History enthusiasts gathered on May 9 for the 2024 St. Augustine History Festival at the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Leche at Mission Nombre de Dios in St. Augustine for a lecture by Dr. Denise Bossy, associate professor of history at the University of North Florida. The lecture series focused on indigenous women and travel networks that laid the foundations for the Spanish Royal Roads in La Florida. The festival celebrates the newly opened Camino de las Américas. Light refreshments and wine were served before the lecture, which took place at the Pilgrim Center in the Father López Meeting Room. Dr. Bossy specializes in local indigenous history, the native south, and public history. She is currently completing a book project tentatively entitled Yamasee: Indigenous Mobility and Power in the Early South, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Photos by Rudy Foschi