The Idea Vault
We can expect an endless list of ideas to celebrate 450 years of history and, our archaeologists remind us, thousands of years before. Our community's task is to bring out the best and find the sponsors.
We envision creation of an official commemorative commission, a 450 signature logo, and sanctioning of programs and projects with exclusive rights to use that logo. Individuals, organizations, and businesses will want to develop their ideas and look to their ranks or outside sponsors to support them.
For the sponsor, there will be recognition in the years leading up to the commemoration dates, and for those programs and projects that will continue beyond the 450th, continuing recognition by millions in generations to come. These would be projects and programs like annual festivals, permanent historic marker programs, and funding to preserve historic buildings and sites.
There may be some government financing, and 450 Corps and the ultimate official commission will be raising funds for their operations, but the most effective plan will match specific programs and projects with sponsors.
We're starting now both to invite folks with busy schedules, like kings, popes, and major entertainers, and for potential projects and festivals to smooth out the wrinkles in the years before the commemoration date.
We look forward to our community commenting on and adding to the list through our interactive forum as we capture 450 years and more of history.
Education
- Whole History Education - Several have suggested a website to educate students worldwide on that century of missing American history before the British landing at Jamestown in 1607. Such a site already exists, www.flahum.org/colonial, a cooperative effort of federal and state humanities organizations with the University of Florida.
- Symposia - Think Spain's early role, Exploration, Missions, Matanzas, the British period, the Seminole Wars, Civil War, archaeology, architecture.
- The Mission Period - A natural for a symposium of historians and archaeologists to tell the tale of the struggle to bring Christianity to the new world.
- Permanent Collections - No limit on the number of books, films, and art that can be produced as legacies for future generations.
- Essay Contests - At every level, to probe and experience cultures and events in 450 years of history.
- Tour Guide Training - The Historic St. Augustine Research Institute, Inc. will take on an updating of tour guide training and certification, to assure accurate telling of the whole history of 450 years. The Institute is a collaborative project of Flagler College and the University of Florida (UF), and members include UF Drs. Michael Gannon and Kathy Deagan, who first proposed a tour guide seminar.
- Black History Tours - Black history tours through Lincolnville and Fort Mosé will tell a part of our history unknown to many.
- Quality Heritage Atmosphere - A city and county effort to enhance our heritage - perhaps with appropriately attired interpreters, guides, and service workers.
Legacy
- Build a replica 16th century ship - to raise excitement before, exhibit and goodwill sails during, and mooring after as a landmark beside the Castillo.
- Develop a National Heritage Area (NHA) - for the nation's oldest permanent European settlement and port city, with a comprehensive cultural and natural resource assessment that can be used in many other ways to highlight all that we should protect and offer.
- Government House Center for History and Culture - This is the site of the earliest seat of government in Colonial St. Augustine. It also needs about $14 million in renovations. Could be a good legacy project, to renovate and create a St. Augustine Center for History and Culture, providing space for several long-sought needs, including exhibits of archaeological artifacts, historic maps and records, and research facilities.
- St. Augustine Historic Marker Program - A program recently begun offers a specially designed marker using patrons of our walkable city. Organizations and individual property owners have the opportunity to sponsor markers at our historic sites and buildings. Tip to potential sponsors: These - and your name as sponsor, will last for generations.
- Rebuild Historic Properties - We did it in our Restoration Area along St. George Street for our 400th Anniversary, now comes the idea of recreating two 16th century buildings on their original sites: in the Old Town Park at Avilés Street and Bravo Lane, and the original mission building near the great cross at the Mission Nombre de Dios. We have no other representations of those original wood and thatch structures.
- A 16th Century Village - North Florida Militia and Men of Menendez founder Bob Hall has a vision - and supporting details - to recreate our city's first town settlement in1580. It's a vision the late benefactor Lawrence Lewis first proposed decades ago, and could be sited in the Tolomato parking area off Spanish Street.
- Extend Reconstruction Effort - Extend our heritage reconstruction, begun during our 400th. These are the claim to our historic environment.
- Reclaiming historic buildings / sites - There are environment-friendly compounds that can remove darkening stains from our monuments and buildings. A sponsor or sponsors might want to take this one on for recognition of their public service. Imagine the Huguenot and Tolomato cemetery monuments restored with a marker of credit to the sponsor(s).
- Bayfront Bandshell - Some recall a bandshell on the bayfront, between our Marina and Bridge of Lions, just waterside of the miniature golf park, it's conical shell projecting the performance to patrons sitting on the concrete benches. With some adjustments for comfort, it could be. Tip to potential sponsors: naming rights?
- Commemorative plaques and bricks - A fundraising opportunity.
- Connect with Castillo - Building a better connection between our Colonial Spanish Quarter and the Castillo, St. Augustine is planning a Spanish Quarter entrance and tour vehicle stop on Avenida Menendez opposite the Castillo.
- St. Augustine Film Commission - Efforts are afoot to bring film production here, and the best way is a film commission with resources for potential filming sites, ideas, and production professionals.
Festivals & Ceremonies
- Hors d'ouvres/Tapas Gala - Patterned after Retired Senior Volunteers Program annual Chocolate Gala, this one celebrates Spanish tapas and Victorian hors d'ouvres - one and the same pre-meal appetizers, from different eras and cultures.
- A Victorian Celebration - A festive weekend of the Gilded Age, with lawn parties, presentations, balls. History records the comment: "It is a gay city."
- The Lightner Ball - It's time to give our Lightner Museum the respect it deserves as a major national museum. Let's establish an annual Lightner Ball, appropriate dress Victorian or black tie, to benefit this community institution.
- Austurian Pipe Band Festival - This is a biggie, and so important to the story of our heritage. Our founder's birthplace and Asturian region are more bagpipes than bullfights, the music more Gaelic than the expected Spanish. Today's Austurian pipe bands capture that folk flavor. It's going to take a lot of sponsor support to bring an Asturian Pipe Band Festival and fun competition here.
- Music through the eras - From the drums and flutes of this land's earliest natives to today's rock, there's a great history of music to be tapped.
- Period food festival - Special Events Field is ideal for a festival featuring 16th century food, drink, arts and crafts, with vendors in period dress.
- Plaza Program Series - Concerts in the Plaza have proven their worth. How about a variety of programming? Homegrown talent: Storytellers, harpists, violinists, guitarists, quartets ... No shortage of talent. Perhaps this could be the venue for auditioning the talent for 450-sanctioned programs.
- Festival de las Guías - A festival of the Guides, celebrating the tour guides who research and share their love of St. Augustine with our visitors.
- Sister cities concerts and festivals - Featuring folk troupes and music/dance from 16th-17th century Asturias.
- A Spoleto-style Festival - bringing together great music, art, and artists, all of which we have in abundance here and in Jacksonville.
- Florida Indian Wars Commemoration - The West Point Society of North Florida will begin commemoration of "the courage and sacrifices of the Seminoles and Miccosukee Indians and the West Point Graduates who perished in the Florida Indian Wars," at the three coquina pyramids in our National Cemetery on Marine Street. Here rest the soldiers killed during those early 19th century wars.
Cooperative Programs
- The Colonial Capitols of Florida - St. Augustine, Pensacola, and Tallahassee are the triad of Florida's earliest history, and their heirs charged with collaborating to tell the interwoven story.
- U. S. Commemorative Stamps and Coins - Congressional designation of a Federal St. Augustine 450th Commission should open the door to U.S. Postal Service and Mint for special stamps and coins.
- Landing of the Galveztown - Commemorate the relationship of the Spain and America during the Revolutionary War with the landing of the replica ship Galveztown here in 2011.
Exhibits
- Paws and claws pet art/photos - Put on the dog, and cat, and any of our cherished pets, from this and eras throughout our history, with an exhibit of art.
- Artist Competition - Paintings depicting historic events in St. Augustine.
Period Dress
- The Clothes Closet - Feast or Famine, we have lots of folks excited to take part in historic functions, but no closet of period clothes for volunteers. Tip to potential sponsors: the "ABV Company Clothes Closet."
- Dress For The Occasion - A reenactor suggests, "lots of happy people dressed out, like men in puffy short pants and tights
- Team Townsfolk - Like ambassadors for our heritage, we have had a Townsfolk Program funded by the Tourist Development Council in past years. Dressed to represent any earlier period, they walked the historic district in pairs to assist visitors on busier weekends. How about a Team Townsfolk for more weekends and assistance at special events? Tip to potential sponsors: It could be the "ABC Company Team Townsfolk."
Cultures
- Our Dawn - Our annual Indian Pow-Wow expanded to aboriginal Pre-European life and early interaction with these newcomers.
- Florida's Indians - From Timucuan, Guale, Apalachee and numerous other pre-European tribes, through the Seminoles and western tribal leaders held at the Castillo in the late 1800s, Indians have been prominent in our history.
- Florida's Lost Tribes - St. Augustine Artist/Historian Theodore Morris' vivid paintings (a Timucua war leader is shown) bring to life what Morris calls "Florida's Lost Tribes." Opportunity here for periodic exhibit at our visitor center, during those annual pow-wows here, and part of websites on elements of our history. A sponsor for such an exhibit would have a real treasure.
- The Guana Story - In the Ponte Vedra area is one possible Ponce De Leon landing site; a portion of Menendez's march to capture Fort Caroline, Spanish missions, and mounds and burial sites for peoples dating back thousands of years. The Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine research Reserve is a natural for this one.
- Our military history - From the first militia in 1565 through today's Florida State Militia and National Guard headquartered here.
- Fort Mose - special tours and programs on the first free black settlement in today's America.
- Lincolnville - its founding and development, with presentations and permanent markers.
- The Bartram Corridor - There's more to our region's history than Ponce's landing and the Oldest City's founding, like the heritage of Fruit Cove, Switzerland, and Orangedale along the Bartram Scenic & Historic Highway Corridor.
Singular Events
- The 450 Carriage - Community Leader Phil Genovar and company did it for our 425th - one of Henry Flagler's original carriages, highlighting an Atlanta parade. He's still got a carriage. How about an excursion around the state with prearranged parades in partnering cities?
- Historic District Parade - What's an anniversary without a parade? Horses, wagons, kids, officials on balconies, flags, cannon/musket volleys - a lot of stuff better suited to wind through our historic district than down state highways.
- Recreate Cross and Sword play - The play was created for St. Augustine's 400th Anniversary in 1965, and in 1973 was designated Florida's official state play by the Florida Legislature. A lack of state funding forced its closure after the 1996 season.
- A Regatta - A colorful parade of boats on the intracoastal, with fire rings as in Providence RI, using our historical Spanish background to attract the "Williamsburg crowd."
- Spanish Quarter Open Air Market - Create an entertainment zone, periodic or continuing, with a variety of entertainment. Unused west end of the Spanish Quarter might be a good venue for those artists and entertainers who have been banned from St. George Street.
- Revisit Peppermint Lounge - In its heyday THE hangout for African-American teens. The building's still there - the Masonic Lodge next to Chase Field on West King Street.
- Custom souvenir sheets - A listing of 450th programs and events. It could be personalized with purchasers' names headlined, run off on an antique press.
- St. Augustine paper currency and coins - A special series of currency, sold at discount for use where accepted - like 450-sanctioned attractions, venues and events.
- Emancipation Proclamation - A reenactment of the January 1, 1863 reading of the Emancipation Proclamation.
- A march to Fort Caroline - Reprise Pedro Menendez' overland march to capture Fort Caroline.
- Other St. Augustines - Dr. Michael Gannon suggests we contact all other St. Augustines - he rattled off a number worldwide - to submit exhibits, and perhaps a special occasion visit by their officials.
