In the mid-1910s, the world’s first airline was started by Antony Habersack Jannus, who described flying as “…not the successful defying of death but the indulgence in the poetry of mechanical motion, a dustless, relatively bumpless, fascinating sensation of speed;…

“Before you get a dog, you can’t quite imagine what living with one might be like; afterward, you can’t imagine living any other way.” ~ Caroline Knapp National Dog Day is celebrated annually on August 26. Observance of National Dog…

The silent film industry revolutionized the entertainment world in the early 20th century. St. Augustine, Florida proved to be the perfect location for films of the era that required an “exotic” locale. The city’s stunning architecture, beautiful beaches, and lush…

National Garden Week is celebrated June 4-10, as designated by National Gardens, Inc., to honor the contributions that gardeners have made and highlight the importance of gardening. The history of National Garden Week starts with the founders, the National Garden…

During the era of the American Revolution, British East Florida was not exempt from the fervor of anti-British sentiment. With the Revolutionary War having already begun, February 27, 1776 saw a clandestine meeting take place in the Ancient City at…

  The building that houses the museum, archival storage, and shop for the St. Augustine Historical Society is properly called the Webb Memorial Building. Built in 1923-1924 as the oldest purpose-built museum in Florida, it is named for DeWitt Webb,…

National Dolphin Day is celebrated annually on April 14, in the United States to commemorate one of the smartest mammals in the world. Dolphins are social and friendly creatures, closely related to whales and porpoises. National Dolphin Day celebrates biodiversity…

  On March 23, sixty-eight years ago in 1955, Revenge of the Creature was released. This film, along with its predecessor, Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954), and sequel The Creature Walks Among Us (1956), are instantly recognizable for their…

Emma Thursby, a famous nineteenth century opera singer, visited St. Augustine three times to perform between 1890 and 1892. On March 28, 1891, she performed at the Hotel Ponce de Leon, three years after it was built. Born on February…

    The St. Augustine Historical Society traces its roots to a group of like-minded persons who met during the winter of 1883 at the home of Dr. Milton Waldo, the minister of the Presbyterian Church. According to Dr. Thomas…

  In Our Glory: Black Joy in Jim Crow St. Augustine was organized by students enrolled in my course, ART370: Race and Visual Culture, in the Fall of 2022. A brilliant and ambitious group of young scholars, their insights are…

Since 1996, Dr. Susan Richbourg Parker has written a widely popular Sunday column, titled “The Oldest City,”  which explores the people and events that have shaped the history of St. Augustine and St. Johns County.   Since its introduction, the column has…

The Tatler was a British magazine known for reporting on the events of high society. They often wrote about lifestyle and fashion for the wealthy in St. Augustine. For the December 30, 1899 edition, the Tatler devoted a whole page…

Advertisements originally published in the St. Augustine Evening Record, December 1922 Children’s letters to Santa weren’t the only articles to look forward to in the St. Augustine Evening Record in December 1922. Local stores were also eager to showcase their…

The end of the Civil War saw the growth of a significant number of African-American communities in Northeast Florida. LaVilla in Jacksonville and Freemansville near Daytona Beach were both formed in 1866. In St. Augustine, Lincolnville was just being formed….