Preliminary Report on Historic Sites at Pensacola, Florida
Kahler HB and Vinten CE. 1938. Preliminary Report on Historic Sites at Pensacola, Florida
Pensacola was settled because of Spanish-French rivalry in the Gulf region. In 1682 Sieur de La Salle sailed down the Mississippi River and claimed the Gulf Region for Louis XIV. In 1684 he organized an expedition which failed to accomplish its purpose. However, it aroused the fears of the Spanish who sent an expedition to Pensacola in 1690 and made the first settlement in the vicinity of where Fort San Carlos de Barranoas now stands. The first fortification erected was a wooden structure about one hundred feet square. The purpose of the settlement was to defend the fine harbor against the French. The defense was not adequate to keep the French from capturing Pensacola in 1719 and holding it until 1723. Before leaving the town the French burned the impoverished settlement. Therefore, the Spanish decided to rebuild their town on Santa Rosa Island.
- Type
- Unpublished Report
- Authors
- Kahler, Herbert; Vinten, C.
- Date of Issue
- 1938-01
- Units
- GUIS , HIST
- Keywords
- ehistory, GUIS, Gulf Islands National Seashore, Historic Sites, Historic Sites, History, man-made structures, Organization, Pensacola