To preserve or demolish the Old County Jail, the site where Dr. Martin Luther King and the largest arrest of Jewish rabbis left open for discussion
 Lucia VitiSt. Augustine Record

The future of a former jail in St. Augustine, Florida, that once held Martin Luther King Jr. is uncertain as officials weigh demolition requests.
Local historians and activists are petitioning to save the building, citing its significance to the Civil Rights Movement.
St. Johns County officials say they are considering the building's historical value and will explore all options before making a decision.

The future of St. Johns County's Old Jail has created a firestorm in America’s oldest city.

On Feb. 2, local historian David Nolan and Rabbi Merrill Shapiro, president of the St. Augustine Jewish Historical Society, told the St. Augustine Record via email that the St. Johns County Cultural Resource Review Board planned to discuss demolishing the old jail, 4025 Lewis Speedway, at its meeting on Feb. 10.

Both said the jail's historical significance dates to 1964, when according to Nolan, President Lyndon B. Johnson was told that if “he wanted to keep an eye on the leaders of the civil rights movement, he should just look at the St. Johns County Jail because that's where they all were incarcerated.”

Historical records show that on June 12, 1964, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested while attempting to eat at St. Augustine’s bayfront Monson Motor Lodge, a “whites only” restaurant. During his incarceration, King telegrammed his friend, Rabbi Israel Dresner, requesting assistance in the form of the presence of Jewish rabbis, and Dresner complied.

On June 18, 16 rabbis were arrested and incarcerated with King in the St. Johns County jail. Members of the largest mass arrest of rabbis in America composed the famous, “Why We Went Letter,” which is publicly read at the site of their St. Augustine arrest every June.

Nolan and Shapiro said a petition is circulating to cease the demolition of the now vacant historical landmark graced with a Freedom Trail Marker.  

The St. Augustine Record reached out to County Administrator Joy Andrews, who confirmed the information. However, the agenda item had been removed already because the consultants' Cultural Review Management Plan, received just that day, had yet to be reviewed.

Andrews shared a copy of a memo she sent to the Board of County Commissioners that included an overview of the Land Development Code and the County’s Development Review Manual in reference to the jail.

“This is not going to be a quick turnaround, which I think is the way it should be,” she told the St. Augustine Record.

Andrews said that in November 2024, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office applied for a development permit to demolish the Detention Center Annex, formerly known as the Old Jail.

“Originally constructed in 1952, the building was renovated over 15 years ago to serve as office space for SJSO employees,” the memo said. “However, due to ongoing maintenance challenges, SJSO vacated the facility about two years ago and it remains unoccupied.”

The memo outlined "community engagement efforts led by the sheriff's office” to preserve the cultural heritage.

“Prior to submitting the application, the sheriff conducted extensive community outreach and facilitated several meetings as well as tours of the building with community stakeholders and leaders, including but not limited to the West Augustine CRA steering committee leaders,” the memo said. “These key community members and the sheriff agreed that, if the permit was approved, any artifacts that could be salvaged from the building would be preserved and protected properly.”

Andrews and Nolan said several of the jail’s artifacts used by King – a bench and his fingerprint card – are already housed at the Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center.  

The presence of asbestos was another component up for discussion. Andrews underscored that demolition would not occur until a thorough review was conducted and adequate cultural resource protection was in place.

“Additionally, I immediately reached out to the CEO of the Lincolnville Museum and the St. Augustine Historical Society for their input,” she said in the memo. “As we move forward with this thorough review process, we will continue to engage the community to ensure the highest level of protection of our historical resources and assets. I will provide further updates following review of the Cultural Resources Management Plan and future CRRB meeting.”

In the memo, Andrews confirmed the site's historical relevance.

"A Florida Master Site File references the Civil Rights Movement locally and nationally," she wrote. "The file states that Martin Luther King, Jr. and St. Augustine Foot Soldiers and associates were jailed there. The site is potentially eligible for listing as a National Register of Historic Places, however, it is not currently listed as such."

The memo confirmed the presence of building's two interpretive plaques, one detailing the Freedom Trail, and the other memorializing the building's dedication along with a stair railing and the jail's cell bars.

"The largest mass arrest of Jewish Rabbis in U.S. history occurred in St. Augustine in 1964, and they were detained at this facility," she wrote.

According to Andrews, the impact of the proposed demolition was conducted concurrently with a Historic Architectural Building Survey and the Cultural Resources Management Plan.

"Due to potential cultural significance, staff requested that the applicant hire a professional consultant to complete a Cultural Resources Management Plan," Andrews wrote. "In January, staff toured the site with the consultant, Paul Weaver of Historic Property Associates, Inc., and his photographer to document the site. Mr. Weaver has not submitted his review as of this date."

The memo also said there would be flexibility in how historic associations interpreted or documented the site to "mitigate the Adverse Effect of demolition, if permitted. The CRMP documents those alternatives."

Reviews to authorize or terminate the permit, or leave the application open are pending "comments and further review." Andrews confirmed that as the regulatory agency, the BOCC will make the final decision.

“Should the permit by authorized by staff, it would appear before the Board of County Commissioners as an agenda item for final approval,” the memo said.

'Where there's a will, there's a way'
In learning of the removal of the item for discussion, Nolan detailed the building’s historical significance.

“This can’t be demolition by mistake,” he said. “It’s the government’s responsibility to maintain the historic buildings they own. Discussions must focus on preservation. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

Nolan likened the building’s demolition to a breakdown of social consciousness.

“The building offers a historical educational value, while serving as an important function for tourism,” he said. “St. Augustine is a history teacher to America at large and we must show America's children something more than ghosts, and pirates and Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum. We must show historical places where real things happened.”

“The entire building is much more than the sum of its parts,” Shapiro said. “The Old Jail gives meaning to St. Augustine’s history of the civil rights movement that serves as an intersection between the Jewish community and the African American community on a national scale. Once it's gone, it's gone. There's no going back.”