Last updated: February 12, 2021
Place
Spanish Stronghold Wayside
![On the left, against a deep blue background, light blue and white text in English and Spanish reads: Spanish Stronghold. Castillo de San Marcos symbolizes Spain’s vast New World empire. Built between 1672 and 1695, the coquina fort replaced a series of wooden forts that had protected St. Augustine for more than 100 years. Improvements in the mid-1700s helped the Castillo, with its soldiers and guns, keep pirates and the British at bay. Spain controlled Florida, and the Castillo helped keep their enemies away from the Gulf Stream shipping lanes. Spanish treasure fleets used these routes to carry sugar, tobacco, pearls, silver, and gold to Europe. End of Text Below on the left, a small, rectangular map: a British flag marks the beige upper right, the eastern seaboard of the United States above the state of Florida. A French flag marks the off-white center part of North America. Below, a Spanish flag marks the light brown area that includes the rest of North America, Central America, Caribbean islands, and the northern coast of South America. To the right, against a light blue background, curving, red lines with black arrows above and below, mark shipping routes to and from Spain. Black dots mark city ports: La Habana, Santo Domingo, San Juan, Cartagena, Panama, Portobello, Veracruz, and Acapulco. Below, white text in English and Spanish reads: Shipping routes, the major roadways of their day, connected continents and cultures. End of Text On the right side of the panel, against a blue sky is a dark brown wooden ship anchored facing the Castillo de San Marcos fort. Dozens of brown ropes run from the top of its 3 tall masts to the deck. Attached to a brown flagpole at the ship’s high carved stern, or rear is a white first Spanish Military Era flag with 2 red crossing lines in the center. In the water, to the left of the ship are 2 small white boats with single masts and men in white shirts and pants with red sashes at the waist. At the bottom right, a small circle divided into 4, triangular wedges. Each wedge has a portion of a flag and date range for an important period in the fort's history. 1 wedge is bright, indicating the time period of the panel story and the other three wedges are muted. From the top, moving clockwise: Great Britain: 1763-1784; Spain: 1784 to 1821; the United States: 1821-1900; and Spain: 1672-1763, is bright. Below the circle, black text in English and Spanish reads: First Spanish Military Era. Directly beyond the panel, a low stone wall; to the left, a light grey field-stone walkway with low stone walls on either side. Ahead, and beyond the low walls, views of the Matanzas River. For additional information, turn to your left and move ahead to a park ranger station in a one-story brown wooden building. [End of message]](/common/uploads/place/import/93ebdc19-32a6-4ecc-bc34-26313c8e9578_image_350.jpg)
Quick Facts
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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Wheelchair Accessible
Castillo de San Marcos symbolizes Spain's vast New World Empire. Built between 1672 and 1695, the coquina fort replaced a series of wooden forts that had protected St. Augustine for more than 100 years. improvements in the mid-1700s helped the Castillo, with its soldiers and guns, keep pirates and the British at bay. Spain controlled Florida, and the Castillo helped keep their enemies away from the Gulf Stream shipping lanes. Spanish treasure fleets used these routes to carry sugar, tobacco, pearls, silver, and gold to Europe.