Discover Fernandina Beach
Fernandina Beach has two historic centers whose relationship is explained by transportation and land conditions. Old Town retains the street plan laid out under Spanish authority in 1811. The later downtown developed farther south as David Levy Yulee's Florida Railroad project changed the location of the commercial center. These are connected stages of one community's development, not competing versions of where the town began.
More about Fernandina Beach
Rail construction started in 1855 near Old Fernandina, but marshy land helped force the terminus southward. The line to Cedar Key was completed in 1861, connecting the Atlantic-side harbor with Florida's Gulf coast. The new transport route encouraged development around the later town center.
Much of the surviving downtown architecture dates from the 1880s through the 1920s, although some earlier buildings remain. The city's design guidelines identify a mixture of revival styles associated with residential, commercial and civic growth. The railroad's opening date should therefore not be mistaken for the construction date of every historic building.
The city's district maps and preservation guidelines are useful tools for distinguishing Old Town's plan from downtown's later streetscape. They also identify individual historic places such as the Peck Center and Amelia Island Lighthouse, showing that local heritage extends beyond a single compact shopping district.
Sources
- City of Fernandina Beach: Historic Districts: https://fbfl.us/historicdistrict
- City of Fernandina Beach: Downtown Historic District Design Guidelines: https://www.fbfl.us/DocumentCenter/View/13540
