hello list - i am trying to help someone up north find information on a J.C. Hernandez who would have lived in a boarding house (don't know which one) in jacksonville in 1861. hernandez is described as being "a mate of a foreign vessel". the vessel was loading rosin and turpentine here in jax bound for england, then to the east indies to pick up freight bound for northern u.s. ports. (the vessel was leaving jax on the afternoon of may 7, 1861.) i suppose, then (and i'm thinking aloud here) that mr. hernandez was not a regular resident but only (infrequently) a visitor to jax on whatever occasions his ship came into this port. does anyone know of any boarding houses that may have catered to seamen? does anyone know of which boarding houses were in existence in jax in 1861? i wonder if any records of patrons still exist. i sure would appreciate any help or suggestions from our list. thanks, julie thames howell jax, fla