The Colonial Quarter carried a longer name once: the Colonial Spanish Quarter. Imagine this place first opening in 1963 as a living museum meant to bring life in St. Augustine in the 1740s to visitors. In that era Spain ruled the area and St. Augustine was occupied mostly by persons born in Spain or of Spanish ancestry.
For decades this living history site occupied a two-acre (8,100 m2) parcel owned by the University of Florida and managed by the City of St. Augustine, until it closed in fall 2011. In September 2012 an agreement let Colonial Quarter LLC, owned by Pat Croce — who also owns the adjacent St. Augustine Pirate & Treasure Museum — operate the site. Work began, the name was shortened to Colonial Quarter, and by November 2012 a sign promised a spring 2013 opening.
An extensive, multimillion-dollar renovation was completed in three months, and the site reopened on March 16, 2013. Stand here and feel the layers of history underfoot: the museum’s original 1963 vision, the 1740s world it portrayed, and the careful 2013 revival. Picture the 1740s Spanish town this site re-creates, reopened after renovation in 2013, right beside the Pirate & Treasure Museum.