65b Washington

65b Washington

64-68 Washington Street, St. Augustine, Fla. 32084
65b

St. Mary's Baptist Church

Recreation Hall

The eastern section of Dumas Tract Subdivision, the genesis of Lincolnville, is bounded on the north by Bridge Street, an 18th century thoroughfare which led to one of three late colonial San Sebastian River ferry crossings. The subdivision also is in the vicinity of the early 18th century Indian village of Palica. The tract evolved out of two early 19th century Spanish land grants to Bartolo Juarez and Gaspar Papy, a prosperous Greek merchant who came to St. Augustine from New Smyrna in 1777. Both soon developed some of the first commercial orange groves in Florida. [1] By the late 1830's, the grants were consolidated by Peter Sken Smith, a prominent Territorial period land speculator, who subdivided much of the tract and commenced selling lots. The economic depression of the 1840's ended attempts to develop the areas on the fringes of the old city, and by 1840 Phillip Weedman and Peter Dumas, county clerk and post-Civil War leader of the Florida Radical Republicans, acquired most of the property formerly belonging to Smith. [2] After the war, the community of Africa soon developed on the marshes of Maria Sanchez Creek and by the early 1870's, Blacks began buying lots and building homes along Central Avenue and Benedict Street. Construction along Oneida and Bridge Streets commenced later in the decade. By 1885, Lincolnville, Washington Street, become a prosperous Black commercial district in the first several decades of the 20th century. By that time, Lincolnville had extended beyond its original boundaries into adjacent area, particularly Genovar and Atwood Tract Subdivisions. Today Lincolnville generally refers to the all Black neighborhoods in the southwest peninsula. [3]
The original wood frame commercial building at 64-68 Washington Street housed many business. Among these were: Burton Masters' meat market [1899], E. Glover's grocery [1899], Ike Kukowsky's dry goods store [1899]. (4) One of the few Black men in St. Augustine to own and operate a cigar manufacturing factory was Alvin T. Gibbs, and who had the shop at 64 Washington in 1907. (5) Another occupant was Andrew Huff, and embalmer at W. F. Macon Company [1911], Fernando Falaney, who had a meat market here [1911], and the Ideal Tailors, operate by Nathan and Morris Tarlinksy and H. O. Livingston. (6) Today the entire building is owned by St. Mary's Baptist Church. (7)

The two-story Masony Vernacular commercial building at 64-68 Washington Street was constructed after 1930 and is on the site of an earlier wood frame commercial structure. The current building is made of concrete block stuccoed over and had a flat parapet roof. There are two large arched entrances on the front. In 1893 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map showed several buildings on this site: (1) a one-story cigar store, (2) a one-story private residence and (3) connected to (2) on the south was a one-story shoe shop. The 1899 Map shows a row of connected stores of which a one-story grocery and a one-story dry goods store on this property. By 1904 the dry good store has been turned into a restaurant and the south half of the grocery has become a restaurant as well. By 1910 (1) is a cigar store, (2) is a barber shop and (3) is an undertaker, although by 1917 (1) and (2) are vacant and (3) is a barber shop. Both the 1924 and 1930 Maps show this as stores and after 1930 the current two-story concrete block structure was divided into two stores downstairs and apartments upstairs as it remains today. Recently renovated it is owned by St. Mary's Baptist Church.
The Lincolnville area first developed along Washington Street after the Civil War. But the development that preceeded its heyday took place in the Flagler Era. The 1885 Birdseye view of St. Augustine shows churches and small residences scattered along the banks of Maria Sanchez Creek. The 1894 Birdeye shows the Creek filled in, where the Ponce de Leon and Alcazar Hotels and Ponce de Leon Barracks were built. By this time several commercial buildings had been constructed along Washington Street. By the early 20th century it played the role of "Main Street" in Lincolnville. It has long been an area of combined usages-- residential buildings shared the street with churches, commercial, and fraternal buildings. Many buildings along the street have combined usages as well with commercial first floors and residential second floors. Washington Street has some of the city's few surviving wooden Victorian commercial structures. Earlier buildings along the street are wood frame. Later ones are masonry. There are problems of deterioration, abandonment, vandalism, and demolition of buildings along Washington Street. In recent years the Lincolnville Restoration and Development Commission has worked to reverse these trends. They encouraged the city to put in a new street and sidewalks to deal with a serious drainage problem. The street, though it has lost many distinctive features over the years, still retains a suggestion of the overhand, whether porch, balcony or awning, that once contributed to the distinctive look of the street, and might be easily restored. Washington Street is adjacent to the downtown area of St. Augustine, and the towers of the Ponce de Leon and Alcazar Hotels loom over the street from the north.

Nolan, David

Cozad, Ashley

Florida Master Site File

Historic St. Augustine Preservation Board

11/1978

8SJ2314