The village that Spaniards called San Luis was always a prominent entity in Apalachee Province. It first appeared in the historical record as the capital village called Anhaica where de Soto wintered in 1539-40.

Shortly after the founding of St. Augustine in 1565, missions were established along the Atlantic coastal plain and westward into north Florida. In 1633, Pedro Muñoz and Francisco Martínez launched a formal mission effort in Apalachee Province.

In 1656, Spanish authorities decided to establish their western capital on one of the region's highest hilltops for strategic purposes, and the chief of San Luis (Anhaica) moved his village to be near them. In 1675, San Luis and its satellite villages had a population of more than 1,400 native residents. While the size of most other Apalachee missions declined sharply over the years, the population of San Luis increased.

San Luis was also the only settlement beyond St. Augustine and Pensacola to have a significant European population. Several hundred Spaniards resided there by the end of the 17th century, almost all of whom were related to Spaniards in St. Augustine. This is significant since it is the only mission with a Spanish village where the native population had sustained contact with a range of Spaniards (rather than a single friar) and negotiated power-sharing over the course of nearly three generations.

Unlike its predominantly Spanish counterpart settlement in St. Augustine, the cultural landscape of San Luis was a true amalgamation of Spanish and Native American traditions, revealing many of the moderate approaches to colonization.

The original settlement included a central plaza, castillo, religious complex, Apalachee council house, and Spanish and Native American residential areas. Based on archaeological and historical research, the fort, church, council house, castillo, and other areas of San Luis have been reconstructed.

Exhibits and living history demonstrations give visitors a sense of daily life at a Spanish colonial mission in Florida at this National Historic Landmark.

Information provided by Visit Florida and the Florida Division of Historical Resources.