A Place in Time: the changing face of Florida

Aerial photographs provide the visual record of land use changes. We can use images taken over a period of years to document Florida's changes. In this unit we have been asked to imagine how the environs of St. Augustine might have appeared in 1565 to Don Pedro Menendez de Aviles as he tried to establish settlements in Florida. Unfortunately, photography had not been invented so handdrawn maps were the only references available. How strikingly different are the two images below that show actual changes that have occurred near St. Augustine in the 20th century. The first photograph was taken in 1942, note the month-day-year designation in the upper left corner. The other number on this photograph CZA-4C-42 is the flight number CZA-4C and the tile, or photograph, number within that flight 42.

Look at the aerial below. What date was it taken?
Look for Castillo St. Marcos as your reference point. See what changes have taken place in eighteen intervening years. Look for signs of both human development and natural changes in vegetation. The latter is very evident on the sandy dunes of the barrier island.
 

FLORIDA COUNTY ACTIVITY:

1. Make a list of the key features that exist in your county. These may be buildings, lakes, towns, springs, etc.
2. Go to the "From the Air" site and select the county and year you want.
3. Open the listing. At the bottom, you will see photomosaic index listings. Open each index until you find the one that contains your feature. Zoom in on your feature until you see the individual tile.
4. Write down the year, flight number, and tile number.
5. Go back to the flight listing and open the correct tile. Use the zoom button to take a closer look at your feature. You can either print that part of the image, or take notes on what you see near the feature.
6. Go to the next flight year for your county and repeat the procedure.
7. Compare the environs surrounding your feature between the two years. What has changed?
Why do you think it has changed?

BARRIER ISLANDS WEB ACTIVITY:

Go to the Glencoe's WebQuest [http://www.glencoe.com/sec/science/index.html] to find out about barrier islands like those that protect the harbor at St. Augustine. Go to Glencoe's home page, click on "webquest, " then "activities" and then "Barrier Islands."