Floral City in Citrus County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Historic Floral City

Photographed by Brandon D Cross, July 2, 2017

1. Historic Floral City Marker

Inscription.
(Side 1)
The area containing present day Floral City has been inhabited by humans for thousands of years. When Hernando De Soto came through the area in 1539, he found the Indian village of Tocaste. From the late 1700s until the Second Seminole War (1835-1842), the Seminole village of Cho-illy-hadjo (meaning Crazy Deer's Foot) was located here. The Armed occupation Act of 1842 and statehood in 1845 brought American settlers who took advantage of the abundant timber, natural waterways, and rich farmland. By the 1860s, the area was part of the vast land holdings of John Paul Formy-Duval, a Confederate veteran and son of a French physician who had fled Napoleon's rule in the early 19th century. Duval's house still stands and is the oldest home in Citrus County. Floral City was surveyed and platted in 1883 by Senator Austin Mann and Surveyor W. H. Havron. They named the town for the many wildflowers and blooming trees. In the 1880s, Floral City's commercial center was located along Aroostook Way, with the New England Hotel at the south end (on Orange Avenue) and Lake Tsala Apopka at the north end. The Orange

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State Canal, dug in 1884, provided for steamboat transportation to the Withlacoochee River and beyond. (Continued on other side) (Side 2) (Continued from other side) When the Plant System railway tracks were laid near the western edge of town in 1893, fast steam-powered trains quickly out-paced slower water vessels, which diminished the popularity of steamboat travel. The town's commercial center shifted from Aroostook Way to an uptown location at the rail line. The Florida Phosphate Boom also began in the 1890s, and a dozen mines soon dotted the area. Mine workers swelled the village population to nearly 10,000 people making it larger than the city of Miami at that time. The local phosphate ore was shipped primarily to markets in Germany, until World War I brought a sudden halt to trade in 1914. With the collapse of the phosphate industry, Floral City reverted to its agrarian roots as a small, rural community as one of the oldest and most distinct settlements in Citrus County, the Floral City Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. The oak tree canopy along Orange Avenue

Historic Floral City Marker Side 2 image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Brandon D Cross, July 2, 2017

2. Historic Floral City Marker Side 2

and Aroostook Way that contributed to the character of the district was planted by community residents in 1884, a year after the town was founded.

Erected 2015 by The Floral City Heritage Council of the Citrus County Historical Society and The Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-875.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars • Settlements & Settlers • Waterways & Vessels.

Location. 28° 45.017′ N, 82° 17.255′ W. Marker is in Floral City, Florida, in Citrus County. It is at the intersection of East Orange Avenue (County Road 48) and South Aroostook Way, on the left when traveling west on East Orange Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 8861 E Orange Ave, Floral City FL 34436, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Florida’s Gulf Coast.

It is also in the American South

and on the Gulf Coast.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western

Photographed by Brandon D Cross, July 2, 2017

3. Historic Floral City Marker

World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: What Lies Ahead (approx. 0.3 miles away); The Historic Duval House (approx. 0.4 miles away); a different marker also named The Historic Duval House (approx. 0.4 miles away); Floral City's Travelers and Their Trails (approx. half a mile away); Mile Posts (approx. 1.3 miles away); Whistle Markers (approx. 3.8 miles away); Lonely Outpost in a Hostile Land (approx. 3.9 miles away); A Costly Florida War (approx. 4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Floral City.

Credits. This page was last revised on July 31, 2017. It was originally submitted on July 3, 2017, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 1,931 times since then and 144 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on July 3, 2017, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.