Amelia Island
A north Florida island whose port town Fernandina Beach kept its Victorian centre, and which has flown eight different flags.
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The island claims to be the only place in the United States to have flown eight different national flags - French, Spanish, British, Spanish again, Patriot, Green Cross of Florida, Mexican, Confederate and American - the result of a chaotic run of short-lived occupations and filibuster republics in the early nineteenth century, several lasting weeks. Fernandina Beach's fifty-block downtown is a preserved Victorian district built on the shrimping and railroad boom; the modern shrimping industry is generally traced to this port. Fort Clinch, a brick fortification begun in 1847 and never finished, sits at the northern tip in a state park with re-enactors on the first weekend of each month.
What you actually see
- A fifty-block Victorian downtown - built on shrimp and rail money.
- Eight flags flown - several of them over occupations lasting weeks.
- Fort Clinch - begun 1847, never completed, in a state park.
- Long Atlantic beaches - on the ocean side.
When to go
October to May; summer is hot and humid. A full day.
Honest expectations
Summer heat and afternoon storms are heavy. The resort end of the island is expensive and separate from the town. Hurricane seasons affect the coast. Parking downtown fills at weekends.
Nearby
Cumberland Island is over the border in Georgia; Jacksonville is south.
What to pack for Amelia Island
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.