December 4: Luminary Night welcomes the community to the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum during the holiday season
Luminary Night is an annual tradition hosted by the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum. From 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, December 4, the Museum grounds will open for an evening community celebration for all ages. More than 2,000 luminaries are displayed throughout the grounds and on the streets surrounding this historic landmark, creating a magical holiday experience. Lights and holiday décor also adorn the 1876 Keepers’ House and other [...]
Veterans Receive Free Admission on Veterans Day
The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum will offer FREE admission for US Military Veterans on Veterans Day; Monday, November 11. Museum hours are 9 AM to 6 PM. Immediate family members of Veterans will receive 10 percent off admission. Free admission is also available for active military and their immediate family on Veterans Day and all year long. St. Johns County Residents pay once and can visit for a [...]
St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum celebrates the 145th Anniversary of the Historic Tower
St. Johns County residents receive free admission on October 15 with code JSL The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum celebrates 145 years of maritime history in the current historic, lighthouse tower. The second lighthouse at St. Augustine was built from 1871 to 1874 and topped by the first-order Fresnel lens from Paris, France. The first lighting was by Keeper William Russell on October 15, 1874. “The tower stands testament [...]
Sunken history: Ponte Vedra Beach shipwreck presents snapshot of centuries-old maritime customs
From The St. Augustine Record By Colleen Jones Brendan Burke has been studying shipwrecks for years — dozens of them in different pieces and conditions. Archaeologist Brendan Burke will speak about wooden shipwrecks at 7 p.m. September 12, 2019 at Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience. But when a shipwrecked hull, the ribs of its frame almost fully intact, washed ashore south of Ponte Vedra Beach in late-March 2018, Burke had the [...]
St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum closed due to Mandatory Evacation Order
St. Johns County to Open Evacuation Shelters and Issue Mandatory Evacuation for Zones A and B St. Johns County, Fl – Due to intensified conditions of Hurricane Dorian, St. Johns County has issued mandatory evacuation orders effective for 8 a.m. on Monday, September 2 for Evacuation Zones A and B, which includes the entire City of St. Augustine, the City of St. Augustine Beach, and those living on waterfront property [...]
Sept. 4: New Ghost Hunters episode at the St. Augustine Lighthouse airs on A&E
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – They’re back! Attention Ghost Hunter fans: Third time’s a charm! The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum will be featured at 9 p.m. Wednesday, September 4 on A&E in a new episode of Ghost Hunters called “Return to St. Augustine.” Prior to 2019, the original Ghost Hunters (TAPS, The Atlantic Paranormal Society), filmed at the St. Augustine Lighthouse in 2006 and 2008. From the A&E website: [...]
Handcrafted wooden strip kayak offered through silent auction
ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – The nonprofit St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum is offering a handcrafted wooden kayak to the community through a silent auction. Created by volunteers in Heritage Boatworks, the kayak is made from strips of red cedar, mahogany and cypress coated with fiberglass. Heritage Boatworks volunteers working on the strip kayak. This unique design features the St. Augustine Lighthouse spelled out in in Morse code which runs [...]
PHOTOS: Anastasia Island historic photographs
Historic photographs on Anastasia Island from the late-19th through the late-20th centuries.
PHOTOS: World War II U.S. Coast Guard photos in St. Augustine, Florida
View historic photos of St. Augustine when it was a US Coast Guard station during World War II (1941-1945).
Aug. 17-18: International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend
St. Augustine Amateur Radio Society will be on site with HAM Radios ST. AUGUSTINE, FL – The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum will join 400+ lighthouses from throughout the world for International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend (ILLW) from August 17-18, with support from members of the St. Augustine Amateur Radio Society (SAARS) on the grounds of the nonprofit Museum throughout the weekend. Members of SAARS will operate the HAM [...]
National Lighthouse Day celebrated August 7 at St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum
Alexander Hamilton was first Supervisor of all U.S. lighthouses Long before the days of GPS, lighthouses played an integral role in keeping sailors safe on the water. There was no Siri to tell them where to go, so they simply had to fully rely on their wits … and lighthouses. The first St. Augustine Lighthouse, called the Spanish Watchtower, which become Florida's first lighthouse in 1824. This tower fell into [...]
229th US Coast Guard Birthday celebrated Aug. 4, 2019
Established on August 4, 1790, the U.S. Coast Guard has kept the nation’s waterways safe, playing a critical role in national security. Every year, August 4 is celebrated as the U.S. Coast Guard Birthday, commemorating the military organization for its valor and discipline. Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury, founded the Revenue Marine — which later became the U.S. Coast Guard. A US Coast Guard retired fog bell [...]
Ivory Lice Comb found on 1782 shipwreck
This lice comb was found in a concretion from the Storm shipwreck, a 1782 American Revolutionary War shipwreck excavated by St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum archaeologists and students from 2009-2017. View other artifacts from this shipwreck in WRECKED!, an exhibit in the Keepers' House at the Museum. Read more about the shipwreck here. View artifacts in the WRECKED! exhibit which were found on the 1782 American Revolutionary War shipwreck. [...]
St. Augustine Lighthouse nominated as Best Haunted Destination by USA Today’s 10Best
Voting open through August 26 The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum was nominated as Best Haunted Destination 2019 by USA Today’s 10Best website. Voting opened on July 29 and continues through Aug. 26 at 10best.com/awards/travel/best-haunted-destination-2019/ From the story: “The United States is filled with purportedly haunted locations, each with their own ghost stories and paranormal occurrences. Vote once per day for your favorite haunted destination until voting ends on Monday, August [...]
New Florida License Plate features artist rendering of Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse – available Aug. 9
This new Florida license plate depicting the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse will be available starting Aug. 8, 2019 at VisitOurLights.org or your local tag office. Funds raised go to the Florida Lighthouse Association, which aids in preservation and restoration of Florida’s 29 remaining historic lighthouses. Revenues assist in the saving and restoration of Florida’s beloved beacons JUPITER, FL – Images of Jupiter’s beloved, iconic Light are everywhere, and now a very [...]