Boat Tour Information

QUARANTINE STATION
The land for the Quarantine Station was formed by rock and iron (used for ballast) that was unloaded from ships during the 17-1800's. The rock and iron were off loaded so that the ships could enter the Pensacola Harbor. The buildings were originally used as a Quarantine Station for Plague and Yellow Fever victims in the early 1700's and throughout the 1800's. Later, an oyster research lab utilized the structure until the 1930's. A Wildlife Service Lab was to follow, and it remained until the present EPA Lab took it over in the 1970's.

PENSACOLA'S LARGEST HOUSE
The house itself covers 26,000 sq. ft. It has 32 rooms, including 16 bedrooms, plus 11 bathrooms, a 4-car garage and 6 wet bars. It also has a beauty salon, arts & crafts room, movie theater, health club, complete office, billiard room and servant quarters for some 13 full-time staff members that are employed there. The house sits on 1 1/2 acres of uplands and is surrounded by 40 acres of wetlands.
The owner just completed his new concrete dock with marble top and installed a 70,000 pound lift to pick up his 60' Magnum Boat, which is capable of speeds up to 60 mph.

NATIONAL SEASHORE
We are now passing the beginning of a section of the National Seashore. This 10-12 mile stretch (all the way to Pensacola Pass, including Historic Ft. Pickens), is part of the 25 miles of National Seashore that is in the Pensacola area. It is also counted as part of the 150 miles of National Seashore that lines the Gulf Coast.

PENSACOLA NAVAL AIR STATION
Designated the "Home of Naval Aviation" and home of the "Precision Blue Angels Flying Team." It's National Museum of Naval Aviation has over 250,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space. It is one of the largest museums of it's kind in our nation and is a must see when visiting Pensacola.
The Naval Air Station's main job centers around Naval Training and Flight Instruction.

FORT PICKENS
This fort is now a major attraction of the National Seashore. First built by the Spaniards around 1719, then rebuilt 50 years later in its' present location. Ft. Pickens was used by the NORTH in the Civil War to fight the SOUTH in the Pensacola Area, which included those at Ft. McRee, across the pass. Ft. Pickens became a famous tourist attraction when Geronimo and his band of Apachees were held there from 1886-1888. One of Geronimo's wives died while they were imprisoned there, and she is buried at Barrancas National Cemetery.

FORT McREE
This fort was also built by the Spaniards in the 1700's. It was held by the SOUTH in the Civil War until they were forced to evacuate Pensacola in 1862 (one of the Confederate's last stands.) Ft. McRee and Ft. Pickens were both used during the Civil War, and both were manned during World War II to protect the coast from a potential German attack to our ships and Naval Bases.

FORT BARRANCAS (or Ft. St. Carlos De Barrancas)
This fort played major roles in Pensacola, with both, the South and the North, during the Civil War. Later, it housed the 13th Coast Artillery Post during WWII, which was the Command Center for the area during the war. The Post of Ft. Barrancas was disbanded in 1947 and the property was transferred to the Naval Air Station.

PICKENS POINT
You probably thought Jaws and JawsII, were filmed in New England... not so!
This is "Lighthouse Point" as it was referred to in the movies. Orca's fight with the shark took place here, as well as many other scenes that were used throughout both movies.
A bunch of local high school students were used as extras during the filming and much of the footage was shot between here and Navarre.

THE BATTLESHIP MASSACHUSETTS
A World War I battleship. It was placed out of commission in Philadelphia in 1919. In 1920, it was towed to Pensacola. Ft. Barrancas, while testing a new battery of guns, used the battleship for target practice and eventually sunk it in 1921.

LIGHTHOUSE AND LIGHTHOUSE COVE
This was one of the 1st settlements, when "Pensacola" used to be located on what is now, the Naval Air Station. The residential area at Lighthouse cove, at that time, was referred to as, "Pig-Eye."

PENSACOLA
Originally settled around 1559, making it older than St. Augustine; however, Pensacola was destroyed by a hurricane and wasn't resettled until 1698. To date, the city has flown five flags - the Spanish, the French, the English, the Confederate and the United States of America.
Pensacola is known as the "Cradle of Naval Aviation" and is the only natural deep water port on the Gulf of Mexico. Pensacola has grown to house a population of nearly 360,000.