May 3rd- A series of William Bartram Trail Markers

Saw this series of 4 markers on the trip today, all commemorating William Bartram, who wandered through here early in the 1700's-  


The first was very near the location of Fort Picolata:  

At Fort Picolata, Nov. 18, 1765,
William Bartram and his father John
saw Creek Indian Treaty signed and
began their Florida plants survey.

Erected by
The Wildflower Garden Club of District IV
In loving memory of Lorraine Ridge
In cooperation with
Florida Federation of Garden Clubs, Inc., and
The Woman's Club of St. Augustine, Fla.

In 1766 on the banks of the St. Johns River at Little Florence Cove, William Bartram attempted to farm a 500-acre land grant. Bartram had spent much of the previous year exploring the new British Colony of East Florida with his father, John Bartram, the Royal Botanist for America under King George III. When John Bartram returned home, near Philadelphia, the younger Bartram stayed in Florida. He hoped like many other settlers to make a fortune exporting cash crops such as indigo and rice. Using six enslaved Africans, Bartram cleared the forest and planted, but within a year he abandoned his farm and returned home. Bartram was known in England for illustrating his father's botanical specimens. Between 1773-1777 patrons financed Bartram's further exploration of the American Southeast. In 1791, he published his observations in Travels Through North and South Carolina, Georgia, East and West Florida, one of the most influential travel accounts of the American frontier. Rather than write a mere scientific catalog, Bartram produced a joyful and tender portrait of a virgin land "with an infinite variety of animated scenes, inexpressibly beautiful and pleasing" which inspired the poets of England's Romantic Movement.

A Florida Heritage Site sponsored by the St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners and the Florida Department of State

Within a mile and a half of this marker are numerous prehistoric sites, several of which date from 2000 BC Native Americans occupied the Northern river section from about 4000 BC until the arrival of Europeans after 1500 AD.
   Riverbank settlements, permanent villages, and small seasonal campsites were common prehistoric site types. Abundant natural resources provided inhabitants with opportunities to hunt, fish and collect shellfish and plants.
   By the 1770's, when William Bartram explored this area and Francis Fatio established his homestead, few Native American peoples remained in the region. Today, shell refuse deposits, pieces of pottery, stone and bone tools, and soil stains provide archaeological evidence reflecting the lifeways of those early Florida residents.

My chief happiness consisted

in tracing and admiring the

infinite power, majesty, and

perfection of the Creator.