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Photo courtesy of the
Florida Division of Historical Resources.
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Spanish Captain José Primo de Ribera began building Fort San Marcos de Apalache in 1718 at the confluence of the Wakulla and St. Marks Rivers. This structure, which began with a wooden blockhouse, replaced a number of smaller wooden forts built by the Spanish between 1679 and 1682 which always needed repair from fire, rot, or attack damage. The new fort never was completed, although it housed a garrison throughout the Spanish occupation of North Florida. It served primarily to protect the region against attacks from the English and their native allies. Over time, the flags of Great Britain, the United States, and the Confederate States also flew over the fort. In 1818, General Andrew Jackson put two British sympathizers to death at Fort San Marcos for inciting native riots. Beginning in 1857, the fort was dismantled and its stones were used to build a mariner’s hospital in 1859 to help combat yellow fever. During the Civil War, Union forces did not get past Fort St. Marks (briefly renamed Fort Ward by the Confederates), and trade through the adjacent port continued throughout the war. A state park and museum were established at St. Marks in 1963.
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