Fountain of Youth Park - St. Augustine, FL
Posted by: 
Rayman
N 29° 54.441 W 081° 18.948
17R E 469513 N 3308560
The Fountain of Youth archeological park is reported to be the place where Ponce de Leon landed in 1513.
Waymark Code: WM6BXF
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 05/10/2009
Views: 16
From
Florida: A Guide to the Southernmost State in the St. Augustine points of interest section:
In the FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH PARK (open 7-7 daily; adm. 25c), Magnolia Ave., foot of Myrtle Ave., are landscaped gardens, and a reproduction of an Indian stockade and communal house after a LeMoyne drawing of 1564, having an Indian Burial Ground where more than 100 skeletons, uncovered and preserved, are displayed under green lights. These burials are believed to have been made after the founding of the city; crossed arms and other evidences indicate Christian interment. A well, in a missionlike grotto of coquina rock, is advertised as the Fountain of Youth that Ponce de Leon may have visited in 1513. A Museum houses a collection of relics dating back to the sixteenth century.
In this waymarker's opinion, the Fountain of Youth park is not worth a visit. There are guided tours of three parts of the park. The first stop is at the natural spring that Ponce de Leon believed to be the fountain of youth. Free samples of the sulphury spring water are available to try. The next stop is a cheesy small theater with a giant spinning globe that gives the history of Spanish exploration in the new world. The final stop is at an equally cheesy planetarium, telling how the Spanish used the stars to navigate between Spain and Florida. The burial ground is still present, but isn't really anything spectacular and is not part of the guided tour. Probably the most interesting part of the park is the numerous peacocks roaming around freely.
Admission to the park is now $8/adult and is open from 9AM-5PM everyday except Christmas.