Haunted Fort

Fort Matanzas in St. Augustine, Florida. Named after the river it stands guard over. Fun fact, the Matanzas river gets its name from the Spanish word meaning killings or slaughters because several Protestants were shipwrecked in the 18th century and executed on the spot by Spanish Admiral Pedro Mendez. Seems like a fitting place for spirits to hang out, doesn't it?  

Fort Matanzas was built by the Spanish in order to control the Matanzas inlet. The inlet was a rear entrance into the city of St. Augustine. The fort was only used once. It fired warning shots to scare away British scouting boats. The twelve ship armada turned around and never attacked the fort. Shots were never fired from Fort Matanzas again. Despite not having seen a lot of action, the small fort is a pretty interesting sight to see in St. Augustine. 

First of all, the admission if FREE so you can't beat that. The only way to get to the fort is by boat which the park rangers graciously provide transport back and forth to. So, best to tip them if you go. Once on the little island which houses the fort, you get the real sense of what it must have been like to be stationed there. Out in the middle of seemingly no where on a river with no communication to the world around you. It's almost impossible to imagine. 

Jeffrey Raines spends some time at this very structure in the opening chapters of my upcoming paranormal thriller. He's there to fight off a wandering spirit as Death's bounty hunter. A certain type of spirit which likes to hide in lonely places such as this has started to prey on the park rangers there. Jeffrey is ordered to put a stop to it. Of course, I won't tell you how the scene plays out or how it ends. You'll have to read the book when it comes out!

If you decide to visit St. Augustine and you love history, check this place out. It's a cool piece of history. Not to mention, you'll literally be stepping into the pages of my book! Stay tuned for more information about this book coming soon! And if you want to read the opening chapter of the book, please consider signing up for my monthly newsletter. This month, readers will get an exclusive look at the first chapter! Not available anywhere else. Click below to sign up. And enjoy these photos I took of Fort Matanzas on my last adventure there!
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