Fernandina Beach, Florida | ||
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City | ||
City of Fernandina Beach | ||
Images from top, left to right: Beach, statue of a pirate (the mascot of Fernandina Beach High School), Nassau County Courthouse (Florida), shrimp statue (representing the annual Shrimp Festival), United States Post Office, Custom House, and Courthouse (Fernandina, Florida, 1912), Fort Clinch, Old School House, Fort Clinch Pier
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Nickname(s): Isle of 8 Flags | ||
Location in Nassau County and the state of Florida |
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Coordinates: 30°40′10″N 81°27′42″W / 30.66944°N 81.46167°WCoordinates: 30°40′10″N 81°27′42″W / 30.66944°N 81.46167°W | ||
Country | United States | |
State | Florida | |
County | Nassau | |
Government | ||
• Mayor | Johnny Miller | |
• Vice-Mayor | Len Kreger | |
• Commissioner | Roy Smith | |
• Commissioner | Dr. Ronald "Chip" Ross | |
• Commissioner | Phil Chapman | |
Area | ||
• Total | 11.90 sq mi (30.82 km2) | |
• Land | 11.19 sq mi (28.99 km2) | |
• Water | 0.70 sq mi (1.83 km2) | |
Elevation | 25 ft (7.6 m) | |
Population (2010) | ||
• Total | 11,487 | |
• Estimate (2016) | 12,459 | |
• Density | 1,113.01/sq mi (429.74/km2) | |
Time zone | EST (UTC-5) | |
• Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) | |
ZIP codes | 32034-32035 | |
Area code(s) | 904 | |
FIPS code | 12-22175 | |
GNIS feature ID | 0294308 | |
Website | www.fbfl.us. |
Fernandina Beach is a city in Nassau County, Florida, United States, on Amelia Island. It is the northernmost city on Florida's Atlantic coast, and is one of the principal municipalities comprising Greater Jacksonville. The area was first inhabited by the Timucuan Indian tribe. Located on Amelia Island, known as the "Isle of 8 Flags", Fernandina has had the flags of the following nations flown over it since 1562: France, Spain, Great Britain, Spain (again), the Republic of Florida, the Green Cross of Florida, Mexico, the Confederate States of America, and the United States. It is the only municipality in the United States that has flown eight different national flags.
According to the 2010 census, the city population was 11,487. It is the seat of Nassau County.
Prior to the arrival of Europeans on what is now Amelia Island, the site of the original town of Fernandina was occupied by Native Americans. Native American bands associated with the Timucuan mound-building culture had settled on the island about A.D. 1000, calling it Napoyca. They remained on the island until the early 18th century, when European settlement began there.
French Huguenot explorer Jean Ribault became the first recorded European visitor to Napoyca in 1562, which he named Isle de Mai. In 1565, Spanish forces led by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés drove the French from northeastern Florida, killing Ribault and approximately 350 other French colonists. In 1573, Spanish Franciscans established the Santa Maria mission on the island, which they called Isla de Santa Maria. The mission was abandoned in 1680 after the inhabitants refused a Spanish order to relocate. British raids forced the relocation of the Santa Catalina de Guale mission on Georgia's St. Catherines Island, to the abandoned Santa Maria mission on the island in 1685. In 1702, this mission was again abandoned when South Carolina's colonial governor, James Moore, led a joint British-Indian invasion of Florida.