Overview & History
Native American Settlements
Long before bridges, the St. Johns River was crossed by Native Americans at the narrowest bend in the river. This crossing called Wacca Pilatka, had gentle sloping banks along both sides of the river which made crossing ideal and soon became the site of an Native American village called Ossachite, now Downtown Jacksonville.
European Settlements
The French and Spanish were the first settlers in the Jacksonville area during the 16th century. The Spanish were successful in their settlements by establishing domain over the St. Johns River region. In 1763, Britain gained control over the Florida territory and soon established the first actual road from St. Mary’s River to St. Augustine. The road, named King’s Road, crossed the St. Johns River at Wacca Pilatka, known as Pass de San Nicolas by the Spanish and was renamed Cow Ford by the British. The region was ceded back to Spain in 1783 and soon became an area of development for settlers.
United States Territory
In 1821, the United States acquired Florida. At this time Cow Ford supported a growing small settlement along the north bank of the St. Johns River which included a hotel and supply store.
Making of a City
Isaiah D. Hart, a prominent settler of Cow Ford, convinced his fellow land owning neighbors to join him in donating land along the north bank to establish a town. In 1822, a twenty-block area bound by Catherine, Duval and Ocean Streets became the town by the river. Though Andrew Jackson never visited the St. Johns River region, many Floridians viewed him as a hero for his invasion of Spanish Florida and named the town Jacksonville. By 1830, 
Jacksonville had expanded its blocks and was home to nearly 100 residents. Two years later Jacksonville elected the first Mayor, William J. Mills. Jacksonville swelled to a population of 750 by 1847 when Florida became the 27th state of the United States.
Civil War
Jacksonville’s loyalties were divided among its residents during the Civil War. Though there were no major battles in Jacksonville, Union troops occupied Jacksonville four different times. Union sympathizers welcomed Northern troops, while Confederate sympathizers supported the return of Southern troops. The tension and war-ravaging resulted in half of Jacksonville’s population fleeing the city. Not long after the end of the war, however, the city began to rebuild Downtown, which brought a surge of visitors to the area.
1870’s: A Tourist City
Downtown emerged with elegant homes and hotels which attracted the rich and famous that nested in Jacksonville during the winter months. Coined “The Winter City In A Summer Land,” Downtown Jacksonville catered to the growing tourism industry. The 1870’s, the peak of Downtown’s era of tourism, thrived with hundreds of paddlewheelers, steamships and tall-masted schooners along the St. Johns River, all transporting Northern visitors. Each day the city received up to 25 passenger trains with winter tourists. Railroad transportation south at this time ended in Jacksonville, the
furtherest rail depot in the South until 1890, which helped th
growing tourist industry. No 
longer a settlement town, Jacksonville’s Downtown featured all the makings of a major city with paved roads, electric lights, a telephone system, banks, shops, hotels, two courthouses, a hospital and a theatre that increased the tourist population from 14,000 in 1870 to 100,000 by 1885.
The Great Fire
In the midst of Downtown’s growth and development surged a destructive force. On a lazy afternoon in May 1901, a patch of moss laid out to dry near the Cleveland Fiber Factory at Beaver and Davis Streets caught on fire from a chimney ember. The fire soon became an uncontrollable blaze that spread quickly eastward with a strong wind. As the factory raged with flames, it exploded, spreading enflamed debris to other buildings. Soon hundreds of wooden rooftops were engulfed in flames. By the end of the day, the fire burned 2,368 buildings and 466 acres. These charred remains included the oldest and most densely populated areas of Downtown, including 23 churches, 10 hotels and the majority of the public buildings. The 1901 fire was the largest metropolitan fire in the South and third largest fire in the country, leaving 8,677 residents homeless.
Rebuilding
Although the fire devastated the city, there was a great opportunity to rebuild for a modern future. Jacksonville was helped by many across the nation with hundreds of thousands dollars in relief funding as well as some of the country’s most known architects, including H. J. Klutho. Where wooden buildings once stood were now stone, brick, 
concrete and steel structures. Three years after the fire’s destruction, the number of new structures surpassed the number of buildings lost.
Downtown Jacksonville became a regional transportation hub for rail transit in 1919 with the completion of the Jacksonville Terminal. Rail, the port and the shipyards kept Jacksonville growing through the first half of the 20th century, and the consolidation of city and county government in 1968 made Downtown the seat of government, as well.
Into the 20th Century
The national popularity of shopping malls and suburban housing led to the decline of Downtown in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, drawing residents and consumers further from the center of the city and causing department stores and retailers to close up shop. Downtown, while still the center of the business community, became stagnate and declined.
In the 1980’s and early 1990’s, growing support for Downtown from Mayors Jake Godbold and Ed Austin started the process of Downtown Jacksonville’s revitalization. The city tried to bring the focus back to the center of the region with several projects, including The Jacksonville Landing, a riverfront marketplace modeled after Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.
With the election of Mayor John Delaney in 1995, and the approval of his Better Jacksonville Plan in 2000, Downtown is on its way to again becoming the cultural, sports and entertainment center of the region. Billions of public and private dollars have been invested in Downtown culture, entertainment and living space, and Downtown Jacksonville is once again in a period of renewal.
In 2000, Downtown property owners collaborated to establish Jacksonville's first Downtown Improvement District (DID). The Jacksonville DID is a ninety-block neighborhood in which property owners tax themselves to make their community cleaner, safer and more vibrant. The tax is used by the DID to provide services and capital improvements that supplement those provided by the city. Downtown Vision, Inc., the private/public partnership that manages the DID, has been leading the spirit of cooperation among property owners, businesses and the community by providing a wide range of valuable services, including cleanliness and safety initiatives, beautification projects, parking and transportation initiatives, marketing programs and advocacy support.
Source: Wood, Wayne W. Jacksonville's Architectural Heritage. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 1996.
Photo credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Detroit Publishing Company Collection.
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