It’s not surprising that this historic fort, one of the most well-known sites in St. Augustine, is said to be haunted by the apparitions of several soldiers in French and Spanish uniforms. After all, “Matanzas” is Spanish for “slaughter,” as it was named for the 245 Huguenots who were killed here in 1565. As well as the ghosts, mysterious footsteps have been seen and heard tracking along the premises.
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Geographic Information
- Address:
- Fort Matanzas
North of Palm Coast, FL
United States
Get Directions » - GPS:
- 29.715226817439028, -81.23903095722198
- County:
- St. Johns County, Florida
- Nearest Towns:
- Marineland, FL (3.6 mi.)
Crescent Beach, FL (3.8 mi.)
Butler Beach, FL (6.0 mi.)
Saint Augustine Shores, FL (7.9 mi.)
Palm Coast, FL (9.2 mi.)
Saint Augustine Beach, FL (9.5 mi.)
Saint Augustine South, FL (9.9 mi.)
Saint Augustine, FL (13.2 mi.)
Beverly Beach, FL (15.0 mi.)
Villano Beach, FL (15.9 mi.)
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Disclaimer: The stories posted here are user-submitted and are, in the nature of "ghost stories," largely unverifiable. HauntedPlaces.org makes no claims that any of the statements posted here are factually accurate. The vast majority of information provided on this web site is anecdotal, and as such, should be viewed in the same light as local folklore and urban legends.
While I never encountered anything actually haunted here, I have sensed a presence. Due to the slaughter near here and it’s proximity to present day Palm Coast, some of us in Palm Coast have had actual encounters with spirits. When we first arrived in the area, we were renting a home on a canal off the Intracoastal. The house was beyond haunted; cold spots, dark blurs, we felt like we were being watched. When the lease was up, I was cleaning but I left it all in a pile and ran out of the house. I turned after I left the home and said, you can have it. The spirit had become very aggressive as we were leaving. I told the owner I was sorry, hurt my back and could not clean up. Lost my security deposit but worth $1200 not to go back in again. It was not a friendly ghost by any means. I had a chance to buy that waterfront home for a song and said no. Moved 5 miles inland and bought a home. That house has changed hands several times over the past few years. It’s in the C section of Palm Coast on Clinton Ct S. Is it the lady who may have died there? Is it a slaughtered French soldier? Who knows, glad we’re out of there. Yes, the Matanzas did cause lost spirits in this area.
I remember being here a little while back and I was with my family and we were walking around, then all the sudden something grabs my left arm and starts to drag me! I pulled my arm back to me and I like was freaking out. Also we got a lot of picture of orbs too.
Well, ever since I could remember I have experienced “Paranormal” activity. However, it has only been a hand full of times when the evidence was clear. In a fall day of 2010 on a bright sunny day I proceeded to visit the well-known “Fort Matanzas”. I brought my high quality DSLR cameral in order to obtain great pictures. However, after a few minutes in the Fort i began to have a hard time getting a quality foto; some of them were way too dark even with the lens completely open, and other way too bright, and the battery that normally last for months without charging…… was draining by the minute. Now, part of my college degree involve Digital Photography; therefore, I am pretty good around the camera. However, I continue taking photos, and just like others have described I felt like I was been WATCH. I perceived to enter the so called: “Ordnance Room” in which they used to store Gun Powder. The entrance to the room is quite small; in fact the entrance only stands about 2 feet by 2.5 feet. Inside the room I began to feel like I could not breathe. The whole atmosphere felt thick and heavy. Within seconds I experienced a massive migraine headache, nausea, and fever. I decided that it would be best for me to exit the room, but after leaving the room the symptoms did not cease and proceeded to drive home. Even though I was feeling horrible it only took for me to drive 2 miles and all the symptoms completely disappeared. After getting away from the Fort I actually felt refresh, completely awake, and healthy. I know this may be thin for some folks, but remember always trust your feelings! “If you sense something there is a reason why!”
I am a paranormal investigator and I just recently captured a couple good pictures I would like to share.