Nice Hunterjumper

Historical affiliations Kingdom of France 1562–1565 Spanish Empire 1565–1763 Great Britain 1763–1783 Spanish Empire 1783–1812 Republic of East Florida 1812 Spanish Empire 1812-1817 Republic of the Floridas 1817 Republic of Mexico 1817 Spanish Empire 1817-1821 United States 1821-1861 Confederate States of America 1861–1862 United States 1862–present Prior to the arrival of Europeans on what is now Amelia Island, Native Americans occupied the site of the original town of Fernandina. Native American bands associated with the Timucuan mound-building culture had settled on the island about A.D. 1000, calling it Napoyca. They remained on the island until the early 18th century, when European settlement began. French Huguenot explorer Jean Ribault became the first recorded European visitor to Napoyca in 1562, which he named Isle de Mai.