Mariana Escovar, First Spanish Period, 1687

In 1687, a decree from King Charles II of Spain offered safe haven in St. Augustine to any enslaved person escaping English plantations in Carolina. This document records the “in necessity” baptism of Mariana Escovar, who was gravely ill when she arrived. Fleeing with 10 others, Mariana made the harrowing journey with a nursing infant on her back to their refuge in La Florida.