Ximenez-Fatio House facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Ximenez-Fatio House
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 Location in Florida
Location in the United States
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| Location | St. Augustine, Florida |
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| Built | 1797-1802 |
| NRHP reference No. | 73002135 |
| Added to NRHP | July 25, 1973 |
The Ximenez-Fatio House Museum is a very old and well-kept building in St. Augustine, Florida. It shows what homes were like during Florida's Second Spanish Period (1783-1821). In 1973, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places, which lists important historical sites. It also became a Florida Heritage Landmark in 2012.
This museum is located at 20 Aviles Street, which is one of the oldest streets in the United States. It sits right in the middle of St. Augustine's Old Town, a community that has been lived in for a very long time.
Since 1939, a group called The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in Florida has owned and managed the house. They worked hard to restore it. Now, it looks like a popular boarding house from the time when Florida first became a tourist spot after 1821.
As a historic house museum, the Ximenez-Fatio House is filled with old furniture and items. It tells the stories of the people who stayed there, the women who owned and ran the business, and what daily life was like when Florida was a U.S. territory.
Contents
A Look Back: The House's History
The Ximenez-Fatio House has a long and interesting history. It was home to several families and later became a successful business run by women.
Andres Ximenez Builds the House
The main part of the house, which has two stories, was built by Andres Ximenez. He was a merchant from Spain. He married Juana Pellicer, whose father was a leader in the Minorcan community in St. Augustine. The museum's name comes from Ximenez and Louisa Fatio, who was the last person to own the house as a boarding house.
Andres Ximenez built the house to be both a home and a business. His family lived upstairs. Downstairs, he ran a general store, a tavern, and even had a billiard table and a lottery. His wife, Juana, likely helped him with the business. The Ximenez family did not live in the house for very long. By 1806, both parents and two of their five children had passed away. Juana's father then took care of the property for his grandchildren.
Big changes came to St. Augustine after the Adams-Onis Treaty in 1819. In this treaty, Spain gave Florida to the United States. St. Augustine was the only major city in Florida. It became a popular place for people who were curious or those who needed to escape cold northern winters for health reasons. The Castillo de San Marcos, a fort built by the Spanish, was now controlled by the U.S. military and called Fort Marion. This brought more soldiers to town.
After Florida became a U.S. territory in 1821, more places were needed for visitors to stay. Local people started renting out rooms and offering meals. This type of lodging, called a boarding house, was often nicer than a regular hotel.
Margaret Cook Takes Over
While small boarding houses were common, Margaret Cook had bigger plans. In 1830, she bought the Ximenez House from the Ximenez family's heirs. Margaret had moved to St. Augustine from Charleston in 1821. By 1830, she was a widow again. This gave her the freedom to own property and run a business, which was not common for married women at that time. Her husband had signed legal papers before he died, giving her these rights.
The house was changed during Margaret Cook's time to add more bedrooms. She hired Eliza Whitehurst, a widowed friend, to manage the house. "Mrs. Whitehurst's boarding house" became known for its high standards and good food. One guest said it was "the best in town." In 1835, 23 guests stayed at the house, mostly from the northeastern United States.
Sarah Petty Anderson's Ownership
In 1838, Eliza Whitehurst and Margaret Cook's daughter both became ill and passed away. That year, Margaret Cook sold the boarding house to Sarah Petty Anderson for $4,000. She also sold Anderson a piece of land next to the house.
Sarah Petty Anderson and her husband were among many new people who moved to Florida in the early 1820s. They owned several large plantations. One of their plantations was burned during the Second Seminole War. The ruins of this plantation, called Dunlawton Plantation and Sugar Mill, can still be seen today.
Louisa Fatio Becomes the Owner
By the late 1830s, Sarah Petty Anderson was a widow living in St. Augustine. In the early 1840s, she hired Louisa Fatio to manage the Ximenez House as a boarding house. Louisa managed it until 1855, when she bought the house herself for $3,000.
Louisa Fatio was well-educated for a woman of her time. She never married. Her family's plantation was attacked and burned twice during the Seminole Wars. After the second attack in 1836, Louisa moved to St. Augustine. The city was full of soldiers and people seeking safety from the war. Louisa found work managing boarding houses with her sister.
Louisa Fatio became famous for her excellent food and comfortable lodging. One writer, Charles Lanman, said that her boarding house was "most home-like and comfortable." Under Louisa's care, the house on Aviles Street became known as "Miss Fatio's." It was a popular place in St. Augustine until she passed away in 1875. The Fatio House is even featured in a story by Constance Fenimore Woolson called "The Ancient City."
Around 1855, Louisa Fatio added a second floor of bedrooms to one part of the house. For many years, experts thought this addition was made earlier. But in 2009, scientists studied the wood in the building. They found that the wood was from the late 1850s, proving Louisa added the rooms.
Louisa Fatio was also a main character in Eugenia Price's 1965 novel, Margaret's Story. Part of the story takes place at Fatio's boarding house in St. Augustine.
Architecture and Design of the House
Records show that the main house and its separate kitchen were built in 1798. Both buildings are made from coquina rock. This rock was dug up from nearby Anastasia Island. Using coquina rock meant the house was one of the fancier homes in St. Augustine during the Second Spanish Period.
The house is a great example of "St. Augustine Plan architecture." This style mixes Spanish Colonial building ideas with more elegant Federal-style architecture. The Federal style was brought in when Florida was under British rule (1763-1784). The house's separate coquina kitchen has a special beehive oven. It is the only original 18th-century separate kitchen in St. Augustine that still stands.
Special Landmark Awards
The Ximenez-Fatio House Museum is important for several reasons:
- Its unique architecture.
- How truly authentic it is. This was achieved through many years of careful restoration work by top historians and architects. They also did a lot of digging to find old items.
- It helps us understand what early Florida tourists were like and how they lived.
- It teaches us more about the history of women in the 1800s in Florida.
The house has received these special recognitions:
- 1936 — Listed in the Historic American Buildings Survey.
- 1973 — Added to the National Register of Historic Places.
- 1984 — Part of the St. Augustine Town Plan National Historic Landmark District.
- 2012 — Designated a Florida Heritage Landmark.
Florida's Early Days as a Territory
In 1822, Florida officially became the Florida Territory of the United States. Now that there was no international border, Americans started traveling to Florida. Scientists reported seeing interesting plants and animals. Adventurers came hoping to get rich. Doctors in northern states told their patients, especially those with lung illnesses, to go to Florida for its mild winters.
Even though travel to Florida was hard, St. Augustine became a popular place. Visitors often stayed for several months. Most of them were used to a nicer way of life than typical St. Augustine residents. They preferred the personal care offered at a boarding house over a public hotel. This time in St. Augustine's history, after Florida joined the U.S. in 1821 and before the big Flagler hotels opened later, was the start of tourism in Florida. By 1834, there were six boarding houses in the city, and more opened later.
A big challenge during Florida's territorial period was with the Seminole people. The Seminole Wars began earlier in the 1800s. These wars tried to stop Seminoles from helping runaway slaves and to protect white settlers' right to live on Florida land. The Second Seminole War started in 1835. It was about moving all Seminoles in Florida to land west of the Mississippi River. Many Seminoles chose to fight instead of leaving their homes.
In 1835, warriors led by Osceola began fighting using surprise attacks. They burned plantations in Northeast and Central Florida. Local volunteers joined U.S. soldiers and state militia to fight the Seminoles. Fort Marion in St. Augustine became a main center for U.S. military actions. Army officers often stayed in boarding houses and hotels in the city. People from nearby plantations who had lost their homes came to St. Augustine for safety. Visitors from outside Florida still came, but fewer during the fighting.
During this busy time, St. Augustine was crowded with people needing rooms and food. By 1845, when Florida became the 27th state, the boarding house business was strong. St. Augustine was known as a place for people to heal from illnesses.
Amazing Finds: Archaeology at the House
The Ximenez-Fatio House has been the site of more than 15 archaeological digs. This is more than any other property in St. Augustine! Archaeologists have found signs that people lived on this land in the 1500s, 1600s, 1700s, and 1800s. One archaeologist, Dr. Kathleen Deagan, said in 2015 that the property is still exciting to explore. She noted that because people have lived there since St. Augustine was founded, "it's possible to really look at the whole spectrum of the city's occupation." Experts believe that the high location of the site and the items found there suggest that wealthy people lived on the property from the very beginning of the colonial period.
Archaeological finds have helped confirm that the property was used as a boarding house in the 1800s. For example, animal bones found in old trash pits showed what kind of food was served. Pieces of china helped identify the dishes used when Sarah Petty Anderson owned the house. A collection of silver buttons and pins led to the discovery of where a laundry shed once stood. In 2003, archaeologists found a rare 17th-century double-barred, white bronze Caravaca cross. This cross was made in Spain and is two centuries older than the boarding house era. It is the most mysterious object found on the site so far.
A big archaeological dig started on February 3, 2015, at the front of the Ximenez-Fatio House, near Aviles Street. It finished on March 14, 2015.
Learning from Historical Research
After buying the Ximenez House in 1939, the Florida Dames group wanted to learn as much as possible about it. They hired the best experts. Over the years, these experts included famous architects, archaeologists, historians, and curators. One historian, William Seale, did a lot of research on the house in the 1970s. His work helped the Colonial Dames understand how the house was used during Florida's territorial days.
Researchers used many old documents, like maps, property records, letters, journals, wills, and sales records. They also looked at city maps that show how homes were built in St. Augustine during Spanish and British times. The first Spanish owner of the property was Cristoval Contreras. Items found during a dig are thought to be from his time. These finds match documents that show Contreras was a very important person in St. Augustine society.
Records show four different owners during St. Augustine's British Period. It seems the Spanish Crown took back the property after the British left Florida in 1783. It was then sold at an auction in 1791. Old maps from that time show the ruins of a stone house on the site. A note on the 1791 sale document says the building was in ruins and the property was valued as "lot only."
Another document shows that the new owner sold the property to Andres Ximenez in 1797. Ximenez already owned a house and general store across the street. The house with the separate kitchen that he built on his new property was mentioned in his will from 1802. This helps historians know when the house was built. Ximenez's later will from 1806 lists the house and its contents, including "a grocery store and a billiard table." Many of the store's items were sold after he died. From these sales records, historians can see what a general store in St. Augustine was like back then. Ximenez sold things like tobacco, children's reading books, brooms, vases, empty bottles, paper, and bone buttons.
Legal documents also help us imagine the house as it was first built. A report from July 8, 1806, described the house's parts. The city's Master Carpenter, Martin Hernandez, counted 15 doors, 16 windows, wood for floors, ceilings, and walls, a stairway, and a roof with four windows. He also noted three doors, three windows, and a shingle roof for the kitchen building. He even mentioned other wooden structures like a restroom and a wash shed. The Master Mason, Jose Lorente, measured the main house and the storage areas for Ximenez's store. Overall, the main house that we see today matches very well with this 1806 description.
The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in Florida
The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America (NSCDA) was started in 1891. This group works to help people understand and respect America's beginnings. The national organization and its local groups are active in 43 states and Washington, D.C. Across America, the Colonial Dames achieve their goals through patriotic programs, educational activities, historical projects, and more.
For example, the NSCDA is a national leader in saving, restoring, and explaining historic sites. The National Trust for Historic Preservation gave them an award for their work at 85 historic properties. The NSCDA-FL, which is the Florida group, owns and runs the Ximenez-Fatio House Museum in St. Augustine.
Gallery
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The Ximenez Fatio House Museum, St Augustine, FL.
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