e Historical Quarterly

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "e Historical Quarterly"

Samson Wilkins
6 years ago
Views:

e Historical Quarterly of the St. Lucie Historical Society, Inc. www.stluciehistoricalsociety.org Vol. 31 No. 1 Fall 2013 PRESIDENT S MESSAGE Greetings, everyone!

This year, Florida celebrated the 500th Anniversary of Juan Ponce de León s landing in Florida, with events all over the state.

Make sure you bring family along, and tell your friends to go see it as well. We hope you enjoy reading about Juan Ponce De León on the following pages.

1 e Historical Quarterly of the St. Lucie Historical Society, Inc. Vol. 31 No. 1 Fall 2013 PRESIDENT S MESSAGE Greetings, everyone! We hope you have had a fantastic summer, and are pleased to welcome everyone home for Fall, and the beginning of a new SLHS membership year! This year, Florida celebrated the 500th Anniversary of Juan Ponce de León s landing in Florida, with events all over the state. You must be sure to stop by and see us at the museum, and see our Juan Ponce De León Timeline exhibit! The exhibit will be on display at the museum through December. Make sure you bring family along, and tell your friends to go see it as well. We hope you enjoy reading about Juan Ponce De León on the following pages. We have included an article about him from The Mariner s Museum, and also a timeline of early Florida from Viva Florida 500. Viva Florida 500 is the statewide initiative created by the Florida Department of State to commemorate 500 years of history in the great State of Florida. More information on this statewide initiative can be found by visiting Juan Ponce De León, The Story of the Sea, 1895, From The Library at The Mariners Museum, GC21.Q11. The Treasure Coast Regional History Center; Urca de Lima Underwater Archaeological Preserve; National Navy UDT- SEAL Museum; Backus Museum; Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute; and Zora Neale Hurston Dust Tracks Heritage Trail are all mentioned on the Viva Florida website as notable historical or archaeological attractions. We have many exciting things planned for this year, and we hope to see you at the museum and at our dinner meetings! Respectfully, Nancy Bennett

2 e Historical Quarterly Page 2 Juan Ponce De León 1474 CE CE Primary Goal: To find gold and colonize land for Spain. Achievement: First European known to have visited present day United States in Discovered Florida and the Bahama Channel, and colonized Puerto Rico. Source: The Mariners Museum: Born in the village of San Tervás de Campos in the province of León, Spain in 1474, Juan Ponce de León became a page to the prince of Castile who later became King Ferdinand of Castile. In 1493, de León went with Christopher Columbus on a second voyage to the West Indies and he was one of 200 volunteers on 17 ships. It was on this trip when de León first saw the Antilles. Columbus anchored the ships at Añasco Bay on the western shore of Puerto Rico and it is believed that when de León saw how beautiful the area was it inspired him to later choose the place as the capital. On February 13, 1502, de León took another voyage with Frey Nicolás de Ovando. At the Canary Islands, the crew split up into two groups, with the first group arriving at Santo Domingo on April 15, From 1502 to 1504, de León lived on the island and was named its captain by Ovando in De León then moved to Salvaleón and lived there from 1505 to While there, in 1506, de León made a request to travel and conquer Borinquen. After receiving permission from Ovando, he started a settlement and renamed the area San Juan de Puerto Rico. Word got back to Spain that de León had settled the area and was named governor of Puerto Rico, but due to political reasons, he was relieved of his governorship in He immediately applied for a royal grant to settle the islands of Bimini, an island just north of Cuba. It was believed there was a fountain of youth on the island. On March 3, 1513, de León, after receiving permission, left Puerto Rico with three ships. By March 27 he d seen the mainland of Florida and later landed there on April 2nd, just north of modern-day St. Augustine. He stayed there until April 8th and renamed the area Tierra La Florida (land of flowers) in honor of finding the area on Easter Sunday, called Pascua Florida in Spanish. De León continued to explore, sailing along the Florida s east coast and discovered the Bahama Channel. This proved to be a great success because this channel provided a new route from the West Indies to Spain. Continuing on his voyage, he sailed through the Florida Keys and named them Martyrs. De León then went north along the west coast and sailed as far as Pensacola Bay. He then sailed along the south west coast, coming to an island he named Tortugas; today it s the Dry Tortugas because of all the nesting turtles found there. De León returned to Puerto Rico on September 21, 1513, then to Spain in 1514 where he was knighted, given a personal coat of arms, and granted a royal patent to colonize the islands of Bimini and Florida. He was officially named the Adelantado Don Juan Ponce de León, Governor of the Islands of Bimini and Florida. On February 20, 1521, de León made his second attempt at colonization. He sailed from Puerto Rico with a crew of two hundred men. The crew landed on the west coast of Florida near the Caloosahatchee River or Sanibel Island, where they tried to start a settlement. The Calusa Indians attacked them and de León was wounded with an arrow. The settlement was abandoned and the crew went as far as Havana, Cuba where Ponce de León died July 1521 from an infection. Source: ageofex.marinersmuseum.org/index.php?type=explorer&id=66

3 e Historical Quarterly Page 3 HISTORY OF LA FLORIDA: TIMELINE AT-A-GLANCE 12,000 years ago (10,000 B.C.E.) - Native Americans occupy Florida 16th Century - Africans arrive with Spaniards Juan Ponce de León lands on East Coast Juan Ponce de León returns and is mortally wounded on Florida s SW Coast Pánfilo de Narváez expedition Hernando de Soto expedition Francisco Maldonado Tristán de Luna Jean Ribault Jacksonville and Beaufort, SC Rene de Laudonnière Ft. Caroline Pedro Menéndez St. Augustine 1573 Spanish Missions 1587 Roanoke (Lost Colony). VA 1607 Jamestown, VA 1620 Plymouth (Pilgrims), MASS 1630 Massachusetts Bay (Puritans) 1687 The first runaway slaves from northern plantations are granted asylum in St. Augustine Spaniards re-establish Pensacola 1738 Fort Mosè 1763 Florida to Britain 1783 Florida to Spain 1818 First Seminole War 1821 Florida as United States Territory 1845 Florida becomes a State Source: Museum of Florida History and

e Historical Quarterly Page 4 IN MEMORIAM Dr. Charles R. Croghan, Jr. June 04, 1925 - July 23, 2013 Past Editor, The Historical Quarterly and dedicated SLHS member and volunteer An excerpt from Mr.

4 e Historical Quarterly Page 4 IN MEMORIAM Dr. Charles R. Croghan, Jr. June 04, July 23, 2013 Past Editor, The Historical Quarterly and dedicated SLHS member and volunteer An excerpt from Mr. Croghan s Memoirs: Charles Croghan is a native of Fort Pierce, Florida. He grew up and attended school there, graduating from Fort Pierce High School in June During World War II, he served with the Fourth Infantry Division (the Ivy Division), participating in the Normandy Invasion (June 1944), and the invasion of Germany, later in At the conclusion of the War, he enrolled in and was graduated from the College of Wooster. He continued his St. Lucie Historical Society, Inc. Post Office Box 578 Fort Pierce, Florida Officers and Board of Directors President: Nancy Bennett First Vice President: John Gordon Second Vice President: Sue Favorite Treasurer: Bob Burdge Secretary: Deborah Billis Parliamentarian: Maggie Minchew Historian/Chaplain: Jack Favorite education at New York University, Union Theological Seminary, and Columbia University and did post-graduate study at Philip s University in Marburg, Germany, and at Yale and Clermont Universities in the States. He spent two years in Allahabad, India, teaching at Ewing Christian College as the representative of his undergraduate college, The College of Wooster, in its outreach program Wooster-in-India. His career since acquiring his doctorate has been as an academic, teaching Religion and Humanities at Bloomfield College in Bloomfield, New Jersey, and English and Humanities at Indian River Community College in Fort Pierce, Florida. Upon his retirement in 1995, Dr. Croghan has been a volunteer in the community, serving in various capacities at the St. Lucie County Historical Museum, the Manatee Education and Observation Center, and the Visitor s Information Center. His hobbies include gardening, postcard collecting (mainly of early Fort Pierce and St. Lucie County), furniture refinishing, and caning. He lives in Fort Pierce with his wife Rose-Marie on South Hutchinson Island and enjoys visiting with his sons and their families in Hobe Sound and Tallahassee, Florida. Croghan, Jr., Charles R., Memory Believes, pg Charles R. Croghan, Jr., Nancy Bennett, Deborah Billis, Bob Burdge, Ted Burrows, Brad Culverhouse, John Culverhouse, Cynthia Crankshaw, Joe Crankshaw, Jack Favorite, Sue Favorite, Robyn Hutchinson, John Gordon, Maggie Minchew, Marilyn Minix, Lucille Rights The Historical Quarterly Editor: John Culverhouse

e Historical Quarterly Page 5 Printing and sponsorship of this

Financial Advisor NMLS Registry ID# 894495 789 Southwest Federal

.. Any historical pictures of fires in St.

Lucie County Fire District Local fire-related pictures CONTACT:

Lucie County Old Holiday photographs of Fort Pierce, showing

5 e Historical Quarterly Page 5 Printing and sponsorship of this edition of the Quarterly is sponsored by: John Gordon, CRPC Financial Advisor NMLS Registry ID# Southwest Federal Highway Suite 304 Stuart, FL (Direct Line) john.gordon@wfadvisors.com Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC Looking for the Following... Any historical pictures of fires in St. Lucie County Old photos of the St. Lucie County Fire District Local fire-related pictures CONTACT: Jack Favorite Old scenic pictures of St. Lucie County Old Holiday photographs of Fort Pierce, showing Christmas lights and decorations for possible showing in the Holiday Quarterly Photographs of the old Fort Pierce water towers decorated at Christmas CONTACT: John Culverhouse JohnCulverhouse2012@gmail.com

6 e Historical Quarterly Page 6 Benefits of Membership: * Free Admission to the St. Lucie County Regional History Center, * Special preview of visiting exhibit openings, * Subscription to the Historical Quarterly The Society has the following particular purposes: Support of the St. Lucie County Regional History Center. Promote public interest in and study of the history of St. Lucie County and of the East Coast of Florida. Participate in and support of community events and displays that portray the history of St. Lucie County and the East Coast of Florida. Publication of or support for the publication of historical subjects of St. Lucie County and the East Coast of Florida. Society General Meetings are held on the 4th Thursday of the month, from September through May of each year. The Elks Club provides attendees with a meal prior to the General Meeting at a price of $12 per meal. Reservations must be made for these meals. Meal reservations must be made no later than two days in advance of the General Meeting. To make reservations, call the Society phone at and leave a message, or you can your RSVP information: dinner@stluciehistoricalsociety.org. Dinners begin at 5:30 P.M. and the General Meeting starts at 6:00 P.M. General Meetings are held at: The Elks Club 635 South Fifth Street Fort Pierce, Florida The Society is a Florida Corporation exempt from federal income tax under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an organization described in Section 501(c)(3). The Society is also classified as a public charity under 509(a)(2).

7 e Historical Quarterly Page 7 PLEASE JOIN US IN PRESERVING OUR LOCAL HERITAGE FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS! ST. LUCIE HISTORICAL SOCIETY, INC. Membership Application Name: Spouse s Name: Names & Ages of minor children: Address: City/State/Zip: Phone: Home: Cell: Business: I/We wish to join the Society at the level indicated (Membership Year is from September through August): New Renewal Individual ($20) Family ($25) Business ($50) Yes, I am interested in volunteer activities Please make checks payable to: St. Lucie Historical Society, Inc. Post Office Box 578 Fort Pierce, Florida For information call: Send a gift membership to: Name: Address: City/State/Zip: Gift from: Membership is open to any interested person My employer will match this gift:. Employer s name: Address: SPONSOR A QUARTERLY OR A DINNER MEETING!! Promote a business Congratulate friends or family members for accomplishments or important milestones in their lives FOR SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION: contact John Culverhouse: JohnCulverhouse2012@gmail.com

St. Lucie Historical Society, Inc. Post Office Box 578 Fort Pierce, Florida 34954 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! Your help is needed in making history come alive! As we run the daily operations of the St.

A number of volunteers have been cleaning, dusting, and polishing everything in the buildings.

8 St. Lucie Historical Society, Inc. Post Office Box 578 Fort Pierce, Florida VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! Your help is needed in making history come alive! As we run the daily operations of the St. Lucie County Regional History Center, we are an allvolunteer operation, and we need your help! The tasks are varied and many. A number of volunteers have been cleaning, dusting, and polishing everything in the buildings. Others have been needed as docents to guide people around and explain the exhibits and their significance. By the way, if you speak Spanish, French, Creole, German, Italian, or even Japanese or Chinese, you are especially desirable. If you are interested, or would like more information, please call: , or contact one of our officers or directors. Thank you!! St. Lucie Historical Society, Inc. Please join us for our first general membership meeting of the season: Thursday, September 26, 2013 at 5:30 PM at the Fort Pierce Elks Club. Mark your calendars now! We hope you had a great summer, and we look forward to seeing you soon!

Unit 11 Lesson 9 Great Voyages of Discovery

Unit 11 Lesson 9 Great Voyages of Discovery Generalization: Contact can lead to conflict and cultural diffusion Big Idea -- The Age of Discovery would not have been possible without the emergence of Spain