Know your City tour returns this month

Citizens for the Preservation of St. Augustine member Nancy Sikes-Kline reported to Historic City News that in recognition of National Historic Preservation Month, her organization will sponsor two “Know your City” tours.

“Here is your chance to learn some fascinating history,” Sikes-Kline told Historic City News. “Most residents and visitors are familiar with the more famous sites and attractions, but what about the areas beyond the boundaries of the immediate historic neighborhoods and shopping areas?”

Some of the lesser-known areas of St. Augustine will be highlighted on the tour; narrated by local historian David Nolan.

The “Streetcar Suburbs” from the trolley age of nearly a century ago; old plantations that have been turned into subdivisions; hidden hotels from the Flagler Era; the home of TIME Magazine’s Man of the Year for 1929; Henry Flagler’s first train station and the last remains of his mansion “Kirkside” which was demolished in 1950, are all part of the tour.

Highlighted will be threatened sites in need of preservation and other sites where magnificent buildings once stood but which have since been demolished. Also included will be a view of the controversial Collins House on Nelmar Avenue; one of the St. Augustine’s landmarks from the 1920’s Florida Land Boom.

The house, located on a residential street, is owned by the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind and is being subjected to extensive remodeling. Some in the neighborhood say that the renovations are destroying many of its historic features and making it an eyesore.

This tour will be offered on Saturday, June 18th — once at 9:30 a.m. and again at 12:00 noon. Advance reservations are required, as this annual tour is always in great demand. You can join a “Know Your City” tour of the Nation’s Oldest City by calling Alison Simpson at 904-669-7919.

The cost of this fascinating and entertaining glimpse into St. Augustine’s past is $15.00 per person. Tours will leave from and return to the parking lot of The Old Jail Museum, 167 San Marco Avenue, St. Augustine, with transportation sponsored by Old Town Trolley Tours of St. Augustine, Historic Tours of America.

Photo credits: © 2011 Historic City News staff photographer