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An Englishman recorded his trip through Guale

Source: Early History of the Creek Indians and Their Neighbors #121

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An interesting glimpse of these missions is furnished us by the Quaker Dickenson in 1699, when he and his companions who had been shipwrecked on the southeast coast of Florida passed north from St. Augustine on their way to Carolina. He says:
"Taking our departure from Augustine [Sept. 29] we had about 2 or 3 leagues to an Indian town called St. a Cruce, where, being landed, we were directed to the Indian warehouse [town house]. It was built round, having 16 squares (Note: This term seems to be applied to the spaces betwecn the vertical wall timbers.), and on each square a cabin (Note: Old name for a bed raised on posts close to the wall of an indian house.) built and painted, which would hold two people, the house being about 50 feet diameter; and in the middle of the top was a square opening about 15 feet. This house was very clean; and fires being ready made nigh our cabin, the Spanish captain made choice of cabins for him and his soldiers and appointed us our cabins. —In this town they have a friar and a large house to worship in, with three bells; and the Indians go as constantly to their devotions at all times and seasons, as any of the Spaniards. Night being come and the time of their devotion over, the friar came in, and many of the Indians, both men and women, and they had a dance according to their way and custom. We had plenty of Casseena drink, and such victuals as the Indians had provided for us, some bringing corn boiled, others pease; some one thing, some another; of all which we made a good supper, and slept till morning.
This morning early [Sept. 30] we left this town, having about 2 leagues to go with the canoes, and then we were to travel by land; but a cart was provided to carry our provisions and necessaries, in which those that could not travel were carried. We had about 5 leagues to a sentinel's house, where we lay all night, and next morning travelled along the sea shore about 4 leagues to an inlet. Here we waited for canoes to come for us, to carry us about 2 miles to an Indian town called St. Wan's [San Juan's], being on an island. We went through a skirt of wood into the plantations, for a mile. In the middle of this island is the town, St. Wan's, a large town and many people; they have a friar and worship house. The people are very industrious, having plenty of hogs, fowls, and large crops of corn, as we could tell by their corn houses. The Indians brought us victuals as at the last town, and we lay in their warehouse, which was larger than at the other town.
This morning [Oct. 2] the Indians brought us victuals for breakfast, and the friar gave my wife some loaves of bread made of Indian corn which was somewhat extraordinary; also a parcel of fowls. About 10 o'clock in the forenoon we left St. Wan's walking about a mile to the sound; here were canoes and Indians ready to transport us to the next town. We did believe we might have come all the way along the sound, but the Spaniards were not willing to discover the place to us.
An hour before sun set we got to the town call'd St. Mary's. This was a frontier and garrison town; the inhabitants are Indians with some Spanish soldiers. We were conducted to the ware house, as the custom is, every town having one: we understood these houses were either for their times of mirth and dancing, or to lodge and entertain strangers. The house was about 31 feet diameter, (Note: This figure is too small, perhaps due to a misprint; 32 squares 8 feet long would mean a circumference of 256 feet and a diameter of 70-80 feet. The figure 3 in 31 is probably a misprint for 8 as suggested by Bushnell.) built round, with 32 squares; in each square a cabin about 8 feet long, of good height, painted and well matted. The centre of the building is a quadrangle of 20 feet. being open at the top, against which the house is built. In this quadrangle is the place they dance, having a great fire in the middle. In one of the squares is the gate way or passage. The women natives of these towns clothe themselves with the moss of trees, making gowns and petticoats thereof, which at a distance, or in the night, looks very neat. The Indian boys we saw were kept to school in the church, the friar being their schoolmaster. This was the largest town of all, and about a mile from it was another called St. Philip's. At St. Mary's we were to stay till the 5th or 6th inst. Here we were to receive our 60 roves of corn and 10 of pease. While we staid we had one half of our corn beaten into meal by the Indians, the other we kept whole, not knowing what weather we should have.
. . . We got of the Indians plenty of garlick and long pepper, to season our corn and pease, both of which are griping and windy, and we made wooden trays and spoons to eat with. We got rushes and made a sort of plaited rope thereof; the use we intended it for, was to be serviceable to help us in building huts or tents with, at such times as we should meet with hard weather . . .
We departed this place [Oct. 6] and put into the town of St. Philip's, where the Spanish Captain invited us on shore to drink Casseena, which we did: the Spaniards, having left something behind, we staid here about an hour, and then set forward.
About 2 or 3 leagues from hence we came in sight of an Indian town called Sappataw." (Note: See Bushnell... who gives diagrammatic plans of the town houses.)

"Sappataw" is probably a misprint for Sappalaw, i.e. Sapelo. Some, and probably all, of these missions were on the sites of former missions occupied by Timucua, but most of the latter Indians must have died out or been removed. At least, Dickenson says in two places that the Indians living there were "related" to the Yamasee then in Carolina."

If Barcia may be trusted, a considerable number of Guale Indians fled to South Carolina at the time when the remainder of the tribe was removed to Florida. 
(Swanton)