City (pop., 2000: 11,592), northeastern Florida, U.S. It is the oldest continuously settled U.S. city.
In 1513 Juan Ponce de León landed there in search of the Fountain of Youth and claimed the territory for Spain. It became part of the U.S. in 1821. The Castillo de San Marcos , now a national monument, is a symbol of the era of Spanish control. During the American Revolution the city was a refuge for loyalists , and during the Indian Wars it was the place of imprisonment for Osceola and other Seminoles. It is a winter and summer resort and a port on the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway . The economy is based on tourism and fishing.