Punta Gorda in Charlotte County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Indian Spring Cemetery

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, June 21, 2016

1. Indian Spring Cemetery Marker

Inscription. Indian Spring Cemetery, also called Indian Springs, was created in 1886 on land donated by James L. Sandlin (1858-1903), who settled on Alligator Creek in 1884. Additions were recorded in 1891, 1931, 1974 and 1975. The name "Indian Spring" came from a small spring near the creek that was thought to have been used by native tribal dwellers. The 40-acre cemetery is the second known graveyard established in the Charlotte Harbor area and the first publicly-owned burial ground. Owned and maintained by Charlotte County since 1948, it contains over 2,500 verified interments, some unmarked, dating back to 1889.

James Sandlin was a young man who became a leading citizen of the newly-formed City of Punta Gorda. He is one of many Florida pioneers interred at Indian Spring. Albert Waller Gilchrist (1858-1926), the Florida Southern Railway surveyor who platted Indian Spring, went into politics and served as Governor of Florida from 1909 to 1913; Virginia Taylor Trabue (1832-1924), wife of Punta Gorda's founder; Joel Bean (1867-1943), founder of El Jobean, Florida's first circular city; and Sallie Jones (1895-1960), Florida's first female Superintendent of Schools, are also among the notables that rest here.

Erected 2009 by Charlotte County Board of County Commissioners.

Topics. This historical marker

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is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Settlements & Settlers. A significant historical year for this entry is 1886.

Location. 26° 53.353′ N, 82° 0.869′ W. Marker is in Punta Gorda, Florida, in Charlotte County. It is at the intersection of Indian Springs Cemetery Road and Ferncroft Avenue, on the left when traveling south on Indian Springs Cemetery Road. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 5400 Indian Spring Cemetery Road, Punta Gorda FL 33950, 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 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: Punta Gorda Army Air Field World War II (approx. 2.1 miles away); Charlotte High School (approx. 3 miles away); Punta Gorda Atlantic Coast Line Depot (approx. 3.4 miles away); Punta Gorda Railroad Depot (approx. 3.4 miles away); Trabue House (approx. 3.6 miles away); Consolidated Ice Plant (approx. 3.7 miles away); Bailey Brothers Park (approx. 3.8 miles away); Charlotte County Courthouse (approx. 3.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Punta Gorda.

Also see . . . Indian Spring Find a Grave. (Submitted on February 28, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.)

Indian Spring Cemetery and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, June 21, 2016

2. Indian Spring Cemetery and Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on January 14, 2022. It was originally submitted on February 28, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 1,008 times since then and 58 times this year. Last updated on January 6, 2022, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 28, 2021, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. • J. Makali Bruton was the editor who published this page.