Historic Newcastle Plantation

Historic Newcastle Plantation. . In 1769 during the English occupation of Florida English investors established Newcastle Plantation. The plantation was first managed by David Courvoisie, but in 1771 was placed under the charge of Francis Philip Fatio, a native of Switzerland. Fatio became a Spanish subject in 1784 after Spain regained possession of Florida., The 780 acre plantation, which grew mostly indigo and grains, was a prime parcel of land with high bluffs along Mill Cove. The cove provided a safe harbor for ships and Newcastle Creek, which divided the bluffs, provided fresh water. Like many of the beautiful homes on the site today, Fatio's plantation home was elegantly furnished and many important guests visited, including in 1774 the renowned botanist William Bartram. After Fatio moved to his New Switzerland plantation up the St. Johns River, Newcastle was again managed by David Courvoisie and Courvoisie was eventually given title to the property., Around 1851 the land was sold to the Amander Parsons family, mill owners from Mayport, Florida. Parsons' daughter Mary married Napoleon B. Broward and moved with her husband to Broward family land on the north side of the river. After the homes of the Parsons and the Broward families were burned by Union soldiers during the Civil War, Mary and Napoleon moved back to the Newcastle area where her father had rebuilt his home and started an orange grove. Mary died in 1869, supposedly from the stress of the hardships created by the war, and Napoleon died in 1870. Mary is buried in the Parsons family cemetery. Their son, Napoleon B. Broward, Jr., orphaned at age 13, lived for a time with his grandfather Parsons on the family farm. In 1905 Broward, Jr. would become the 19th governor of Florida. , , In the early 1930s A. Anderson Petrinovich built a two story Spanish style home overlooking the St. Johns River near the Parsons cemetery. He called his home Cherokee Villa, hence the origin of the name of the current day community., (captions) , 1918 Arlington Map , The Arlington Story, The Arlington Volunteer Fire Department Auxiliary, 1959 , Florida Governor Napoleon B. Broward, Jr. standing on bridge of his ship, Three Friends State Library and Archives of Florida