One of the things I love about St. Augustine is the endless variety of historical sites and attractions. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of interesting bits of history that tourists walk through every day. Only some make an effort to learn about the things they see. Others just create a set of facts that sound like they know what they’re talking about. It amuses me talking to tourists about some of these historical landmarks and hearing their theories about the things they are seeing.

The zero milestone marker is one of St. Augustine’s most misunderstood landmarks. The marker is a six foot diameter coquina stone ball with a bronze plaque attached. Only the year “1928” that is inscribed on the plaque prevents the visitor from including the stone with the historical tradition of San Agustín from the 19th or 18th century. The plaque simply indicates that the monument marks the beginning of the Old Spanish Trail between San Agustin and San Diego, California.

Many tourists evoke a vision of Spanish missionaries and soldiers trudging from this marker across the United States to San Diego. The fact that the marker is dated 1928 does little to change your speculation. However, the facts are that the Old Spanish Trail did not originate in Spanish St. Augustine but in Mobile, Alabama. The city of Mobile developed as a French colony, not a Spanish one at Fort Louise de la Mobile.

In 1915, two north-south highways were planned: Dixie and Jackson. Both highways would develop tourist traffic from the north to Florida and New Orleans. The Jackson Highway was planned to cross Mississippi instead of Alabama on its way to New Orleans. As a result, the Rotary Club of Mobile Alabama mounted an effort to push for the route to pass through Alabama instead of Mississippi based on some statistics showing that although the route through Alabama was longer, more people would benefit. They were unsuccessful in their lobbying attempt; the urgency of building an east-west route through Mobile became more important than ever. As a result, a plan was conceived to create an east-west highway that would link Mobile with New Orleans and Jacksonville and thus connect to both highways from north to south.

The mobile Rotary effort gained momentum and its goal was announced in 1915. Palmer Pillans, president of the Rotary Club, promoted it as a highway connecting Florida cities with Mobile and the California coast.

To enhance and romanticize the road it was called the Old Spanish Way. While it is true that the highway would connect many settlements started in Spain, the purpose was what today we would call hype.

In any case, the effort gained momentum only to be stalled by World War I and some serious logistical problems created by natural barriers. In 1918, the project was literally dead in the water. In 1919, the Old Spanish Trial was given new life when the leadership of the product moved to Texas. New leadership was elected. Harral B. Ayers became the Managing Director of the Old Spanish Trail Association. Starting with the Texas routes, he worked hard and provided the leadership and political influence necessary to bring the project to fruition in 1929.

To celebrate the completion, the Old Spanish Trail Association threw a huge party in St. Augustine where the zero mile marker was dedicated. At the conclusion of the event, a caravan left for a trip to San Diego. There were some who made it to the end and others did not. However, the highway continued to be promoted with all the enthusiasm that its coincidental Spanish connection could generate well into the 1960s.