The Peña-Peck House

This is a great tour to do and get a long history view of St. Augustine. I can not do the other review justice so I will not try. Suffice it to say you have got to go on this. Cant believe it was free. The store is great as well and the cause is even better.

I also appreciated my enriching visit to the Pena-​Peck House, a few days ago. I learned many interesting things about the history of Saint Augustine, during the Spanish, British, and Confederate occupations of Saint Augustine. I learned about the achievements of this home’s residents such as;Pena and the Peck family. Our guide, Lynn McClure was very kind and helpful. The restoration work on this home dating back to 1750 is excellent. The fee for admission to this home is discretionary.

The Pena-​Peck House is a historic home built in 1750, and was the residence of the King of Spain’s royal Treasurer, Juan Esteban de Peña. Like much of the rest of the city, it was built of coquina stone. In 1837, Dr. Peck completely renovated the structure, adding a second story of wood to accommodate both his home and his medical practice.
When Dr. Peck’s granddaughter died in 1931, she willed the property to the city of St. Augustine to be exhibited to the public as a house museum. Because of the economic decline brought about to the entire nation due to the Great Depression, the city did not want this burden, and that is when an organization called The Woman’s Exchange came forward and took over. They provide tours of this historic museum house, free of charge, and show the antique furnishings and artifacts to the visitors. The Woman’s Exchange also has a store in its first floor where they sell gifts such as jewelry, accessories, and hot sauces. All profits go toward helping women in need.
This home is a popular wedding venue, due to its gardens. Pictures of the inside of the home are NOT allowed, which is why you will not see any pictures accompanying any of the reviews. Our tour guide was great, very friendly, and informative, and my friend and I gladly purchased some hot sauces from The Woman’s Exchange, in exchange for our informative tour.

St. Augustine is a great place to learn about our complex past and the Pena-​Peck House Museum was our first cultural tour in the Ancient City. We absolutely loved the tour given by Margo. She is charming and funny as well as fact filled! She is very knowledgeable in the history of the house which spans from the 1500’s till the early 20^th Century. Most of the tour covers the Victorian and post Victorian era, although there is a wealth of information on the first Spanish occupation of the house. This was my main issue. I wanted to see more and hear more from the earliest Spanish occupation. I mean, St. Augustine is a place to visit if you are interested in the history of the «First Coast». The first floor is devoted to the earliest Spanish occupation and has a visitor orientation room which has artifacts and information from all periods the house was occupied. This makes sense since the second floor was added long after the first Spanish occupation. Even though I was more interested in the house’s Spanish history I loved the rest of the tour. The tour is free but it deserves a donation. We left one! It takes about an hour to finish the tour.
The Pena-​Peck House is associated with The Woman’s Exchange of St. Augustine which is a non profit organization that helps women who have fallen on hard times. One thing they do is help women in need with scholarships. All the more reason to donate money for the tour and purchase the great things they sell in their gift shop. The house is also a great luncheon and wedding venue.