The St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum is open from 9am to 6pm daily, and to 7pm in summer and on holidays (except Thanksgiving and Christmas, when it's closed). One afternoon, while Pittees daughters and a few of their friends were playing near the lighthouse, tragedy struck, and the island was changed forever. One of St. Augustine's haunted cemeteries. The Spanish then converted the wooden tower into a stone structure. The St. Augustine lends consists of 370 hand cut glass prisms arranged in a bee hive shape towering 12 feet tall and 6 feet in diameter. Near the turn of the 20th century, steam-powered vessels were becoming more common, making it easier for ships to maneuver around the shallow sandbars outside St. Augustine. One night, in the dark Lighthouse tower, a lone staff member was closing up for the night. A terrifying specter called The Man in Blue appears to workers, making their shift a living hell. Most notably, a little girl in a blue dress, believed to be the ghost of the older Pity sister, has been spotted lingering among the grounds. The two eldest Pittee children, Eliza and Mary drowned. He most likely walked to the tower from his residence at the old, St. Augustine Light Station, upon which the sea was rapidly encroaching. The authentic lens remains active and preserved in the St. Augustine Lighthouse today thanks to the efforts of the Junior Service League of St. Augustine and its president Virginia Whetstone, Dan Spinella, Cullen Chambers and USCG veterans Joe Cocking and Nick Johnston of Lighthouse Lamp Shop. With sea levels rising, it was evident that the first St. Augustine Lighthouse would need rebuilding. Workers will often discover locked doors suddenly open, they report disembodied laughter in the middle of the night, and music boxes sold in the gift shop tend to pop open and play on their own. Even before the remains were unearthed, workers and patients inside the hospital reported an evil spirit roaming the wards. As a result of these events, many people believe that the ghost encounters theyve experienced are in fact the spirits of the girls and Mr. Andreu. Flagler extended his railroads and hotels south into Florida developing Palm Beach and eventually even building a railroad into Key West, a move that some called Flaglers Folly. During the tumultuous years of war and battles, it is said that one particular event caused several spirits to haunt the fort and its a twisted story of love and betrayal. Thousands of Native Americas also came and camped outside the City Gates seeking British protection. St. Johns County, where it is located, considered purchasing the property and building condominiums on the land, but were stopped when the Junior Service League stepped in with a plan to restore the property and open a maritime museum. St. Augustine is famous for its rich history and hair-raising ghost stories. Click for possible tour changes on the day of your tour. It was hand-blown in Paris specifically for the St. Augustine Lighthouse in 1874. For those especially interested in the paranormal activity, the lighthouse offers the Dark of the Moon Tour, a comprehensive tour of all the haunted sites related to the lighthouse. Confused, the woman said she had no daughter. St. Augustine, Florida, the oldest city in the nation, is home to arguably the most haunted lighthouse in America. Tour guides also report increased incidences of being touched while showing visitors around. The ship was scuttled and some of its supplies were used not only to strengthen the different forts in the area but to shore up the lighthouse. Ghosts & Gravestones, Frightseeing, Old Town Trolley Tours and Transportainment are registered trademarks of Historic Tours of America. The British quickly added to the watchtower, heightening it. The best time to visit St. Augustine is between March and May. The lighthouse that is preserved and toured today is actually a replacement for an original Lighthouse that existed for decades before it deteriorated and fell into the Atlantic Ocean in 1880. Just travel down I-4 East to I-95 North. He also provided a means for tourists to arrive at and check into his new hotels safely, investing in both rail lines and steamships. During this time, you'll find fewer people, comfortable temperatures and low hotel and airfare rates. And many guests say they could see an imprint on the bed in one of the rooms, as if someone was laying on it. Grandfather Tang's Story by Ann Tompert and Robert Andrew Parker riffs on a Chinese form of storytelling based on cutting seven shapes from 2022 Ghost City, Ghost City Tours. One family member in particular, Dolores Martis, the wife of Colonel Garcia Martis, is said to be among the spirits that still linger at the fort today. (Graham, T., 2008, 5, p. 40-41). However, they set about the task of stimulating trade and settlement. Allegedly, visitors and workers have seen moving shadows, heard voices and unexplained sounds, and seen the figures of two little girls standing on the lighthouse catwalk (who purportedly were daughters of Hezekiah Pittee, Superintendent of Lighthouse Construction, during the 1870s. On July 10, 1873, the three Pittee sisters, Mary (15), Eliza (13), and Carrie (4), along with an unknown African-American girl (10), whose father may have worked on the site, were riding in the cart as normal. It was in 1821 when the city of St. Augustine had to replace several water lines under the Spanish Military Hospital. Other reports include hearing the cries and screams of patients dying within the hospitals rooms, even though no one was in sight. The St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum opened full-time in early 1994 and the site was soon added to the National Register of Historic Places. The lens itself is 9-feet tall, and Russell would have had to climb inside of it to light it. It is one part of an aid-to-navigation system here supporting military defense, travel, trade, fishing, boat building and pleasure boating since the 16th century. Want a different color? On the night of New Years Eve in 1782, 16 ships wrecked while attempting to enter the harbor. It remained non-functioning until after the war, when the new, victorious American government finally relit the beacon in 1867, returning it to operation. Thousands of veterans artifacts are preserved by the Museum staff. During the renovation, both construction workers and the JSL volunteers reported numerous unexplained incidents in the home. In 1993, the Junior Service League of St. Augustine held the first Community Day with a lens relighting and fireworks. 1783-1821 Because of his tall, thin frame, some believe he is the ghost of William Russel, a protective and dutiful lighthouse keeper from the 1850s. Armed guards were stationed at St. Augustine Lighthouse to watch the sea 24 hours a day. You cant help but wonder what it would feel like if you stepped out too? This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Thank you. The 39th annual Lighthouse 5k Run/Walk & Fun Run and Night Fest on Feb. 18 will be presented by The Junior Service League of St. Augustine at 81 Lighthouse Ave. in St. Augustine. A couple of sailors lost their lives in the tragedy. You too grip the railing, white-knuckled, looking out over the trees to the water beyond. It seems that the hospital was built on top of a Timucuan burial ground. There are two very well known events that paranormal experts agree could have caused the beautiful St. Augustine Lighthouse to become a site for paranormal activity. The British quickly heightened the Spanish watchtower on Anastasia Island with 30 feet of wooden construction. CONTENTS Page. Hezekiah H. Pittee was assigned the task and he oversaw most of the construction efforts. The original lighthouse, built in 1824, was approximately 500 yards northeast of the current lighthouse. Despite setbacks shipping and trade to and from East Florida increased under Governor Grant as the town traded with British colonies to the north. Coordinates were radioed to U.S. St. Johns County was about to purchase the property, and condominiums were discussed as one possibility for the best use of the land. We will definitely be back with friends., Great exhibits and archaeological conservation lab!, I am a ghost enthusiast and I enjoy visiting haunted locations and doing ghost tours. A St. Augustine attraction for history enthusiasts, curious souls and those who enjoy marvelous architecture, The Oldest House Museum Complex offers many things for many people. Anastasia Island is a barrier island located off the northeast Atlantic coast of Florida in the United States.It sits east of St. Augustine, running north-south in a slightly southeastern direction to Matanzas Inlet.The island is about 14 miles (23 km) long and an average of 1 mile in width. The globe is a huge case of glass, which revolves around the lamp every 9 minutes. In 1739, Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose was established north of St. Augustine. We've added some great benefits to our Navigator membership! The site is also a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather station. We continue our archival research and hope to find historical evidence one day to confirm this information. This, plus the coming of the railroad, made St. Augustine Harbor an important step in the distribution of goods to northern markets. Florida was given to Great Britain and divided into East and West Florida. Florida was ceded to Great Britain and divided into East and West Florida. Sign up to receive the scariest of offers and stay current on sales and events. However, as the sea level was rising, it would not be long before a new St. Augustine Light Station was required. One of St. Augustine Lighthouse's most famous ghosts is that of lighthouse keeper Peter Rasmussen. A French engineer by the name of Jean Augustin Fresnel (pronounced Fruh-nel) perfected the Fresnel lens by 1822, changing modern optics forever. Years later, the British press whipped up a frenzy surrounding the incident when Great Britain attempted to take over Caribbean trade routes. The watchtower at the north end of the island eventually became the St. Augustine Lighthouse, and the one at the sound end became Fort Matanzas National Monument. To be nothing more than another memory left behind at the St. Augustine Lighthouse, standing watch and waiting as the centuries slipped by and history rewrote itself. Only one day, while rolling near the cliff's edge, the rail cart came off its tracks, sending the young girls down into the water below. His plan was the remodel and renovate the area, making it more open for tourism and hopefully easing the minds of the locals. So its not surprising that the Nations Oldest City is known as one of the most haunted places in the United States. If not, join us for a ghostly tour of the Old City. and support maritime education. Fall Festivals & Events in St. Augustine & St. Johns County | Totally St. Augustine Home About More Stories County Line Produce // Food Culture in St. Johns County & St. Augustine County Line Produce in Hastings, Florida offers produce from area farms in St. Johns County and throughout Florida. In 1883, a river rail between Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and Halifax made arrival easier. Perhaps it is the Colonel himself, still troubled over what happened. 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