Fromajadas and Indigo: The Minorcan Colony in Florida.

Charleston, SC: The History Press, (2006). Octavo, softbound (stiff, illustrated purple wrappers), 95 pp. Fine (As New). From lower cover: With great anticipation, more than twelve hundred settlers -- the majority from the Mediterranean island of Minorca -- arrived on the eastern shore of Florida, south of St. Augustine, in 1768 to begin a new life at the colony of New Smyrna. Despite the initial successes of the colony, political strife and inadequate funding steered the colonists into dire straights. Fleeing the miserable living conditions and ruthless maltreatment of colony overseers, the colonists eventually sought refuge in St. Augustine, where the governor granted them asylum in 17¶7. For more than two hundred years the descendants of the surviving colonists have formed a resourceful and talented portion of St. Augustine’s population. From the six hundred plus that made the walk from New Smyrna, there are now over fifteen thousand descendants living in the St. Augustine area today. Kenneth Beeson was a direct descendant of the original Minorcan colonists. His treatise, Fromajadas and Indigo: The Minorcan Colony in Florida, has long been considered the first study of the Minorcan colonists and their history in St. Augustine. Although the work has been widely referenced by scholars and historians, this is the first time it has been made available in book form. Along with Clarissa Anderson Gibbs, Beeson was a co-founder of the Menorcan Cultural Society in the 1980s. The society’s mission is to preserve Minorcan culture and heritage. It is active in community events and hosts the Menorcan Heritage Celebration each year.