In 1513, over a hundred years before the Mayflower arrived on New World shores, an arrogant Spanish explorer named Juan Ponce de Leon landed on a strange peninsula of land. He found this land so beautiful and compelling, he named it 'La Florida', which means 'The Flower', in observation of Pascua Florida, the Spanish Easter holiday.

Ponce rushed back to Spain to tell of this beautiful New World he had discovered and claimed for his Spanish king; a place of gentle ocean breezes, lush plants and flowers, and villages of native Indians that moved through these lands gathering from the endless supply of life necessities.

During his career of daring exploration, Ponce had heard rumors of a 'Fountain of Youth' - a place so beautiful and perfect one needed only to sip from local waters to remain young and strong forever. He was convinced he had found this wonderous place and immediately made plans to return there and establish colonies for Spain.

Ponce did return to see his discovery again, but did not live to see it colonized by Spain. Other Spanish explorers made several efforts to establish settlements in Florida; all failed, and in 1561 Spain eventually abandoned efforts to settle Florida. Then, King Philip II of Spain received word that France had sent an expedition to colonize Florida. Nothing fires interest like competiton, and once again the race to establish dominance in the New World was on.

Pedro Menendez, of Aviles, Spain, was an experienced and brash explorer, willing to take on any challenge. In 1565, under his king's orders, Menendez set sail for Ponce's Florida; to colonize it, establish missions to Christianize the locals and rid it, once and for all, of the French presence. He did not intend to fail.

On September 8, 1565, Pedro Menedez de Aviles landed on the shores of Ponce's Florida. He claimed the land for his country and his king, and named his soon-to-be settlement in honor of the observation of the feast day of St Augustine. He came ashore, and after a religious service, set out again to find and eliminate the French intruders.

He sailed to the French settlement just north of St Augustine, and questioned the men he found there. After learning the location of the rest of the French, he sailed south along the Matanzas River, the same river that runs along St Augustine, between the city and Anastasia Island, to find them. Some 200 French soldiers now lie at the bottom of that river, whose name is the Spanish word for 'slaughter'.

Menendez had succeeded. St Augustine was born, a Spanish city in a Spanish territory. Spain's claim to the New World was now firm reality, but the true test was yet to come. Spain's grip on this now-valuable holding was only as strong as the people who gave up everything to colonize it. In order to remain a Spanish community, indeed, any community at all, the residents would have to unite and work toward a common goal: survival.

How do we know all this about St Augustine's history? Through written records, to be sure, but also through careful preservation of artifacts and sites found by archaeologists, who just may be the ultimate trackers. Through the efforts of those who have dedicated themselves to exploring and preserving Old St Augustine, we can experience tracks left by those daring explorers; by the people who fought and lived there. And St Augustine is full of tracks; near-perfect tracks left by those who lived and died there. Tracks of fighters, dreamers, and people who never gave up.

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