St. Johns River Settlement, Florida (June 30, 1564) was established by Rene de Laudonniere, who led a group of Huguenots, French Protestant Christians from France, to colonize and build Fort Caroline near present-day Jacksonville, Florida. Rene de Laudonniere recorded:
<We sang a psalm of Thanksgiving unto God, beseeching Him that it would please Him to continue His accustomed goodness towards us.> 1564SJ001
This was the first European settlement in North America. U.S Representative Charles E. Bennett sponsored a bill, September 21, 1950, establishing the Fort Caroline National Memorial. In 1989, Rep. Bennett recited the history:
<The 425th anniversary of the beginning settlements by Europeans...renamed from Fort Caroline to San Mateo, to San Nicolas, to Cowford and finally to Jacksonville in 1822 ... Three small ships carrying 300 Frenchmen led by Rene de Laudonniere anchored in the river known today as the St. Johns. On June 30, 1564, construction of a triangular-shaped fort. .. was begun with the help of a local tribe of Timucuan Indians...Home for this hardy group of Huguenots...their strong religious ... motivations inspired them ... Fort Caroline existed but for a short time ... Spain ... captured ... the fort and ... slaughtered most of its inhabitants in September of 1565.> 1564SJ002
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American Quotations by William J. Federer, 2024, All Rights Reserved, Permission granted to use with acknowledgement.
Endnotes:
1564SJ002. William J. Federer, American Quotations (2014). Charles E. Bennett, U.S. Representative (FL), September 21, 1950, sponsored a bill, establishing the Fort Caroline National Memorial. Charles E. Bennett, speech, 1989.