History: America’s oldest continuously inhabited European-established settlement in the contiguous U. S. St. Augustine was founded on September 8, 1565, by Spanish admiral Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, Florida’s first governor.
Spain ceded Florida to the United States in 1819, and St. Augustine was designated the capital of the Florida Territory upon ratification of the Adams–Onís Treaty in 1821. The Florida National Guard made the city its headquarters that same year. The territorial government moved and made Tallahassee the capital of Florida in 1824.
The City of St. Augustine embraces cultural equality, diversity, inclusion, equity and has many historic business-friendly neighborhoods. St. Augustine is rolling out the “Welcome to St. Augustine” charming welcome mat to tourists, visitors, new entrepreneurs, new startups, business founders, new residents and more value-added businesses.
In the spirit of many enterprising early settlers, local St. Augustine entrepreneurs have created business opportunities in the area. With the help of local business leaders, the demand for startup ventures and the need for more goods and services has ignited the spirit of business ownership in the St. Augustine community.
Business startups in retail sales, clothing, fashion, music, beauty, healthcare, legal, medical services, restaurants, online sales, cleaning services, beauty salons and barber shops are always in demand in a local historic community like St. Augustine. Shop Local! Buy Local!