A city doesn’t get to be 459 years old without accumulating a few secrets. And St. Augustine, from its founding in 1565 down to the present day, has stored up more than a few such “secrets” for visitors to discover.
The city was here before Jamestown, before the Mayflower, before New Netherland (later New York). It saw the American Revolution, the Civil War, both World Wars, and the Cold War. It witnessed the Industrial Revolution, the invention of the automobile, the Moon landing and the rise of the internet.
And alongside its historic treasures — coquina forts, a lighthouse, historic homes, civil rights landmarks — there are art galleries, museums, gourmet dining establishments and entertainment venues. There are breathtaking beaches, festivals and ghosts, both literal and figurative.
There’s so much that one would be hard-pressed to contain even the flavor of the Nation’s Oldest City in a single guidebook. But Elizabeth and William “Bob” Randall have done a respectable job doing just that with their new 184-page book, “Secret St. Augustine: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure,” published by Reedy Press.
It’s actually the Lake Mary couple’s third book about the city, the first being 2013’s “Haunted St. Augustine and St. Johns County” followed in 2016 by “Murder in St. Augustine: The Mysterious Death of Athalia Ponsell Lindsey.”
Longtime visitors to St. Johns County, the couple nevertheless learned a great deal about the area once they began this latest project more than a year ago.
“We thought we knew St. Augustine well, but we found a lot of new things,” said Elizabeth Randall, who did the written portion of the book; husband Bob handled the photography.
Most visitors know about the lighthouse or the Castillo de San Marcos, but the Randalls sought out even the lesser-known attributes: the Blue Bird of Happiness in Vilano Beach, the 16th century Spanish chimney in the quarries, the unique coquina crosses in the Huguenot Cemetery and the pyramids in the National Cemetery. And some more modern attractions, though they can’t be called secrets, caught their eyes and made it into the book: the Classic Car Museum of St. Augustine, Nights of Lights and St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum, to name a few.
The Randalls had until the autumn to complete their book, but they finished it in the spring.
While exploring the area and seeking advice and information from local residents, the Randalls made Days Inn on State Road 16 West their headquarters.
“We just about lived here in 2023,” Elizabeth Randall said. “One thing I liked was finding out how young and vibrant the business community was.”
Throughout the voluminous research they conducted and the adventures they had in seeking out the desired sites, the Randalls enjoyed working as a team.
“It’s a really nice thing that we do together,” said Elizabeth Randall. “I would advise other couples who have been married for a long time to find something like that because it’s great.”
“Secret St. Augustine: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure” is sold at Barnes & Noble in St. Augustine, on amazon.com and through elizabethrandallauthor.com.
The following book signings are planned:
