St. Augustine Heritage Book Festival

St. Augustine Book Festival

The Ximenez-Fatio House Museum hosts a book festival from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on September 20, 2025. Fifteen Local authors whose works celebrate St. Augustine's stories, history, and poetry present their books. You can meet the authors, purchase their books, and ask them to sign your copy. 

This year, the Ximenez-Fatio House has chosen to showcase authors whose stories and histories of St. Augustine occurred between 1565 and 1840. The 2025 festival launches the museum's two-year celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the American Revolution that followed. In Florida, 1840 marked the end of the Seminole Wars, which were a result of the American Revolution. 

In addition to the authors, members of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) offer a free children's activity to create an original 250th pin.

Participating Authors

The following authors have tables at the festival and are signing books:

• Marian Matthews
• Michael Urban
• Ann Browning Masters
• Elizabeth Randall
• Warren Clark
• Randy Cribbs
• Christina Kaplan
• Marisa Carbone
• John Jessop
• Vic Digenti
• Karen Harvey
• Kim Bradley
• Mark Moorer
• BeckyDove (DAR)
• Liam Ashe
• DorothyFletcher
• Allen Balogh
• James Glover

The Event

Admission: The book festival is a free event. Self-guided museum tours are available at regular prices from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The last tour starts no later than 4:00 p.m.

When: Saturday, September 20, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. 

Where: The Ximenez-Fatio House and Museum, 20 Aviles Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084

The Ximenez-Fatio House Museum

Built in 1798 during St. Augustine’s Second Spanish Period, this coquina stone house has witnessed more than 225 years of Florida history. Don Andres Ximenez (a merchant from Spain) was its first owner, having built it for his family.

After Florida became a territory of the United States, the house was owned by a series of women who operated the property as a boarding house hotel. Three of these female managers were widowed, while the most prominent, Louisa Fatio, remained single.

In 1939, the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Florida (NSCDA-FL) purchased the derelict house. They hired the best preservationists to ensure it was as historically accurate as possible to the Boarding House Period (1830s - 1880s) and ultimately named their newly opened museum "The Ximenez-Fatio House"—Ximenez for the man who built the house and Fatio for Louisa Fatio, the house's last historic owner.