St. Augustine


Region Type Maps & Charts (if available, no international)
North America, South & Gulf Seaport, City St. Augustine

Town (area; 9 sq mi/23.3 sq km; 1990 pop. 11,692), (cap.) St. Johns co., NE Fla.; 29º53'N 81º18'W. Located on a peninsula bet. the Matanzas and San Sebastian rivers, it is separated from the Atlantic Ocean by Anastasia Isl.; the Intracoastal Waterway passes through the city. Fort Matanzas, now a natl. monument, was built by the Spanish on the S tip of Anastasia Isl. in the 1740s to guard the S approach to the city. St. Augustine is a port of entry, a shrimping and commercial fishing center, and a popular year-round resort. The economic mainstay is tourism, supplemented with revenues from small industries. The oldest city in the U.S., it was founded in 1565 by the Span. explorer Pedro Menendez de Aviles. Inc. 1824.

Sources

Robert A. McCaughey

Compiler

Peter Richards

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