Fort Caroline

Fort Caroline is a national memorial in Arlington, a neighborhood of Jacksonville in Florida. The site includes a reconstructed wooden stockade, exhibit halls, and several trails through wetlands and forest along the St. Johns River.

French Huguenots established the first settlement in 1564, naming it after their king Charles IX. Spanish forces under Pedro Menéndez de Avilés captured it in 1565 and renamed it San Mateo.

The replica shows how a 16th-century wooden fort was built, with pointed palisades forming a triangular layout. Visitor panels explain the encounters between French Huguenots and the Timucua people who lived in the region at that time.

The memorial sits within Timucuan Ecological Preserve and is reached via Fort Caroline Road. Trails wind through shaded riverside areas, and a visitor center shows films and distributes maps.

Archaeologists have searched for decades for the exact location of the original 16th-century fort. The current replica stands on a spot considered probable but never definitively confirmed.

Location: Jacksonville

Inception: January 16, 1953

Architects: René Goulaine de Laudonnière

Website: http://nps.gov/foca

GPS coordinates: 30.38690,-81.50060

Latest update: December 14, 2025 19:24