PALM VALLEY
Long before the first Spanish settlers arrived, there was an Indian village in the area. Several Indian mounds have been uncovered revealing arrow heads, pottery and human skeletons.
By 1703 Don Diego Sinoza had settled in the area. His vast ranch and the surrounding territory was then known as Diego Plains. In the 1730's the ranch was fortified to protect the people of the ranch from Indian attack.
Trouble was brewing for the inhabitants of Diego Plains, for by 1739 Great Britain and Spain were at war. General James Oglethorpe, leader of the English colony of Georgia, was commissioned to harass the Spanish settlements. When threats of invasion by General Oglethorpe became widespread, the Spanish governor fortified the Diego farmhouse even more, and it was already being called Fort San Diego. Oglethorpe captured Fort San Diego in his unsuccessful foray against the Spanish soldiers garrisoned in St. Augustine at Castillo de San Marcos. After failure to capture St. Augustine, Oglethorpe and his men abandoned Fort San Diego. The St. Johns County Historical Commission erected a marker west of where the fort once stood.
In 1908 a canal was dug through Diego Plains connecting the San Pablo River to the north with the Tolomato River near St. Augustine. This Inter - Coastal Canal made access to the valley much easier. By this time there were quite a few residents settled in this area making a living by farming, logging and selling palm fronds to religious groups. The many palm trees growing profusely led some of the settlers to decide on the name " Palm Valley" for their community. After petitioning Washington, D.C. the local post office was officially changed from Diego to Palm Valley in May of 1908.
Prohibition turned some of the valley residents to another source of income - moonshine. The abundant water supply and the many places of concealment made the valley an ideal place for illegal whiskey distilling. The moonshine industry thrived even after the Volstead Act was repealed in 1933. The rising price of sugar finally brought the illegal whiskey industry to an end several years ago.
Today Palm Valley is a quiet area of Ponte Vedra Beach, between highways A1A and U.S. 1. There are many small farms raising produce and live stock, as well as many suburban residences lining both banks of the inter coastal waterway.