Winter Garden in Orange County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
Pounds Motor Company
162 West Plant Street
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, March 9, 2015
1. Pounds Motor Company Marker
Constructed in 1926, this building housed Pounds Motor Company for 82 years. Here, Hoyle Pounds operated the largest tractor dealership in the southeast U.S. As early as 1918, Pounds encouraged citrus owners to replace mules used to plow groves with motorized tractors. The Tavares & Gulf Railroad tracks ran behind the business; tractors and other farm equipment were delivered on railroad flat cars for assembly in the second-floor machine shop. Pounds was also an inventor, frequently adapting farm equipment for better used in the citrus industry. He held several patents for his inventions; his most famous, the rubber tractor tire, replaced metal wheels, which badly damaged paved roads. Pounds was inducted into the Florida Agriculture Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Citrus Hall of Fame in 1996. Family members continued the Plant Street business until 2008 despite three freezes in the 1980s that crippled the citrus industry.
Erected 2011 by Winter Garden Heritage Foundation.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars. A significant historical year for this entry is 1926.
Location. 28° 33.914′ N, 81° 35.256′ W. Marker is in Winter Garden, Florida, in Orange County
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Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. First United Methodist Church of Winter Garden (approx. 0.2 miles away); Winter Garden Downtown Historic District (approx. 0.2 miles away); Winter Garden Supreme Sacrifice Memorial (approx. 0.4 miles away); Brick Road (approx. 1.4 miles away); The Christian Church (approx. 2.6 miles away); Orange County Election Day Violence/ Ocoee Massacre and Exodus (approx. 2.8 miles away); Henry Nehrling's Palm Cottage Gardens (approx. 4˝ miles away); Turnverein - Zion Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery (approx. 4.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Winter Garden.
Also see . . .
1. Winter Garden Heritage Museum. Winter Garden Post website entry:
Local resident Hoyle Pounds was a well-known inventor. He opened the first Ford dealership in Winter Garden in 1920 and sold both cars and farm equipment. One of his many inventions was creating rubber tires for tractors. The income from this invention helped to finance the brick building that
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, March 9, 2015
2. Pounds Motor Company Marker (wide view)
Marker is located at eye-level between the front door and front window of the historic Pounds Motor Company building.
2. Striving to be the Best - Pound for Pound. Green Industry Pros website entry:
Founded in 1914, Pounds Motor Co. had built its business by catering to citrus farmers in central Florida. But when two big freezes wiped out nearly all the grove businesses in the 1980s, Pounds Motor's long history of innovation didn't seem to matter any longer. Or did it? (Submitted on March 10, 2015, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, March 9, 2015
3. Pounds Motor Company Building
Credits. This page was last revised on December 31, 2021. It was originally submitted on March 9, 2015, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 1,110 times since then and 88 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on March 9, 2015, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
