Florida Historical Markers Programs - Marker Detail

Description: This portion of the St. Augustine sea wall, extending from King Street to the south end of St. Francis Barracks, was constructed during the period 1833 to 1844. The coquina wall with granite top served as protection for the homes and businesses on the waterfront. Stone for the walls was quarried across the Matanzas River on Anastasia Island. The granite coping came from Pennsylvania and Connecticut. Together with the refurbishing of the Castillo de San Marcos, renamed Fort Marion by the Army, this project was an early example of the work assigned to graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, the first engineering school in the United States. This was one of the earliest federally funded projects in the Territory of Florida. The West Point graduates who designed and supervised the work were: 1st Lieutenant Stephen Tuttle (1797-1835; Class of 1820); 1st Lieutenant Francis L. Dancy (1806-1890; Class of 1826), 1st Lieutenant Henry W. Benham (1818-1884; Class of 1837) and 1st Lieutenant Jeremy F. Gilmer (1818-1883; Class of 1839).