citruslandfl

In Search of Florida’s Historic Citrusland – Part 3 Orange Lake, Florida, 1833 Survey by Henry Washington “ Aside from its importance as an orange-growing district, Mandarin (now a Jacksonville suburb), has become a celebrity through being a winter residence of the famous authoress, Mrs. Harriett Beecher Stowe .” Mandarin, Florida, Duval County, Webb’s Historical (1885) Historic Florida Towns & Places , Richard Lee Cronin (2026) The Dawn of Citrusland There was a time in Florida’s...

Moses Lyman (Left); Benjamin F. Whitner II (right) I n Search of Florida’s Historic Citrusland Part 2: Florida’s Sweet Orange Peace Pact “ In 1869, when your correspondent arrived in Orange County, the orange crop was estimated at 60,000. I see by the figures of the Florida Journal that the shipments of the present year (1877) at Mellonville, Sanford, and Lake Jesup, are put down (estimated) at 2,000,000 .” Will Wallace Harney, Cincinnati Commercial Newspaper April 15, 1877 A Historic Flash...

Earnest Chapel, Fort Reid, Florida, circa 1874 On Fort Mellon to Fort Gatlin Road (1838-1857) AKA, Mellonville to Orlando Road (1857-c1888) “One must take a buggy and follow the picturesque old Fort Mellon Road among the groves and gardens of a prior generation.” The Gate City Route, South Florida Railroad (1887) The Way it Was: F lorida’s population in 1870 was 187,748 , for the entire State, making it the 33 rd most populous of all 37 States at that time. Considering the United...