La Florida: The Interactive Digital Archive of the Americas

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La Florida: The Interactive Digital Archive of the Americas La Florida: The Interactive Digital Archive of the Americas is a project that aims to bring colonial Florida history to a global audience. Project Goals

1.

La Florida: The Interactive Digital Archive of the Americas is a unique collaborative initiative, combining innovative historical research with cutting-edge technology. Our mission is to provide compelling and engaging content that appeals to a broad audience, from elementary students to college professors, genealogists, and the general public. Provide innovative new scholarship on the history of colonial Florida, and its place in US and world history.

2. Develop web-based learning material to make primary sources more accessible to a wider audience.

3. Provide unique research opportunities for graduate students and faculty.

4. Promote interdisciplinary collaboration and institutional partnerships

10/15/2026

โ˜˜๏ธ ๐—ก๐—ผ๐˜„ ๐—”๐˜ƒ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฎ๐—ฏ๐—น๐—ฒ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐—Ÿ๐—ผ๐—ฎ๐—ป!

Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 1595โ€“1840 is ready to travel! ๐Ÿšš

๐Ÿ›๏ธ Museums, libraries, universities, historical societies, and cultural organizationsโ€”interested in bringing the exhibition to your community? Weโ€™d love to hear from you!

Learn more at sinbarcos.org or contact us at [email protected].

๐ŸŽฅ by First Sight Films

๐Ÿ›๏ธ ๐—›๐—ฎ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚ ๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ถ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎ ๐—™๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฑ๐—ฎ ๐—ฆ๐—ต๐—ผ๐—ฝ ๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—น๐˜†?From exhibition keepsakes to resources for diving deeper into the archive...
10/08/2026

๐Ÿ›๏ธ ๐—›๐—ฎ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ ๐˜†๐—ผ๐˜‚ ๐˜ƒ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ถ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎ ๐—™๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฑ๐—ฎ ๐—ฆ๐—ต๐—ผ๐—ฝ ๐—น๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—น๐˜†?

From exhibition keepsakes to resources for diving deeper into the archives, the La Florida Shop has a little something for every history lover!

โ˜˜๏ธ Explore merchandise inspired by our Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 1595โ€“1840 exhibition.

โœ๏ธ Discover our collection of historic fonts, inspired by handwriting found in centuries-old documents.

๐Ÿ“œ Or sharpen your own archival skills with the La Florida Paleography Manual, created to help readers tackle the challenges of early Spanish handwriting.

Every purchase helps support the work of La Florida and Sin Barcos, Inc. as we continue researching and sharing the stories of Floridaโ€™s past.

Take a look around โ€” and bring a little history home with you! ๐Ÿ’š

๐Ÿ›’ Shop La Florida: https://lafloridadigital.myshopify.com/

๐Ÿšš  ๐—ฃ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—จ๐—ฝ & ๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐˜† ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—ฅ๐—ผ๐—น๐—นAfter a fantastic run in St. Augustine, Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspor...
09/30/2026

๐Ÿšš ๐—ฃ๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—จ๐—ฝ & ๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐˜† ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—ฅ๐—ผ๐—น๐—น

After a fantastic run in St. Augustine, Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 1595โ€“1840 is officially available for loan!

This immersive exhibition brings to life the surprising stories of Irish men and women who shaped early Floridaโ€”from soldiers and priests to merchants, governors, and a memorable troublemaker. ๐Ÿ‘€

Blending archival research with digital maps, animation, projection, and engaging storytelling, Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig invites visitors to discover a chapter of Florida history that rarely gets told.

๐Ÿ›๏ธ Museums, cultural organizations, libraries, universities, and other institutions: interested in bringing the exhibition to your community?

โ˜˜๏ธ The exhibit is packed.
๐Ÿšš The road is calling.
๐Ÿ“ Where should we go next?

Learn more about the exhibition at sinbarcos.org or contact us at [email protected].

๐Ÿ“ธ Photos by First Sight Films

On September 22, Sin Barcos, Inc.โ€™s Chief Academic Advisor, Dr. J. Michael Francis, joined the Kiwanis Club of St. Peter...
09/24/2026

On September 22, Sin Barcos, Inc.โ€™s Chief Academic Advisor, Dr. J. Michael Francis, joined the Kiwanis Club of St. Petersburg at the St. Petersburg Yacht Club to share some of the fascinating stories emerging from the research behind our latest exhibit, Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 1595โ€“1840.

The presentation sparked a lively discussion about the often-overlooked history of Irish men and women in early Florida and the archival records that are helping us bring their stories to light.

Many thanks to the Kiwanis Club of St. Petersburg for inviting Dr. Francis and for the warm welcome and engaging conversation! ๐Ÿ’š

๐Ÿ“ง Interested in bringing Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig to a museum, cultural institution, or community near you? The exhibition is now available for loan! Contact us at [email protected] to learn more.

๐—ฆ๐—น๐—ฎฬ๐—ป, ๐—ฆ๐˜. ๐—”๐˜‚๐—ด๐˜‚๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ! โ˜˜๏ธAfter an incredible six months in St. Augustine, ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎฬ ๐—™๐—ต๐—ฒฬ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฒ ๐—ฃ๐—ฎฬ๐—ฑ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ด: ๐—ฆ๐˜. ๐—ฃ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ธ ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฑ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—œ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ต...
09/14/2026

๐—ฆ๐—น๐—ฎฬ๐—ป, ๐—ฆ๐˜. ๐—”๐˜‚๐—ด๐˜‚๐˜€๐˜๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฒ! โ˜˜๏ธ

After an incredible six months in St. Augustine, ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎฬ ๐—™๐—ต๐—ฒฬ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฒ ๐—ฃ๐—ฎฬ๐—ฑ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ด: ๐—ฆ๐˜. ๐—ฃ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฐ๐—ธ ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฑ ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—œ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐˜€๐—ต ๐——๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐—˜๐—ฎ๐˜€๐˜ ๐—™๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฑ๐—ฎ, ๐Ÿญ๐Ÿฑ๐Ÿต๐Ÿฑโ€“๐Ÿญ๐Ÿด๐Ÿฐ๐Ÿฌ has officially come to a close.

We are incredibly grateful to the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center and the City of St. Augustine for welcoming our exhibition, and to the Consulate General of Ireland, Miami for helping us bring Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig to life. โ˜˜๏ธ

Most of all, thank you to everyone who visited the exhibition, spent time with these stories, and helped make its time in St. Augustine so meaningful. It has been wonderful to see this history connect with so many people.

And while the exhibition may have come down, its journey isnโ€™t over! Last week, our incredible dismantle team carefully took apart, packed, and prepared each piece so that Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig can be ready for its next home.

Interested in bringing the exhibition to a city near you? We would love to hear from you!

๐Ÿ“ฉ [email protected]

A very special thank you to Kasper Modern and Arotza Woodworks, the talented fabricators who helped bring this exhibition to life and then returned six months later to carefully take it all apart.

And thank you to the wonderful team at First Sight Films, who joined us before the exhibition came down to beautifully capture Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig in its St. Augustine home.

๐Ÿ“ฃ ๐—ข๐—ป๐—น๐˜† ๐Ÿญ๐Ÿฌ ๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐˜†๐˜€ ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ณ๐˜!Our exhibit, Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 1595โ€“1840, will ...
08/21/2026

๐Ÿ“ฃ ๐—ข๐—ป๐—น๐˜† ๐Ÿญ๐Ÿฌ ๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐˜†๐˜€ ๐—น๐—ฒ๐—ณ๐˜!

Our exhibit, Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 1595โ€“1840, will be leaving the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center after August 31.

If you havenโ€™t had a chance to visitโ€”or want to see it one more timeโ€”now is your chance!

โ˜˜๏ธ Free admission
๐Ÿ“ St. Augustine and St. Johns County Visitor Information Center
๐Ÿ“… ๐—™๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฎ๐—น ๐—ฑ๐—ฎ๐˜†: ๐—”๐˜‚๐—ด๐˜‚๐˜€๐˜ ๐Ÿฏ๐Ÿญ, ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฎ๐Ÿฒ

Come explore the stories of the Irish men and women who became part of Floridaโ€™s history.

We hope to see you before we say goodbye to St. Augustine! โ˜˜๏ธ

Interested in bringing this traveling exhibit to your museum, historical society, library, or cultural center? Contact [email protected] to learn more!

๐ŸŒ… The sun is setting on your chance to win a Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig koozie!Our exhibitโ€™s final day at the St. Augustine Visit...
08/13/2026

๐ŸŒ… The sun is setting on your chance to win a Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig koozie!

Our exhibitโ€™s final day at the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center is August 31, so thereโ€™s still time to stop by!

๐Ÿ€ Visit the exhibit
๐Ÿ“ Complete the visitor survey located just outside the exhibit
๐ŸŽ Enter for your chance to receive a FREE Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig koozie!

Discover the untold stories of the Irish men and women who helped shape Florida's early history through immersive digital experiences, rare archival records, and interactive exhibits.

๐ŸŽŸ๏ธ ๐—™๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐—บ๐—ถ๐˜€๐˜€๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป. ๐——๐—ผ๐—ป'๐˜ ๐—บ๐—ถ๐˜€๐˜€ ๐—ถ๐˜!

Interested in bringing this traveling exhibit to your museum, historical society, library, or cultural center? Contact [email protected] to learn more.

๐Ÿ€ ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎ๐˜€๐˜ ๐—–๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ฒ!There's still time to experience Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 15...
08/05/2026

๐Ÿ€ ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎ๐˜€๐˜ ๐—–๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ฒ!

There's still time to experience Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig: St. Patrick and the Irish Diaspora in East Florida, 1595โ€“1840โ€”but not for long!

๐Ÿ“… The ๐—ฒ๐˜…๐—ต๐—ถ๐—ฏ๐—ถ๐˜ ๐—ฐ๐—น๐—ผ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—”๐˜‚๐—ด๐˜‚๐˜€๐˜ ๐Ÿฏ๐Ÿญ at the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center.

Discover the untold stories of the Irish men and women who helped shape Florida's early history through immersive digital experiences, rare archival records, and interactive exhibits.

๐ŸŽŸ๏ธ ๐—™๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ ๐—ฎ๐—ฑ๐—บ๐—ถ๐˜€๐˜€๐—ถ๐—ผ๐—ป. ๐——๐—ผ๐—ป'๐˜ ๐—บ๐—ถ๐˜€๐˜€ ๐—ถ๐˜!

Interested in bringing this traveling exhibit to your museum, historical society, library, or cultural center? Contact [email protected] to learn more.

๐ŸŽ‰ July ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎฬ ๐—™๐—ต๐—ฒฬ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฒ ๐—ฃ๐—ฎฬ๐—ฑ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ด ๐—ฆ๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—ž๐—ผ๐—ผ๐˜‡๐—ถ๐—ฒ ๐—š๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐˜„๐—ฎ๐˜†!  ๐Ÿ€Havenโ€™t taken the survey yet? Thereโ€™s still time!โฑ๏ธ๐Ÿ“Stop by the ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎ...
07/30/2026

๐ŸŽ‰ July ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎฬ ๐—™๐—ต๐—ฒฬ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฒ ๐—ฃ๐—ฎฬ๐—ฑ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ด ๐—ฆ๐˜‚๐—ฟ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐˜† ๐—ž๐—ผ๐—ผ๐˜‡๐—ถ๐—ฒ ๐—š๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ฒ๐—ฎ๐˜„๐—ฎ๐˜†! ๐Ÿ€

Havenโ€™t taken the survey yet? Thereโ€™s still time!โฑ๏ธ

๐Ÿ“Stop by the ๐—Ÿ๐—ฎฬ ๐—™๐—ต๐—ฒฬ๐—ถ๐—น๐—ฒ ๐—ฃ๐—ฎฬ๐—ฑ๐—ฟ๐—ฎ๐—ถ๐—ด exhibit at the St. Augustine & St. Johns County Visitor Information Center, fill out a quick survey, and youโ€™ll be entered for a chance to win a FREE Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig koozie!

๐Ÿ† The ๐—น๐˜‚๐—ฐ๐—ธ๐˜† ๐˜„๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ป๐—ฒ๐—ฟ will be announced tomorrow, July 31 at ๐Ÿฒ:๐Ÿฌ๐Ÿฌ ๐—ฃ๐—  ๐—˜๐—ฆ๐—ง!

Want a koozie but donโ€™t want to leave it to chance? ๐Ÿ€
Visit http://fontshop.laflorida.org/ for all Lรก Fhรฉile Pรกdraig merch

07/28/2026

๐—” ๐—Ÿ๐—ถ๐—ณ๐—ฒ ๐—ฅ๐—ฒ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐—บ๐—ฏ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฑ ๐—ฎ๐˜ ๐—ง๐—ผ๐—น๐—ผ๐—บ๐—ฎ๐˜๐—ผ ๐—–๐—ฒ๐—บ๐—ฒ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜†๐Ÿชฆ๐Ÿ€

Elizabeth Forrester was just fifteen years old when she died in St. Augustine in 1798.

The daughter of an Irishman, Gerald Forrester, Elizabeth was buried in Tolomato Cemetery, one of the oldest burial grounds in the city. Though grave robbers later disturbed her tomb, her burial site remains one of the oldest known marked graves in Florida.

Today, Tolomato Cemetery stands as a quiet witness to the lives of St. Augustineโ€™s early residents, including members of its Irish community.

Elizabethโ€™s story is just one of many that connect Ireland to colonial Florida.

Learn more about the Irish residents of colonial St. Augustine in ๐˜“๐˜ขฬ ๐˜๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆฬ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฆ ๐˜—๐˜ขฬ๐˜ฅ๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ช๐˜จ: ๐˜š๐˜ต. ๐˜—๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ค๐˜ฌ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ฉ ๐˜‹๐˜ช๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ฑ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ข ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜Œ๐˜ข๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜๐˜ญ๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ฅ๐˜ข, 1595โ€“1840, now on display at the St. Augustine Visitor Information Center.

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