Uncovering History

Uncovering History. Historic Ethel Trail. While hiking at Rock Springs in 2008, Tony Moore, a retired land surveyor and park volunteer, noticed something in the corner of a field of waist-high grass. Imagine his surprise when he discovered a tombstone with the same last name as his. He continued searching and a few yards away, he spotted a second tombstone also bearing the last name of Moore. Tony had found the tombstones of Luke Moore and William and Charlotte Moore (although he was not related to them). Tony's discovery led to everything we know today about the Delk Plantation and the Ethel Township., Luke Moore was not a local; his body was found on a train that had stopped at Ethel. His body was removed from the train and the good people of Ethel buried him in their cemetery. Later, when his relatives discovered that he had died, they had the elaborate headstone that you can see today placed on his grave., At least 29 people were buried at Ethel, according to official records. During World War II, a Mr. Johnson bought much of the land in the area for 10 cents an acre for cattle grazing. He and his two grandsons loaded most of the headstones onto a truck and threw them into a swamp along the Wekiva River.