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For Immediate Release                                     Contact: Jerry M. Ray
 November 21, 1997                                                 904-858-2707


          ST. JOE CORPORATION WON'T PURSUE PROPOSAL TO MERGE WITH FECI

         Jacksonville, Florida -(November 21, 1997)- St. Joe Corporation (NYSE:
SJP) today notified the Board of Directors of Florida East Coast Industries
(FECI) (NYSE: FLA) that it has decided not to pursue its proposal, made earlier
this year, under which St. Joe and FECI would have merged and all shares of
FECI stock owned by others than St. Joe would have been exchanged for cash at
$102 per share.

         Charles A. Ledsinger, Jr., senior vice president and chief financial
officer of St. Joe, said, "We intend to be disciplined buyers, and we did not
believe a transaction could be accomplished at a price acceptable to St. Joe.
In any case, St. Joe will continue to own a controlling interest in FECI and
will remain actively involved in the business seeking new opportunities for
growth."

         "We are always looking for growth opportunities internally and  
externally," Ledsinger added. "It is not possible to predict where these
opportunities will arise, but I can say that St. Joe is a flexible, open-minded
company."

         There are currently approximately 9.1 million shares of FECI common
stock outstanding, of which St. Joe owns approximately 4.9 million shares or
54%.

         Florida East Coast Industries, based in Jacksonville, has interests in
real estate development and rail transportation. Its subsidiaries include the
Florida East Coast Railway, a freight carrier with approximately 442 miles of
track, principally between Miami and Jacksonville, and Gran Central
Corporation, which owns and manages approximately 19,000 acres of land in 14
Florida counties and also owns 55 buildings.

         St. Joe Corporation, a publicly held company also based in
Jacksonville, is Florida's largest private land owner and has interests in real
estate, timber, railroads, and sugar.

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