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Aunt Kate's Restaurant
While out sailing one day in February of 1900, Standard Oil and Railroad magnate, Henry Flagler stopped at North Beach and asked Catherine and Frank Usina if they could prepare a meal of roasted local oysters for himself and a group of friends. The Usinas agreed. Afterward, a hat was passed and they were presented with what was more than a week’s salary at that time.
That began a tradition of serving fresh, local seafood that survived the Great Depression and spanned the transition from Usina’s Pavilion to Oscar’s Old Florida Restaurant through several operators until the restaurant burned in September 2001.
Frank Andreu Usina’s family was one of several indentured servants from the island of Menorca who fled the failed English Colony at New Smyrna, Florida to safety in St. Augustine in 1768.
In 1900, Frank was a carpenter working in Miami for Henry Flagler’s Florida East Coast Railroad when a yellow fever epidemic shut down all work. Not being able to return to work in Miami because of the quarantine he and his young bride, Catherine Evans, stayed in a small building remnant of the failed North Beach residential development circa 1890. The building stands today as the center structure of the Usina family home where Mary Louise Usina Brown and her husband lived.
Frank and Catherine decided to remain at North Beach and cater to St. Augustine’s winter guests who came in their own boats. Palmetto thatched structures were constructed to serve meals consisting often of o ... view more »
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Featured Organizations
Presenting beautiful music in beautiful St. Augustine at the Lewis Auditorium at Flagler College! EMMA’s mission is to offer quality music and dance performances by national and international artists. They also aim to encourage interest in classical music and to provide opportunities for the youth of St. Johns County. EMMA accomplishes this by offering school concerts in local schools and funding requests from music teachers for instruments and equipment.
The Historic Florida Militia (HFM) is a non-profit umbrella organization supporting re-created historic interpretive units and representing a number of cultures and time periods. "We are not street performers, we are educators. We are not parades, we are historic programs. This is not an exercise in free speech, this is an opportunity to educate. We are not promoting a political agenda, we are promoting the city's history through a practical and factual teaching method".
Crisp-Ellert Art Museum at Flagler College
Built in honor of Dr. JoAnn Crisp-Ellert and her husband, Dr. Robert Ellert, the Crisp-Ellert Art Museum offers Flagler College students and the Northeast Florida community a venue for fostering knowledge and a deep appreciation of contemporary art. As an educational resource for the College, the Museum exhibits regional, national and international artists, and provides opportunities for critical engagement and exposure to a variety of exhibitions and personal interactions with visiting artists. The Museum challenges students, the Flagler community and the public to cultivate individual creativity, critical reflection, historical consciousness and respect for the free exchange of ideas. In this spirit, the Museum also hosts public programs, including artist talks, readings, panel discussions and film series that provide a platform for vital interdisciplinary dialogue.