18 Facts About Amelia Island

1.

Amelia Island is a part of the Sea Islands chain that stretches along the East Coast of the United States from South Carolina to Florida; it is the southernmost of the Sea Islands, and the northernmost of the barrier islands on Florida's Atlantic coast.

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2.

Amelia Island Trail is a part of the East Coast Greenway, a 3,000 mile-long system of trails connecting Maine to Florida.

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3.

In 1680, British raids on St Catherines Amelia Island, Georgia resulted in the Christian Guale Indians abandoning the Santa Catalina de Guale mission and relocating to Spanish missions on Isla de Santa Maria.

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4.

Amelia Island continued to develop the plantation and appointed Stephen Egan as her agent to manage it.

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5.

Amelia Island harbor was an embarkation point for Loyalists leaving the colony; they tore down buildings and took the lumber with them.

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6.

Amelia Island had received a grant from Governor Tonyn of the property on the bluff overlooking the Amelia River.

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7.

On March 16,1812, Amelia Island was invaded and seized by insurgents from the United States calling themselves the "Patriots of Amelia Island, " under the command of General George Mathews, a former governor of Georgia.

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8.

Amelia Island took formal possession in the name of the United States, ordering the Patriot flag struck and the flag of the United States to be raised immediately.

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9.

Amelia Island had formerly been associated with MacGregor in South American filibuster adventures, Aury had been a leader among a group of buccaneers based on Galveston Island, Texas.

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10.

Aury assumed control of Amelia Island, creating an administrative body called the "Supreme Council of the Floridas".

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11.

Amelia Island directed his secretaries Pedro Gual and Vicente Pazos to draw up a constitution, and invited all of Florida to unite in throwing off the Spanish yoke.

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12.

Amelia Island's supposed "clients" were still fighting the Spanish in their war for independence at the time.

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13.

Amelia Island stayed on the island more than two months as an unwelcome guest; Bankhead occupied Fernandina and President James Monroe vowed to hold it "in trust for Spain".

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14.

Amelia Island went to the island, where she taught the freedmen, established a school and orphanage in 1863, and raised continued aid in Syracuse for clothing and supplies for the poor of the island.

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15.

Amelia Island continued her support for education and welfare in the whole state after marrying Governor Harrison Reed of Florida in 1869.

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16.

Amelia Island was the main filming location for the 2002 John Sayles-directed film Sunshine State.

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17.

Amelia Island hosted a Women's Tennis Association tournament for 28 years.

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18.

Since 2009 Amelia Island has hosted the annual Petanque America Open of the game of petanque, a form of boules.

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