Fernandia Beach City, Nassau County, Florida (FL) 32034

Fernandia Beach City

Nassau County, Florida

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Fernandia Beach City Hall is located at 204 Ash Street, Fernandia Beach, FL 32034.
Phone: 904‑277‑7300.

Fernandia is known as The Isle of 8 Flags. Through its settlement history, the island frequently changed possession and was at various times ruled under 8 different flags: French, Spanish, English, Patriot, Green Cross of Florida, Mexican, Confederate and U.S.

The city was incorporated in 1824.

Neighborhoods

  • Agar Park
  • Alligator Ridge
  • Alta Vista
  • Amandas Place
  • Amelia Acres
  • Amelia Bay Estates
  • Amelia Concourse
  • Amelia Green Condo
  • Amelia Heights
  • Amelia Lakes at Fernandina Beach Condo
  • Amelia Landings
  • Amelia National
  • Amelia Park Cottage Block
  • Amelia Park Courtyard Villas
  • Amhurst Oaks
  • Anderson Acres
  • Andrews Acres
  • Angelos
  • Arenburgh Acres
  • Arnold Ridge
  • Askins Five Points
  • Askins Ocean City
  • Atlantic Highlands
  • Atlantis
  • Autumn Trace
  • Azalea Terrace
  • Barnwell Estates
  • Barnwell Plantation
  • Barrington
  • Bayview Estates
  • Beachside Villas Condo
  • Beachwood Village
  • Beacon Terrace
  • Bell Farms
  • Bell Lagoon
  • Belle Glade
  • Bells River Estates
  • Big Oak
  • Bird Haven
  • Bismark Acres
  • Blackjack Oaks
  • Blackrock Acres
  • Brady Point Preserve
  • Branch Creek
  • Brantley Farms
  • Brook Blair Estates
  • Buckhead
  • Buena Vista
  • Buford Grove
  • Bunker Hill
  • Calico Ridge
  • Calico Run
  • Calico Trails
  • Calico Woods
  • Callahan Heights
  • Callahan Pines
  • Captains Court Villas
  • Captains Pointe
  • Carlas Subdivision
  • Carlton Dunes Condo
  • Carson Estates
  • Cartesian Pointe
  • Cashen Park
  • Castro Court
  • Cedar Haven
  • Cedar Point
  • Cedar Ridge
  • Chadwick Place
  • Chandlers Meadow
  • Charwood Estates
  • Chelsea
  • Chester Acres
  • Chester Forest
  • Chester Meadows
  • Christopher Creek Estates
  • Church Road Estates
  • Citrona
  • Claxton Acres
  • Claxton Landing
  • Clear Lake Estates
  • Club Villas
  • Cody Estates
  • Cooper Terrace
  • Coral Sands
  • Countryside Acres
  • Countryside Estates
  • Courtside Villa
  • Crawford Park
  • Creekside
  • Cricklewood
  • Cushing Creek Estates
  • Cypress Palm Gardens
  • Davis Acres
  • Davis Estates Heights
  • Davis Hills
  • Deep Creek Plantation
  • Deer Run
  • Deerfield Acres
  • Della Ware Heights
  • Diana Jones Estates
  • Dockside On Christopher Creek
  • Double J Acres
  • Dunes Club Villas
  • Dunes Row
  • Dunewood
  • Eagles Landing
  • Echoes of Paradise
  • Egans Bluff East
  • Egans Bluff North
  • Egans Landing
  • Egans Meadows
  • Everett Acres
  • Evergreen Estates
  • Ezell Acres
  • Fairway Oaks Villas
  • Felmore Park
  • Fernandina Cay Condo
  • Fernandina Shores
  • Fiddlers Bend Villas
  • Fiddlers Walk
  • First Coast Estates
  • Five Points
  • Florence Point
  • Flying M Acres
  • Forest Hills
  • Forest Oaks
  • Forest Pines
  • Forest Ridge Village Condos
  • Fritton Acres
  • Ft Clinch Condos
  • Fugates Landing
  • Gainey Acres
  • Garden Point
  • Gateway Commons
  • Gerbing Gardens
  • Gerbings Azalea Gardens
  • Glenwood
  • Glyn Woods Court
  • Glyndon Estates
  • Grande Oaks at Amelia
  • Gray Gables
  • Green Acres
  • Green Meadows
  • Grove Park
  • Gurnie Oaks
  • Hambys Subdivision
  • Hampton Lakes
  • Harrison Cove
  • Harrison Creek
  • Haven Forest
  • Hendricks Acres
  • Hendricks Farms
  • Heron Isles
  • Heron Oaks
  • Heron Pointe
  • Hickory Village
  • Hideaway
  • Higginbotham Estates
  • High Pointe
  • Highland Dunes
  • Highland Heights
  • Highland Hills
  • Highland Oaks
  • Highway Estates
  • Hilliard Terrace
  • Hilltop Manor
  • Holiday Acres
  • Holly Oak
  • Holly Point
  • Ingram Dunes
  • Interlachen By The Sea
  • Island Bluff
  • Island Breeze Condos
  • Island Village
  • Islands Club
  • Isle De Mai at Amelia
  • Islesworth
  • Jacksonville Park
  • Jacobson
  • Jasmine Place
  • Johnson Lake Estates
  • Jones Estates
  • Jonesville
  • Jordans Cove
  • Kasie Hill
  • Kast Estates
  • Kenneth Court
  • Keri Acres
  • Kings Ferry Forest
  • Lagoon Villas Condo
  • Lake Hampton Estates
  • Lake Hampton Hills
  • Lakeside Park
  • Lakewood
  • Lanceford Creek Plantation
  • Lanceford Oaks
  • Landyns Lake
  • Larchmont
  • Lee Plantation
  • Lee Stoner Shores
  • Leeward Cove
  • Lemacks Heights
  • Leslie Court
  • Lil Morning Dove Estates
  • Linkside Villas
  • Lisa Park
  • Little Dunes
  • Little Piney Island
  • Live Oak Plantation
  • Lofton Bluff
  • Lofton Creek
  • Lofton Oaks at Yulee
  • Lofton Pointe
  • Lofton Reserve
  • Long Point
  • Lorena
  • Lumber Creek
  • Magnolia Point
  • Manucy Pointe
  • Maplewood Manor
  • Mariners Walk Villas
  • Marlin Park
  • Marsh Cove Condo
  • Marsh Creek Village
  • Marsh Lakes
  • Marshes at Lanceford
  • Mcarthur Addition To Callahan
  • Meadowfield Bluffs
  • Meadows Bend
  • Meares Meadows
  • Miramar Beach
  • Mobley Heights North
  • Monica Estates
  • Morning Dove Estates
  • Mulberry Landing
  • Murrays Triangle
  • Nassau Acres
  • Nassau Lake
  • Nassau Landing
  • Nassau Oaks
  • Nassau Plantations
  • Nassau Village
  • Nassau Village West
  • Nassauville Woods
  • Natures Gate
  • Natures Walk
  • Nichols Acres
  • North Deerwood
  • North Hampton
  • North Hilliard Terrace
  • North Pointe
  • North Shore
  • Northbrook
  • O Neil Heights
  • Oak Crest
  • Oak Grove Place
  • Oak Hill Estate
  • Oak Lawn Park
  • Oak Manor
  • Oak Marsh Estates
  • Oak Point at Long Point
  • Oak Ridge
  • Oak Woods
  • Oakleaf
  • Oaks at Bristol
  • Oakview
  • Ocean Blvd Estates
  • Ocean Breeze Farms
  • Ocean City
  • Ocean Club Drive
  • Ocean Club Villas Condo
  • Ocean Cove Townhomes Condo
  • Ocean Dunes
  • Ocean Dunes Condo
  • Ocean Forest
  • Ocean Gardens
  • Ocean Hills
  • Ocean Oaks
  • Ocean Park Condo
  • Ocean Ridge
  • Ocean Sound
  • Ocean View Estates
  • Ocean View Villas Condo
  • Ocean Village
  • Ocean Walk
  • Oceans Eight
  • Oceans of Amelia
  • Oceanside
  • Old Town
  • Osprey Village
  • Otter Run
  • Outrigger Villas
  • Oyster Bay
  • Oysterville
  • Page Hill
  • Pages Road Estates
  • Palm Bluff
  • Park Avenue Suites Condo
  • Parkview
  • Parkwood
  • Parliament Estates Condo
  • Peeks Acres
  • Pelican Pointe
  • Penny Haddock Estates
  • Periwinkle Cottages Condo
  • Perret Plantation
  • Philips Manor
  • Phoenix Walk
  • Pickett Estates
  • Pierces Subdivision
  • Pigeon Creek Ridge
  • Pine Dale
  • Pine Knoll
  • Pine Meadow
  • Pine Ridge
  • Pinebreeze Estates
  • Pineview
  • Piper Dunes
  • Pirates Bay
  • Pirates Cove
  • Pirates Wood
  • Pittman Acres
  • Plantation Oaks
  • Plantation Point
  • Pleasant Park
  • Poinsetta Park
  • Point South
  • Pool Villas
  • Port of Call Condo
  • Preserve at Summer Beach
  • Priest Tract
  • Prospect Landing Plantation
  • Quail Ridge Farms
  • Quail Road Estates
  • Railroad Estates
  • Rainbow Acres
  • Randy Acres
  • Ratliff Acres
  • Ratliff Crossing
  • Rayon Terrace
  • Red Bay Forest
  • Reserve at Deer Run
  • Reserve at Old Bluff
  • River Glen
  • River Oaks of Amelia
  • River Place at Summer Beach
  • River Road Estates
  • Riverside Estates
  • Riverview
  • Riverwood Estates
  • Robert Highlands
  • Robinwood Estates
  • Rocking Horse Farms
  • Rosemont Garden
  • Roses Bluff
  • Rosewood
  • Rosewood Meadows
  • Rowe Acres
  • Sadler Estates
  • Sail Inn Condo
  • Sand Castles
  • Sand Dollar Villas
  • Sand Pine Hills
  • Sapps Subdivision
  • Sea Chase at Ocean Village Condo
  • Sea Dunes Condo
  • Sea Grove
  • Sea Island Plantation
  • Sea Marsh Village
  • Sea Walk
  • Sea Watch
  • Sea Winds
  • Seascape at Amelia
  • Seaside Retreat Condo
  • Seaview
  • Selva Verda
  • Settler’s Ridge
  • Seymore Point Addition
  • Shadow Woods
  • Shady Grove
  • Shady Wood
  • Sheffield
  • Sheffield Bluff
  • Sheffield Village
  • Sherwood Forest
  • Ship Watch Villas
  • Simmons Cove
  • Sorenson Terrace
  • Sound Point at Long Point
  • Sound Point Court
  • South Beach
  • South Hilliard
  • South Hilliard Terrace
  • Southern Creek
  • Southern Glen
  • Southwave
  • Spanish Oaks
  • Spencer Cove
  • Spradley Estates
  • Spring Hill
  • Spring Lake Estates
  • Spring Meadow
  • Spyglass Villas Condos
  • St Marys Heights
  • St Marys Highland
  • St Patricks Cove
  • Stevens Landing
  • Stevens Place
  • Strathmore Place
  • Suhrer Tract
  • Summer Beach West
  • Summer Estates
  • Sunbelt Sentry
  • Sunny Vale
  • Sunowa Spring
  • Swallowfork Estates
  • Sweetwater Oaks
  • Tarpon View
  • Taylor Estates
  • Tennis Villas
  • Terminal Heights
  • The Amelia Resort Condo
  • The Breakers Condominium
  • The Colony
  • The Cottages at Stoney Creek
  • The Cove at Oyster Bay
  • The Landings of Amelia
  • The Last Acre
  • The Oaks
  • The Palms at Amelia Condo
  • The Park
  • The Pelicans
  • The Pines
  • The Pointe at Long Point
  • The Residence
  • The Residence at Amelia Landings Unit
  • The Sanctuary
  • The Sandpiper
  • The Terraces at Beachside
  • The Trails
  • The Tuscany Condo
  • The Villages of Marsh Lakes
  • The Villas at Summer Beach Condo
  • Tidewater at Ocean Reach
  • Timber Creek Plantation
  • Timber Ridge
  • Timber Run
  • Timberland Estates
  • Trinity Circle
  • Tupelo Plantation
  • Turning Leaf
  • Turtle Dunes
  • Twin Oaks
  • Victoria Landing
  • Village of Crandal
  • Villages of Woodbridge
  • Virginia Colony Farms
  • Watermans Bluff
  • Waters Edge
  • Waterway Oaks at Oyster Bay
  • Watkins Estate
  • Whispering Oaks
  • White Oaks
  • Wide Road Acres
  • Wilderness Plantation
  • Wilders Sub of Nassau River Parcel
  • Wildwood Condominium
  • Willa Villa
  • Willow Branch Acres
  • Wilson &Amp; Ogilvie
  • Wilson Neck
  • Windsong
  • Windsor Place
  • Windward Cove
  • Windward Duplexes
  • Windy Oaks
  • Wingate Landing
  • Woodgrove Acres
  • Woodland Estates
  • Woodland Forest
  • Woodland Oaks
  • Woodside Estates
  • Yulee Farms
  • Yulee Heights
  • Yulee Hills
  • Yulee Park
  • Yulee South
  • Yulee Woods

Fernandia as described in 1939 [1]

Fernandia, once an active port because of its natural harbor, is now an industrial city in which shrimp and menhaden fisheries and the manufacture of pulp paper are the leading industries. The tall, white stacks and brick buildings of the Fernandia pulp mills rise abruptly from the low shores of the St. Marys River on the north and east sides of the town, overshadowing faded red brick buildings once occupied by ship chandlers. The sidewalks of Atlantic Avenue, the principal thoroughfare, are roofed over with metal awnings, providing shade for leisurely shoppers.

The town lies on the northwestern shore of Amelia Island, separated from the mainland by the St. Marys River estuary on the north, by the Amelia River on the west, and by Nassau Sound on the south. The city docks, 3 miles from the ocean, are reached by a 30-foot channel through Cumberland Sound and the Amelia River, a link in the Intracoastal Waterway. Three shrimp canneries along the waterfront rival the pulp mills in importance. Other plants produce fertilizer, fish oil, and feed for livestock. Although the city does not depend on tourists for its livelihood, its exceptional beach attracts visitors from all the southeastern States.

North of the city on a hill above the marshes, a cluster of weathered dwellings occupied by fishermen and retired ship captains and pilots constitutes Old Town, the first settlement. A Spanish post stood here as early as 1686, at which time the island was called Santa Maria. In 1699 the English King, in granting territory to Carolina, included in it the northern half of the Florida peninsula, and in September, 1702, Governor James Moore of South Carolina led the English and their Indian allies to the island, captured the Spanish post, and destroyed its mission. Other attacks followed forcing large groups of inhabitants to flee, and by 1730 the island was deserted. In 1735 General James Oglethorpe, founder of Georgia, established a post manned by 50 soldiers, finding the island so beautiful that he renamed it in honor of Princess Amelia, sister of King George II. The War of Jenkins Ear, which began in 1739, brought renewed conflict between the Spanish and English. At its close the island was recognized as Spanish by the peace treaty of 1748, but retained a small English population, remnants of Oglethorpe's garrison.

At the outbreak of the American Revolution the Florida colonials were loyal to the crown, and a British fort was erected at the north end of the island, near the present site of Fort Clinch. During a skirmish at the southern tip, the Americans burned a number of British houses and destroyed cattle. As the fortunes of the British in the colonies waned, large numbers of Tories came south to the island and remained until forced to leave in 1783 when Florida was returned to Spain. Many disappointed Englishmen went to the Bahamas, West Indies and Nova Scotia. Some went home, although a few transferred their allegiance to Spain and remained here. A large tract of land was granted by the Spanish government to Don Domingo Fernandez; included in it was the village named in his honor, Fernandia.

Fernandia, lying just across the border, became a resort for pirates and smugglers in 1807 and 1808, when the Embargo Act and an act forbidding the importation of slaves were passed. A captain carrying a cargo of slaves not only had to run the gauntlet of government patrol boats, but also had to be on the lookout for hijackers, who usually lurked behind the marshy islands. Pierre and Jean LaFitte, it is said, were among the hijackers who preyed on the smugglers.

Meanwhile Spain, its attention distracted by an impending war with Napoleon, was losing its grip on Florida. France, England and the United States all looked upon the peninsula as key to the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, and at one time 26 English warships lay off Fernandia harbor. As war between the United States and England became imminent, President Madison attempted to forestall English seizure of Florida, and appointed a commissioner to carry out his plans. General George Matthews sought to accomplish this by organizing a Patriots' Rebellion on his arrival in Fernandia. In March, 1812, an army of 200 occupied the Spanish fort without bloodshed and set up a "Republic of Florida." John McIntosh, its leader, had been promised protection and reimbursement by Matthews. Because of the objections of the Spanish and English minsters, McIntosh's followers finally withdrew, and Fernandia was once again returned to Spain.

In the last few months of 1817, possession of Fernandia passed from one adventurer to another. Gregor MacGregor, a 31-year-old Scotch visionary and an advocate of South American independence, came into port with 5 vessels. The Spanish garrison surrendered, and MacGregor, with men recruited from Savannah and Charleston, formed a town government, appointed a mayor, and set up stores to sell merchandise landed from his ships. Soon Spaniards in East Florida joined forces and General MacGregor retreated.

Jared Irwin, a former U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania, took over MacGregor's command, recruited an additional force among the privateers operating in Fernandia, defeated the Spaniards after a short battle, and took undisputed possession. At this time Luis Aury, a pirate of French ancestry operating on the Gulf coast, put in with 13 ships carrying loot said to exceed $60,000. Aury claimed the island and appointed Irwin "Adjutant General." Because he had been the first governor of Texas under Mexican rule and was still an official of that government, he raised the Mexican flag above the fort.

In December 1817, Captain J.E. Henry brought the U.S. Corvette John Adams into the harbor under secret orders from President Monroe. He landed troops, met no resistance, and hoisted the American flag. Presently Aury sailed away to resume his career as a pirate. The island became officially American in 1821, when Florida was ceded to the United States.

Because of Fernandia's importance as a port, the Government began to fortify the town in 1847, when work on Fort Clinch was started. Although there was a boom when the Florida Railroad made Fernandia its eastern terminus, the outbreak of the War between the States delayed the city's growth.

  1. Federal Works Agency, Works Progress Administration, Federal Writers' Program, Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State. American Guide Series, Florida Department of Public Instruction, 1939.

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