St. Augustine in St. Johns County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
Solla-Carcaba Cigar Factory
Photographed By Brandon D Cross, March 23, 2019
1. Solla-Carcaba Cigar Factory Marker
Inscription.
Solla-Carcaba Cigar Factory. . The Solla-Carcaba Cigar Factory, completed in 1909, is the last remnant in St. Augustine of the cigar industry, whose local origins date to the 1830s. Political unrest drove many Cuban cigar makers to Florida after 1868. Their numbers in St. Augustine were enough by 1892 to attract a visit by revolutionary leader Jose Marti. One Cuban, P.F. Carcaba, born in Oviedo, Spain, brought his cigar-making business from Cincinnati to St. Augustine in 1893, selling pure Havana "Caballeros" in boxes featuring images of Henry Flagler's great hotels. After Carcaba's death in 1906, his son, W.H. Carcaba, partnered with his brother-in-law, Agustin Solla, to construct this building. Local architect Fred A. Henderich, a specialist in revival and Bungalow styles, melded Italianate and Mediterranean Revival elements in his design for the building. The Carcaba Company failed in 1917, its assets purchased by the Pamles-Arango Cigar Company, which itself collapsed in 1926 along with the Florida economy. The building then housed a number of businesses before its restoration in 1985. The oldest surviving major industrial building in the city, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.
The Solla-Carcaba Cigar Factory, completed in 1909, is the last remnant in St. Augustine of the cigar industry, whose local origins date to the 1830s. Political unrest drove many Cuban cigar makers to Florida after 1868. Their numbers in St. Augustine were enough by 1892 to attract a visit by revolutionary leader Jose Marti. One Cuban, P.F. Carcaba, born in Oviedo, Spain, brought his cigar-making business from Cincinnati to St. Augustine in 1893, selling pure Havana "Caballeros" in boxes featuring images of Henry Flagler's great hotels. After Carcaba's death in 1906, his son, W.H. Carcaba, partnered with his brother-in-law, Agustin Solla, to construct this building. Local architect Fred A. Henderich, a specialist in revival and Bungalow styles, melded Italianate and Mediterranean Revival elements in his design for the building. The Carcaba Company failed in 1917, its assets purchased by the Pamles-Arango Cigar Company, which itself collapsed in 1926 along with the Florida economy. The building then housed a number of businesses before its restoration in 1985. The oldest surviving major industrial building in the city, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.
Erected 2014 by Sponsored by James M. Byles and the Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-804.)
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Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Hispanic Americans • Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1909.
Location. 29° 53.449′ N, 81° 19.109′ W. Marker is in St. Augustine, Florida, in St. Johns County. Marker is at the intersection of Ribera Street and Sebastian Harbor Drive, on the right when traveling south on Ribera Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 88 Ribera Street, Saint Augustine FL 32084, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Originally built ca. 1909 and added to National Register of Historic Places in 1993.
Photographed By James R. Murray
4. Sollo-Carcaba Cigar Factory Building Current Tenants
Building is now adaptively reused for several businesses.
Credits. This page was last revised on March 24, 2019. It was originally submitted on September 23, 2014, by James R. Murray of Elkton, Florida. This page has been viewed 548 times since then and 61 times this year. Photos:1. submitted on March 23, 2019, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. 2. submitted on December 9, 2017, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. 3, 4. submitted on September 23, 2014, by James R. Murray of Elkton, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
