Fort Caroline is (was) a French Fort established in 1564 for the Hugenots. It’s on the beautiful St. Johns River, near Jacksonville. The current fort is not the exact location of the original, but walking around it, you won’t be able to tell. The National Park Service has done a wonderful job. When the original fort was built, the French were in conflict with the Spanish who established St. Augustine in 1565. The Spanish took over the fort as “San Mateo” until 1569. It was made a National Park in 1953 as part of the Timucan Wildlife Preserve, which includes Fort Caroline and the Kingsley Plantation (the oldest plantation in Florida). It was named for the the Timucua Indians, who were located from the St. Johns River to St. Simons Island in Georgia.
The preserve is 46,000 acres. It’s a great place to see wildlife, especially many types of birds. The fort has a very large parking area, with spaces for buses and RVs. They have free stickers and several Passport Stamps for those who collect them in their National Parks Passport. The fort and the preserve are both massive areas to spend a lovely day in. There are several signs depicting the history of the fort. It’s a fun and educational experience for the entire family. There are period correct cannons and structures. Please check out our new album titled “Fort Caroline” to see the many pictures we took of the fort. We didn’t spend time at the much larger preserve, but we intend to go back. Let us know if you have any pictures of the Timucan Preserve or Fort Caroline. We would love to see them. Here are some of the pictures we took, but for all of them, be sure to check out the album. Fort Caroline gets four thumbs up from us!