Plaza de la Constitución
The oldest public space in America, the plaza was laid out by Spanish Royal Ordinances in 1573. Its Constitution Monument may be the only remaining monument in the Western Hemisphere celebrating the Spanish Constitution of 1812.
The Ordinances specified that the plaza was to be laid to the compass points, and in "good proportion" - a prolonged square, the length equal to 1½ times the width. Lengths and widths based on proportional ratios were believed to be imbued with harmony and spiritual meaning.
The first system of weights and measures was established with a market here in 1598. Pictured is the Plaza from the early 1900s. Here are some markers about Florida's 67 counties, memorials to Felix Varela, prisoners of the American Revolution, the Confederacy, and soldiers killed in WWII and the Korean and Vietnam wars. A pre-18th century well has been designated an American Water Landmark. The Town Plan and plaza were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970.
Marker is at the intersection of Cathedral Plaza and St. George Street, on the left when traveling west on Cathedral Plaza.
Courtesy hmdb.org
