Marker is on Avenida Menendez north of Bravo Lane, on the right when traveling north. Marker is located beside the sidewalk on the east side of the street, overlooking the subject seawall and the Matanzas River. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Saint Augustine FL 32084, United States of America. Touch for directions.
3. Marker detail: A March day in St. Augustine, drawn by T. De Thulstrup for Harper’s Magazine, c. 1805
. Marker is a large painted metal plaque, mounted vertically, at eye-level in a heavy duty wooden kiosk frame. The kiosk is double-sided with the identical marker mounted on both the east (facing the river) and west (facing the street) sides.
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. St. Augustine Seawall
Construction workers toil tirelessly to ensure that the historic St. Augustine seawall is protected and that the new seawall is ready for pedestrian traffic by July 2013.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, December 12, 2018
5. The Historic St. Augustine Seawall Marker (wide view; seawall & Matanzas River in background)
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, December 12, 2018
6. The Historic St. Augustine Seawall Marker (looking west; Avenida Menendez in background)
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, December 12, 2018
7. St. Augustine Seawall (south of marker; new seawall left; historic coquina seawall on right)
Credits. This page was last revised on November 19, 2021. It was originally submitted on December 16, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 816 times since then and 123 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on December 20, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 6. submitted on December 28, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 7. submitted on December 20, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.