Timeline of Pensacola history

1500's

1515 -- Ponce de Leon 'discovered' Florida

1516 -- Miruelos MAY have entered Pensacola Bay

1525 -- Panfilo de Narveaz explored Florida

1539 -- Hernando de Soto explored Florida

1559 -- 06/11/1559 - Members of Luna's expedition embarked at Vera Cruz, Mexico, for their journey to establish Pensacola

1559 -- 08/14/1559 - Luna's expedition entered Pensacola Bay

1559 -- 08/19/1559 - A hurricane struck Pensacola Bay, virtually destroying Luna's fleet

1561 -- 03/16/1561 - Villafane arriveed at Pensacola for relief for Luna's expedition after the hurricane of 1559

1561 -- 04/09/1561 - Villifane became the governor of Florida

1565 -- St. Augustine, on Florida's East Coast, was founded by the Spanish

1600's

1682 -- 04/06/1682 - La Salle claimed Louisiana for France

1684 -- Sieur de la Salle descended the Mississippi River an made a failed attempt to establish a colony near the mouth of the Mississippi

1686 -- 02/06/1686 - An expedition under the command of Juan Enriques Barroto (Juan Jordan Reina) entered Pensacola Bay

1692 -- 06/26/1892 - Conde de Galve, viceroy of Mexico, was given instructions by the Spanish King to explore the gulf coast

1693 -- 04/07/1693 - Admiral Andres de Pez's expedition entered Pensacola Bay

1694 -- 06/13/1694 - The King of Spain (Charles II??) gave the go ahead to settle Pensacola

1698 -- 11/06/1698 - An expedition under Juan Jordan de Reina sailed from Havana, Cuba, to settle Pensacola

1698 -- 11/17/1698 - An expedition under the command of Juan Jordan Reina arrived at Pensacola

1698 -- 11/21/1698 - An expedition under the command of Andres de Arriola, arrived in Pensacola from Vera Cruz, Mexico

1700's

1702 -- French, under d'Iberville, founded Mobile, Biloxi, and Dauphin Island

1702 -- Spanish settlers at Pensacola suffered a sever epidemic, probably Yellow Fever

1704 -- Pensacola received its first women settlers

1707 -- Creek Indians, under the urging of the British, attacked and burned Spanish Pensacola

1707 -- Creek Indians laid siege to Fort San Carlos at Pensacola, but withdrew

1719 -- Spanish recaptured Pensacola

1719 -- 05/13/1719 - French from Mobile sailed to Pensacola in an attempt to capture the town

1719 -- 05/16/1719 - The French Fleet, under Jean Baptiste Le Moyne and his brother Sieur de Bienville, entered Pensacola Bay, fired on Fort San Carlos, and captured the Pensacola

1719 -- 09/18/1719 - French recaptured Pensacola

1722 -- Spain reclaimed Pensacola by treaty with France

1723 -- Spanish built a village on Santa Rosa Island

1723 -- French left Pensacola

1743 -- The first timber export left Pensacola by the Havana Company

1752 -- A Hurricane hit the Pensacola Area

1757 -- 12/23/1757 - King Ferdinand VII named Pensacola 'Presidio San Miqual de Panzacola'

1760 -- A Hurricane struck Pensacola

1763 -- Spanish left Pensacola as a result of the Treaty of Ghent, which gave Florida to the British

1763 -- 02/10/1763 - The Spanish and British signed the Treaty of Paris, resulting in Spain ceding Florida to the British

1763 -- 07/10/1763 - Colonel Augustin Prevost sailed from Havana, Cuba with 4 ships & 350 men on their way to accept the transfer of Florida from Spain to Great Britain

1763 -- 08/05/1763 - Colonel Augustine Prevost arrived in Pensacola with 350 men to accept the transfer of Florida from Spain to Great Britian

1763 -- 08/06/1763 - Lieutenant Colonel Augustin Prevost and troops took command of Pensacola for the British

1763 -- 09/03/1763 - The Spanish left Pensacola

1764 -- 10/21/1764 - George Johnstone arrived in Pensacola as West Florida's first British governor

1764 -- 11/24/1764 - The first council was convened by the British in Pensacola

1767 -- George Johnstone relieved as governor of West Florida and succeeded by Monfort Browne

1769 -- John Eliot arrived in Pensacola as the new governor

1769 -- 05/02/1769 - John Eliot, governor of West Florida, hanged himself

1769 -- 07/31/1769 - Durnford named Lieutenant Governor as acting governor

1770 -- Peter Chester arrived in Pensacola as the new British governor

1770 -- Bernardo de Galvez appointed governor of Spanish Louisiana

1770 -- 08/10/1770 - Peter Chester arrived in Pensacola as governor of West Florida

1774 -- 10/24/1774 - Continental Congress wrote to the Assembly in Pensacola, but was suppressed by Governor Chester

1777 -- 01/01/1777 - Don Bernardo Galvez became the acting Governor of Louisiana

1779 -- 06/21/1779 - Spain declared war on England (implications for Florida)

1780 -- Durnford surrendered Mobile to Galvez

1780 -- 01/28/1780 - Bernardo de Galvez sailed from New Orleans in an abortive attempt to capture Pensacola

1781 -- 02/28/1781 - Bernardo de Galvez sailed again from New Orleans with an invasion force headed for Pensacola

1781 -- 03/09/1781 - Bernardo de Galvez entered Pensacola Bay and lays siege to the British

1781 -- 05/07/1781 - Bernardo de Galvez began his siege of the British Fort George, located just north of Pensacola

1781 -- 05/08/1781 - British General John Campbell surrendered Pensacola to Bernardo de Galvez after a shot from the Spanish cannon (mortar) destroys the British powder magazine

1781 -- 05/09/1781 - British soldiers left their fort at Pensacola, officially ending the British presence in Florida

1792 -- Francisco Moreno was born in Pensacola

1794 -- 08/10/1794 - Jackson Morton was born

1795 -- The United States and Spain signed the Pickney Treaty establishing the borders between the United States and Spanish Florida

1798 -- William H. Chase was born in Massachusetts

1800's

1801 -- William Panton, co-owner of Panton-Leslie & Company, died at sea

1804 -- The Panton-Leslie & Company changed its name to John Forbes & Company

1807 -- The Inneraity family assumed control of John Forbes & Company

1808 -- Thomas William Brent was Born in Washington DC

1812 -- Stephen Russell Mallory, future US Senator and Confederate Secretary of the Navy, was born in Trinidad

1813 -- General James Wilkinson and troops captured Mobile

1813 -- 08/30/1813 - Fort Mims Massacre

1814 -- 03/27/1814 - Andrew Jackson and his Tennessee Volunteers defeated the Creek Indians at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend

1814 -- 11/14/1814 - Jackson captured Pensacola for the first time

1815 -- 06/20/1815 - Angela Moreno (later Angela Moreno Mallory) is born

1816 -- 08/14/1816 - John Innerarity writes James Innerarity that they expect an attack on Pensacola real soon

1818 -- Andrew Jackson captured St Marks

1818 -- Andrew Jackson captured Pensacola again

1819 -- 02/22/1819 - Spain and the United States signed the Adams-Onis Treaty, giving the United States possession of Florida

1821 -- Andrew Jackson leaves Pensacola

1821 -- 03/12/1821 - Andrew Jackson was given a commission by President James Monroe to oversee the transfer of Florida to the United States and became Florida's first American governor

1821 -- 07/17/1821 - The United States officially assumed control of Florida in a flag-exchange ceremony at Pensacola

1821 -- 07/17/1821 - Jose Cavalla, Spanish governor of Florida, officially turned over Florida to Andrew Jackson, representing the United States

1821 -- 08/18/1821 - The Floridian Newspaper, published by George Tunstall and Cary Nicholas, issued its first edition

1821 -- 10/03/1821 - A farewell party was given in honor of Andrew Jackson and his wife Rachel at Austin's Tavern

1822 -- Yellow Fever epidemic in Pensacola (forced the 1st Legislative council to move elsewhere) 237 people died

1822 -- Florida's first legislative council convened in Pensacola

1822 -- 07/22/1822 - The 1st session of Florida's legislative council convened in Pensacola

1822 -- 08/13/1822 - The Pensacola Board of Health reported yellow fever was present in Pensacola, which eventually killed 237 people

1824 -- 05/16/1824 - Edmund Kirby Smith, future Confederate General, was born in St. Augustine, Florida

1825 -- Paul Rosasco, father of Albert T. and William Sebastian, was born in Genoa, Italy

1825 -- 11/04/1825 - A three-person board consisting of James Biddle, Lewis Warrington, and William Bainbridge, recommended the construction of a Navy Yard at Pensacola

1826 -- 04/20/1826 - Commodore Lewis Warrington, United States Navy, assumed command of the Pensacola Navy Yard

1826 -- 10/27/1826 - Warrington's last day as commandant of the Pensacola Navy Yard

1826 -- 11/08/1826 - The navy issued its first contract to area businessmen for lumber to be used in the construction of the navy yard

1827 -- The Naval Live Oaks Reservation was established on land previously owned by Henry M. Breckenridge

1827 -- 03/14/1827 - A labor strike commenced in Pensacola

1828 -- the towns of Warrington and Woolsey were constructed for the workmen who are working at the Pensacola Navy Yard

1830 -- 12/09/1830 - Joseph Forsyth transferred half his land holdings to Andrew and Ezekiel Simpson, and together the three men built a lumber mill

1831 -- Bank of Pensacola chartered

1832 -- Old Christ Church is Built in downtown Pensacola

1833 -- The first bank in Pensacola is organized

1834 -- Construction of Fort Pickens concluded

1837 -- Bank Panic hit Pensacola

1838 -- Stephen Russell Mallory married Angela Moreno, daughter of Francisco Moreno

1839 -- Construction of Fort Barrancas began

1843 -- Construction on Fort McRee commenced

1844 -- Construction of Fort Barrancas concluded

1845 -- 03/03/1845 -- Florida entered the Union as a State

1849 -- 03/04/1849 - Jackson Morton took his seat as a Whig in the United States Senate

1850 -- Stephen Russell Mallory was elected to the United States Senate

1851 -- 5/06/1851 - Dr. John Gorrie patented his ice-making machine

1852 -- Yellow Fever hit the Pensacola Area

1853 -- Yellow Fever epidemic struck Pensacola again

1855 -- Joseph Forsyth Died and his mill changed its name to Simpson & Company

1855 -- 03/03/1855 - Jackson Morton resigned his seat in the United States Senate

1856 -- 05/16/1856 - Construction began on the Alabama & Florida Railroad between Pensacola and Montgomery, Alabama

1856 -- 10/30/1856 - Major William H. Chase, who supervised the construction of the local forts, retired from military service

1857-1859 -- The USS Pensacola and USS Seminole were constructed at Pensacola

1858 -- 01/01/1858 - The Pensacola Lighthouse went into operation

1859 -- 06/25/1859 - The USS Seminole, built in Pensacola, was launched

1861 -- 01/05/1861 - Florida's secession Convention convened in Tallahassee

1861 -- 01/06/1861 - State troops seized the Federal arsenal at Apalachicola

1861 -- 1/07/1861 - State troops seized Fort Marion at St. Augustine

1861 -- 01/07/1861 - Slemmer met with the command of the Navy Yard as to what action should be taken in case local citizens and/or militia tried to take possession of the Yard, or any of the forts

1861 -- 01/10/1861 - Florida seceded from the Union

1861 -- 01/10/1861 - Adam Slemmer transferred his small artillery force from Fort Barrancas to Fort Pickens

1861 -- 01/12/1861 - State officials demanded the surrender of Fort Pickens

1861 -- 01/12/1861 - Troops from Alabama and Florida occupied the Pensacola Navy Yard

1861 -- 01/12/1861 - State troops seized the Pensacola Navy Yard, Fort McRee, Fort Barrancas, and Barrancas Barracks

1861 -- 01/15/1861 - State officials (Col. Chase) again demanded Fort Pickens surrender

1861 -- 01/18/1861 - State Officials for a third time demanded the surrender of Fort Pickens

1861 -- 02/06/1861 - The USS Brooklyn arrived of Fort Pickens with reinforcements

1861 -- 3/11/1861 - General Braxton Bragg arrived in Pensacola and assumes command of all Confederate forces

1861 -- 04/12/1861 - Confederate Forces extinguished the Pensacola Lighthouse

1861 -- 04/12/1861 - US Troops aboard the USS Brooklyn landed and reinforced US Artillery troops at Fort Pickens

1861 -- 04/19/1861 - General Braxton Bragg declared marshal law in Pensacola

1861 -- 04/19/1861 - President Abraham Lincoln issued orders that all Southern Ports be blockaded

1861 -- 09/02/1861 - US Navy boats destroyed the Pensacola Navy Yard

1861 -- 09/14/1861 - Union troops from Fort Pickens boarded and set fire to the Confederate ship Judah

1861 -- 10/09/1861 - Battle of Santa Rosa Island

1861 -- 11/22/1861 - Artillery Duel between Fort Pickens and Confederate Batteries

1862 -- Confederates burned the mills and many of the homes around the Bagdad area as they abandoned Pensacola and the surrounding area

1862 -- 01/01/1862 - Artillery duel between Confederates and Union

1862 -- 05/09/1862 - Confederate Forces evacuate Pensacola

1862 -- 05/10/1862 - Acting Mayor Broshaham surrendered Pensacola to Union officials after the Confederates evacuated the town

1868 -- Reconstruction in Florida ended

1868 -- 03/28/1868 - The Pensacola & Louisville Railroad bought the Alabama & Florida Railroad, which had gone bankrupted after the Civil War, for $55,000

1870 -- The Railroad finally connected Pensacola to the outside world

1872 -- Public school system established in Pensacola

1873 -- 11/09/1873 - Stephen R. Mallory died

1874 -- 11/20/1874 - Jackson Morton Died

1876 -- 10/01/1876 - Francis C. Brent and Louis P. Knowles founded the banking firm of Knowles & Brent

1880 -- 02/27/1880 - Louisville & Nashville RR bought the Pensacola Railroad

1880s -- Pensacola Gas Company founded

1881 -- 06/01/1881 - Construction on the Pensacola & Atlantic Railroad began

1881 -- 08/22/1881 - Construction began on railroad bridges over Pensacola Bay and the Choctahatchee and Apalachicola Rivers

1882 -- The Tarragona Street Depot was destroyed by fire

1882 -- Francisco Moreno died

1882 -- 08/15/1882 - The first passengers took a ride on the Pensacola & Atlantic RR

1882 -- 08/15/1882 - The first train carrying passengers crossed the railroad bridge over Pensacola Bay

1883 -- 04/11/1883 - The Pensacola & Atlantic Railroad was completed between Pensacola and Jacksonville

1885 -- 05/20/1885 - Milton's business district burned. Fire may have started in the Mayer Bros store

1886 -- St Michael's Catholic Church was built

1886 -- Geronimo was brought to Pensacola as a prisoner

1888 -- A Presbyterian Church was built on Chase Street by Turner Construction Company

1888 -- Electric power company went online

1889 -- F. C. Brent helped organize the Chamber of Commerce in Pensacola

1889 -- 09/16/1889 - The Pensacola Chamber of Commerce met for the first time (organized) and Chipley became the 1st president

1890 -- Horse drawn streetcar system became operational

1890s -- Fires swept through Pensacola

1892 -- John A. Merritt married the daughter of R. H. Turner

1892 -- 01/23/1892 - The First National Bank of Pensacola and the Brent's Bank merged

1895 -- Young Men's Business League of Pensacola founded

1897 -- Temple Beth-El built on Chase Street

1898 -- Spanish-American war erupted

1898 -- 03/21/1898 - Pensacola Electric Railway Company went into operation

1899 -- 6/20/1899 - Gun Powder at Fort Pickens exploded, destroying an entire bastion