Green Cove Springs in Clay County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
Fort San Fransisco de Pupo
Photographed By Mike Stroud, December 2, 2012
1. Fort San Fransisco de Pupo Marker
Inscription.
Fort San Fransisco de Pupo. . Pupo is first mentioned in 1716 as the place where the trail from the Franciscan Indian missions and the Apalachee (present-day Tallahassee) to St. Augustine crossed the river. The Spanish Government built the fort on the St. Johns River some time before 1737. Pupo teamed with Fort Picolata on the Eastern Shore, these forts protected the river crossing and blocked ships from continuing up stream. In 1738 after an attack by the British-allied Yuchi Indians, the fort was enlarged to a 30-by-16 blockhouse, surrounded by a rampart of timber and earth. During General James Oglethorpe's 1739-40 advance on St. Augustine, Lt. George Dunbar unsuccessfully attacked Pupo on the night of December 28th. On January 7th and 8th, Oglethorpe himself took two days to capture the Spanish blockhouses. Oglethorpe reinforced the fort with a trench, which is still visible. Upon the British retreat from Florida, Fort San Francisco de Pupo was destroyed. Though the fort was never rebuilt, the site remained a strategically important ferry crossing. In the 1820s Florida's first federally built road, the Bellamy Road, used the river crossing on the route between St. Augustine and Pensacola. ,
A Florida Heritage Landmark.
Pupo is first mentioned in 1716 as the place where the trail from the Franciscan Indian missions and the Apalachee (present-day Tallahassee) to St. Augustine crossed the river. The Spanish Government built the fort on the St. Johns River some time before 1737. Pupo teamed with Fort Picolata on the Eastern Shore, these forts protected the river crossing and blocked ships from continuing up stream. In 1738 after an attack by the British-allied Yuchi Indians, the fort was enlarged to a 30-by-16 blockhouse, surrounded by a rampart of timber and earth. During General James Oglethorpe's 1739-40 advance on St. Augustine, Lt. George Dunbar unsuccessfully attacked Pupo on the night of December 28th. On January 7th and 8th, Oglethorpe himself took two days to capture the Spanish blockhouses. Oglethorpe reinforced the fort with a trench, which is still visible. Upon the British retreat from Florida, Fort San Francisco de Pupo was destroyed. Though the fort was never rebuilt, the site remained a strategically important ferry crossing. In the 1820s Florida's first federally built road, the Bellamy Road, used the river crossing on the route between St. Augustine and Pensacola.
A Florida Heritage Landmark
Erected 2003 by Clay County Historical Commission. (Marker Number
Location. 29° 58.696′ N, 81° 37.758′ W. Marker is in Green Cove Springs, Florida, in Clay County. Marker is on Leonard C. Taylor Parkway (State Road 16), on the right when traveling east. Located on southeast bank of St. Johns River. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Green Cove Springs FL 32043, United States of America. Touch for directions.
2. Fort San Fransisco de Pupo Marker, located on southeast bank of St. Johns River, looking east
Photographed By Mike Stroud, December 2, 2012
3. Fort San Fransisco de Pupo Marker, looking west along State Route 16
Photographed By Mike Stroud, December 2, 2012
4. Fort San Fransisco de Pupo Marker along the St. Johns River
Credits. This page was last revised on July 31, 2017. It was originally submitted on December 28, 2012, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 1,346 times since then and 57 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on December 28, 2012, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina.
