Plaza Public Market

The market pavilion at the center of the Plaza de la Constitución has stood since the early 1800s and is one of the most photographed — and most debated — structures in St. Augustine.

Long known as the “old slave market,” it served as the city’s public market, where produce and goods were sold and where, according to historical records, enslaved people were among those bought and sold in the plaza. Historians still discuss how the building should be named and understood; what is not in doubt is that slavery was part of the commerce that happened in this square.

A century later, the same plaza became a stage for the civil rights movement — the site of marches, rallies, and arrests during 1963 and 1964. Standing at the market today, you are in the one spot where St. Augustine’s whole history meets: colonial commerce, slavery, and the fight for equal rights. Free, open air, in the center of downtown.