St. Augustine Town Plan Historic District

{{short description|Historic district in Florida, United States}}

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = St Augustine Town Plan Historic District

| nrhp_type = nhld

| nocat = yes

| image = St Aug NHL Gonzalez-Alvarez01.jpg

| caption = Gonzalez-Alvarez House, an NHL itself and contributing property to the district

| location = Roughly bounded by Grove Ave, the Matanzas River, and South and Washington Sts., St. Augustine, Florida

| coordinates = {{coord|29|53|31|N|81|18|51|W|display=inline,title}}

| locmapin = Florida#USA

| area = {{convert|113|acre|ha}}{{cite web|url={{NHLS url|id=70000847}}|title="National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination St. Augustine Historic District", by Diana Primelles|date=|publisher=National Park Service}}

| designated_nrhp_type = April 15, 1970[http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1028&ResourceType=District St. Augustine Town Plan Historic District] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090502192215/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1028&ResourceType=District |date=2009-05-02 }} at [http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl National Historic Landmarks Program]

| added = April 15, 1970{{NRISref|version=2010a}}

| refnum = 70000847

}}

The St Augustine Town Plan Historic District is a U.S. National Historic Landmark District encompassing the colonial heart of the city. It substantially encompasses the street plan of the city as contained within the bounds of walls (no longer standing) built between the 16th and early 19th centuries. The district is bounded by Cordova, Orange, and St. Francis Streets, and Matanzas Bay. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970, although its boundaries were not formally defined until 1986.

Description and history

St. Augustine, founded by Spain in 1565, is the oldest permanent European settlement on the mainland of North America, north of Mexico. Its long colonial history extends to 1822, when Spanish East Florida was annexed to the United States as part of the Florida Territory. The city core's street plan, with narrow streets, dates to the first period of Spanish control, which ended in 1763 with the cession of Florida to Great Britain. Britain returned Florida to Spain in 1784. Roughly half of the area's buildings were built before 1925, with a substantially large number in either Spanish Colonial or Moorish Revival styles.

Landmarks

Some of the most distinctive of the city's landmarks are located in the district, and have their origins in the Spanish settlement. Construction of the Castillo de San Marcos, located at the northeastern end of the district, began with the community's founding, and the central plaza was also an early defining feature. The plaza is now faced by the Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine, built during the second Spanish period in 1793–94, and by a 1930s post office that was designed to strongly resemble the original Spanish governor's palace, which it replaced. Further south in the district stand a cluster of some of the city's oldest surviving residences, including the {{circa|1723}} González–Alvarez House ({{abbr|a.k.a.|also known as}} the Oldest House, the oldest surviving house in the city) and the Llambias House.

Other contributing properties

Gallery

File:Atlantic Bank Building.jpg|alt=|Atlantic Bank Building - May 2019

File:Pena-Peck House.jpg|alt=|Pena-Peck House - May 2019

File:Tovar House.jpg|alt=|Tovar House - May 2019

File:St. Augustine Cathedral 1.jpg|alt=|St. Augustine Cathedral - May 2019

File:Government House - St. Augustine.jpg|alt=|Government House - May 2019

References

External links

{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/travel/geo-flor/24.htm|title=St. Augustine Town Plan Historic District|date=|work=National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary|publisher=National Park Service}}
{{cite web|url=https://www.oldcity.com/medlib/downtownmap.pdf|title=Inventory of Buildings|date=2021-02-06|publisher=City of St. Augustine - Department of Heritage Tourism}}

Category:National Historic Landmarks in Florida

Category:National Register of Historic Places in St. Johns County, Florida

Category:St. Augustine, Florida

Category:Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Florida

Category:1970 establishments in Florida

Category:National Historic Landmark Districts