Signs of the (COVID-19) Times

Photos by Annika Minton

As the Covid-19 coronavirus sweeps through Florida and the rest of the country, once-busy tourist destinations like St. Augustine, Florida, that would normally be flooded with spring breakers and other visitors now see empty streets and shuttered restaurants. This photo essay by Annika Minton captures St. Augustine’s deserted historic district as the Nation’s Oldest City grapples with the pandemic.

St. George Street sits empty on Sunday, March 22. Usually one of the busiest tourist hotspots in St. Augustine, downtown has been empty as a result of the closings to minimize the spread of COVID-19. 

Rendezvous Restaurant’s advertisement hopes to keep at least some business coming during the outbreak. Many downtown restaurants are offering takeout and delivery since dining in restaurants is prohibited.  

Spanish Street, another main thoroughfare usually filled with tourists, sits empty on Sunday, March 22. 

A sign posted outside Zeno’s Taffy Store on St. George Street reassures customers that their employees are taking precautionary health measures while remaining open.  

The historic Cathedral Basilica of St. Augustine remains closed to tourists during the pandemic, only staying open for prayer.  

The parking lot next to The Columbia restaurant, which is usually packed full of cars, sits empty on Sunday.

Catch 27 seafood restaurant located on Charlotte Street posts a sign on their door announcing their closure “until further notice.”  

Hypolita Street, perpendicular to St. George Street, sits vacant on Sunday morning. Normally trolley tours would be taking tourists down this street from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. every day, but the tours have been cancelled until further notice.