The St. Johns River Lighthouse was built and was the third lighthouse built at the entrance to the St. Johns River. Previous lighthouses were built in 1830 and 1833. The lighthouse is located on what is today the Mayport Naval Air Station. During the Civil War, the...
Kingsley and other landowners along the St. Johns became involved in the Patriot War, an attempt by expansionists in the United States to take over Florida from the Spanish. In July of 1812, Kingsley hosted a legislative council at Laurel Grove that established the...
William Bartram wrote of the stretch of the river in what is now the Ocala National Forest. “…blessed land where the gods have amassed into one heap all the flowering plants, birds, fish and other wildlife of two continents in order to turn the rushing streams, the...
Spanish soldiers marched north from St. Augustine and captured Ft. Caroline. They re-named the river San Mateo to honor a saint whose feast followed the day of the capture. The Spanish renamed the river Rio de San Juan or St. Johns River after a mission that was...
The French established the first outpost on the River called Fort Caroline. The French called the river La Riviere du Mai, River of May, because they arrived there on May 1.
Some of the earliest pottery ever uncovered in North America was discovered on Tick Island, in the river near DeLeon Springs. The pottery, burials and clay sculptures all show that a fairly complex society existed.
100,000 Years Ago The St. Johns was formed approximately 100,000 years ago after land rose along the coast and trapped a portion of the sea inland. However, the river did not take on its current form until only about 5,000-7,500 years ago, after the sea began to rise...
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