Sarasota in Sarasota County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Palmer Ranch

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, December 5, 2012

1. Palmer Ranch Marker

Inscription. After her visit to Sarasota in 1910, Mrs. Potter (Bertha) Palmer and family began buying thousands of acres in the region. One large segment extended from their Sarasota-Venice Company's Bee Ridge development south to Laurel. The present 10,000-acre Palmer Ranch includes a portion of that land. In the 1930s Palmer's son and daughter-in-law, Honore and Grace Palmer, began to develop a cattle ranch south of Clark Road. On it, they introduced purebred Santa Gertrudis stock to raise the quality of the herd of 1,000 to 1,500 head kept there. The prize-winning quality of their purebred stock was widely recognized.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Settlements & Settlers • Women. A significant historical year for this entry is 1910.

Location. 27° 13.473′ N, 82° 28.178′ W. Marker is in Sarasota, Florida, in Sarasota County. Marker can be reached from Central Sarasota Parkway, 0.7 miles east of McIntosh Road, on the right when traveling east. Marker is located on the Sarasota-to-Venice Legacy Rail Trail, on the east side of the trail, 1/10 mile south of Central Sarasota Parkway. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Sarasota FL 34238, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Railroad History (approx. 1.7 miles away); Historic Spanish Point

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(approx. 2 miles away); Osprey School (approx. 2.1 miles away); South Creek Trestle / Oscar Scherer History (approx. 3½ miles away); Oscar Scherer State Park (approx. 3.8 miles away); Bee Ridge Woman's Club (approx. 4.1 miles away); The Little White Church at Bee Ridge (approx. 4.1 miles away); The Edson Keith Estate (approx. 5 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sarasota.

More about this marker. Marker is a large laser-printed metal plaque, mounted horizontally on a waist-high post.

Also see . . .
1. Sarasota Then and Now: A History of Palmer Ranch. Mrs. Palmer came to Sarasota from Chicago in 1910 as a recent widow. She'd seen an advertisement about the Sarasota Bay area in the newspaper, and after a visit, she became one of our first snowbirds. Known as the "Queen of Chicago," Bertha's marriage to multi-millionaire Potter Palmer left her with a hefty inheritance of $8 million. She used it to purchase over 80,000 acres of land in Sarasota, making her one of the largest property owners in the city's history.

Marker detail: Palmer Ranch image. Click for full size.

2. Marker detail: Palmer Ranch

Her social standing helped to put the community of 840 people on the map, and once she put down roots, Sarasota would never be the same. Bertha Palmer developed the area now known as Palmer Ranch into orange groves and livestock pastures, revolutionizing the Florida agriculture industry by being one of the first to "dip" her cattle to fight ticks. Her pioneering preventative measure became law by 1942 and helped to eradicate Florida's cattle tick problem. (Submitted on October 16, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

2. Palmer Ranch. Bertha Palmer, known as Mrs. Potter Palmer, came to Sarasota in 1910, and made a property on Little Sarasota Bay called Spanish Point her winter home. A progressive woman, she improved agricultural methods and added lavish gardens and buildings; today that land is the Historic Spanish Point garden and historic site. While the house The Oaks is gone, outbuildings and landscape remain, including remnants of designs by Achilles Duchene, after whom the Duchene Garden is named. Other former Palmer family holdings now open to the public include the Myakka River State Park and an expansion of Oscar Scherer State Park. (Submitted on October 16, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)

Palmer Ranch Marker (<i>wide view</i>) image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, December 5, 2012

3. Palmer Ranch Marker (wide view)

Credits. This page was last revised on October 16, 2018. It was originally submitted on October 15, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 900 times since then and 143 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on October 15, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 2, 3. submitted on October 16, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.