Selection of Florida's Capital

From A Guide to Florida's Historic Markers, published by the Department of State, c. 1975-1980.  A copy of this booklet was found in the Goodwood collection.

SELECTION OF FLORIDA'S CAPITAL

Under Spanish rule Pensacola was the capital of West Florida, while East Florid's capital was St. Augustine.  In 1821 the U.S. took possession and in 1822 William P. Duval succeeded Andrew Jackson as territorial governor.  Dr. William H. Simmons, St. Augustine, and John Lee Williams, Pensacola, were appointed to select a central location for a capital. They explored the aera around St. Marks and chose the old Indian village, Tallahassee. Shortly thereafter, the land was surveyed and the town incorporated.

William P. Duval, first non-military governor of the Florida Territory