Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Spanish Florida" in English language version.
The first capital of La Florida was founded at Santa Elena in 1566 (at present Parris Island, South Carolina) with St. Augustine serving as a separate military post.
Apalachee men were forced to leave their families and carry corn and other foods by foot to the city [St. Augustine]. [...] In 1676, a 33-year Spanish veteran of the Florida missions, Fray Alonso Moral, provided a graphic portrayal of how Apalachee laborers were forced to carry loads on their backs for two hundred miles to and from St. Augustine [...].
Spain never drew a clear line to separate the two Floridas, but West Florida extended easterly to include Apalachee Bay, which Spain shifted from the jurisdiction of St. Augustine to more accessible Pensacola.
Under Spanish rule, Florida was divided by the natural separation of the Suwanee River into West Florida and East Florida.
On July 21, 1821 all of what had been West Florida was named Escambia County, after the Escambia River. It stretched from the Perdido River to the Suwanee River with its county seat at Pensacola.
Under Spanish rule, Florida was divided by the natural separation of the Suwanee River into West Florida and East Florida.