History

Author Foxx Nolte gives readers a glimpse behind the curtain of the most magical place on earth. Millions of people a year visit Walt Disney World, but few would consider it to be a place with any real history. But hidden just below the surface, past the blanket of pixie dust, is a story as vivid and bizarre as any. It is a history of corporate politics, urban planning, crazy ambitions, and failed schemes. The Hidden History of Walt Disney World takes you on a journey that stretches from “Old Florida” to the events that made Walt Disney World what it is today. There’s birds made of citrus, horizontal elevators, a ghost town, and tennis ball factories. And that’s just the start. Whether you’ve visited one or one hundred times, your vacation will never be the same again. Yep, the castle is fake. But the stories are not.

Although several people had considered constructing a railroad to Key West beginning in the early 1800s, it took a bold industrialist with unparalleled vision to make it happen.

In 1902, Henry Flagler made the decision to extend the Florida East Coast Railway to "the nearest deepwater American port." In this book, renowned Florida historian Seth H. Bramson reveals how the Key West Extension of the Flagler-owned FEC became the greatest railroad engineering and construction feat in U.S., and possibly world, history, an accomplishment that would cement Flagler's fame and legend for all time. Join Bramson as he recounts the years of operation of this great railroad, what it did for the Florida Keys and what it meant to the resident conchs.

Dig into a treasure trove of nearly forgotten Sunshine State Civil War history.

At the outset of the Civil War, Florida’s entire population was only a bit larger than present-day Gainesville. Still, the state played an outsized role in the conflict. Floridians fought for the Union and Confederate armies. Sunshine State farmers provided beef and other foodstuffs for the Confederacy, rations that proved increasingly consequential as the years wore on. The battles of Olustee and Natural Bridge, where boys from the West Florida Seminary entered the fray, helped keep Tallahassee as the only Confederate-held capital east of the Mississippi River. Even the conspirators involved in Lincoln’s assassination wove a trail that led to Florida. Join author Robert Redd on a tour of the lesser-known aspects of Florida in the Civil War.

Located approximately 50 miles north of Disney World, the small community of Mount Dora, Florida, has become a peaceful oasis in the bustling region

It offers a respite to the weary traveler and a refreshing connection to an earlier time. The town rests on the shores of the beautiful Lake Dora, named for early settler Dora Drawdy by government surveyors in the 1840s. Looking at the quaint city streets, placid lake, and turn-of-the-century homes, it's easy to imagine life long ago in Mount Dora as inordinately idyllic, but like all communities, Mount Dora has faced challenges to its growth and prosperity. The collapse of the real estate boom in the mid-1920s was quickly followed by the Great Depression, ruining lives and fortunes in Mount Dora and around the state. But from the beginning, one of Mount Dora's strongest assets has been its inviting lake, an advantage that has helped a thriving tourism industry to develop in this small town. Visitors flock to Mount Dora, not only for the tranquil setting, but also for the community's old-fashioned charm, antique district, and architectural distinctiveness.

From a one-story cabin in the piney woods of the Panhandle to a high-rise condo along the glistening waterways, Cracker cooking in Florida has evolved with our tastes and times.

When supplies were limited and the workday arduous, black coffee with leftover cornbread might serve as breakfast. Today’s bounty and life’s relative ease bring mornings with lattes and biscotti, biscuits and sausage gravy. What’s on the plate has changed, but our heritage infuses who we are. As we follow the path laid out by gastronomic pioneers, this culinary quest, guided by sixth-generation Cracker Joy Sheffield Harris, will whet your appetite with recipes and sumptuous reflections. Pull up a chair and dig in.

Key West's free-spirited ambiance and magnificent coral reefs help to create a unique and historic legacy and much more than a vacation destination.

For centuries, explorers and adventurers, immigrants and entrepreneurs, artists and wanderers have come to the island oasis known as Key West. And today, this Florida city is like no other and home to them all. Through hurricanes, fires, labor strikes, and the tourism boom, the community of Key West has sustained a unique way of life and attracted a wide variety of people to its shores, including such famous figures as writers Ernest Hemingway and Tennessee Williams, President Harry Truman, and musician Jimmy Buffett. Whether strolling through the downtown historic district, searching eclectic shops for one-of-a-kind treasures, enjoying a piece of key lime pie, or participating in the look-alike contest during Hemingway Days, Key West offers endless opportunities for pleasure. The landmarks, the people, and the continuing story of Key West are the entertaining subject of this new photographic tribute.

Pan American World Airways could be considered a corporate Cinderella--a rags-to-riches-and-back-again phenomenon.

From its founding in 1927 and its relatively obscure inauguration as a mail carrier on a 90-mile mail run from Florida's Key West to Cuba, Pan Am's route system grew to span the globe. The company that would eventually become famous for its blue-and-white-world logo grew into a conglomerate of hotels, airlines, business jets, real estate, a helicopter service, and even a guided missiles range division. But financial problems plagued Pan Am in its last two decades, and in 1991, Pan American World Airways ceased flying after 64 years of service. The story of Pan Am is as much the story of president Juan T. Trippe as it is an account of airplanes, pilots, flight attendants, and glamorous destinations. As the company moved throughout the world building airfields from jungles, crossing oceans, and forcing the development of new airplanes, it was Trippe's airline and his vision. A global pioneer, Pan Am was the first airline to use radio communications, to employ cabin attendants and serve meals aloft, and to complete an around-the-world flight. The company's achievements were legendary, but its failures, tragedies, and disasters were also part of a complex corporate life.

St. Augustine conjures up images of Spanish architecture, a massive fort, splashes of color against a backdrop of river and ocean, and always, always the omnipresent tourist.

This ancient town, established along the banks of the Matanzas River in 1565, is the oldest city in America. Founded to protect Spain's trade route from South and Central America to Europe, this colorful community was thriving years before the Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock and decades before Jamestown was settled. No other place in the United States embodies more charm than this hallowed city. Within these pages, images taken from the St. Augustine Historical Society's archives will educate, enthrall, and entice history buffs, tourists, and residents alike. These vintage photographs will link readers to the past and transform them into more than mere spectators visiting a popular tourist attraction. Rediscover the Spanish connection and see how early settlers built their homes, harvested their crops, educated their children, and protected their land. Walk the same worn and winding paths that the town's forefathers trod and acknowledge both the good and the bad times of life before modernday conveniences.

Join author Carol Matthews on a galloping romp through the long history of Florida's cracker horses and cattle.

The first horses and cattle to set foot on the North American continent stepped onto Florida land, brought by Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon in 1521 just south of present day Fort Myers. The animals were abandoned, formed wild herds and would be used by different groups for food, work, trade and transportation for the next 500 years. Cattle ranching was born when Jesuit and Franciscan Friars, also known as missionaries, set up a system of missions across north and north-central Florida. The largest ranch was Rancho de la Chua, located on what is now Paynes Prairie in Alachua County. As a result of this increase in cattle production, Florida rancheros began to sell cattle to Cuba. This was the first industry to develop in the New World and would continue for the next three hundred years. By the 1960s there were only a handful of pure cracker cattle and horses left. But herds were established on state lands, preserving a living link to Florida's past.

Rare photographs document the work that saw John F. Kennedy's dream of making it to the moon come true.

It was September 12, 1962, when Pres. John F.Kennedy delivered a speech at Rice University before nearly 50,000 people. By that time, America had launched but four men into space—the suborbital flights of Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom and the nearly identical three-orbit journeys of John Glenn and Scott Carpenter.Buoyed by the success of those missions and cognizant of the danger that lay ahead, the president rearticulated his vision and reissued his challenge to reach the moon before 1970.We choose to go to the moon, in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard.* Because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.* The assassination of President Kennedy, in the words of flight director Gene Kranz, turned his vision into a quest to do it and do it in the time frame he allotted. On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong stepped off the ladder of the lunar module known as Eagle, taking one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.

Whether you call it the Gateway to the Americas, the Capital of Latin America, or even the Magic City, Miami is a city that has enchanted millions for many years.

The city we know as Miami only came into existence in 1896, but evidence suggests people lived in the area for over 2000 years before Europeans ever set foot on the continent. The land was conquered by the Spanish in 1566, but Florida didn't become part of the United States until 1821. Miami holds the distinction of being the only major city founded by a woman - Julia Tuttle was a wealthy citrus grower who originally owned the land the city was built on. When a prolonged bout of cold weather known as the Great Freeze throttled crops further north, farmers arrived to the area in droves, and Tuttle convinced railroad tycoon Henry Flagler to extend his Florida East Coast Railway to the region, for which she became known as "the Mother of Miami." Miami has weathered yellow fever epidemics, the 1920s boom and bust, two World Wars, hurricanes, and numerous other economic ups and downs to become one of the world's great cities and the growth of South Florida.

The world's first naval aeronautical station, Naval Air Station Pensacola is a dynamic and active station today.

A sign at the gate of Naval Air Station Pensacola (NASP) welcomes visitors to "The Cradle of Naval Aviation" - and, indeed it is. It came into being when the USS Mississippi (BB-23) arrived in Pensacola on January 20, 1914, with seven aircraft, nine officers, and 23 men. Today, NASP hosts several schools and several branches of the US military. It is also the home of the Navy's Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels, as well as the renowned National Naval Aviation Museum (NNAM), which displays more than 100 years of naval aviation, from a replica Curtiss hydroplane to the F-14 Tomcat.

Located halfway between Jacksonville and Key West is a bedroom beach community known as Hobe Sound. With a population of about 14,000, this old-Florida beach town is considered a gem of the Treasure Coast of Florida.

Hobe Sound is known for its pristine beaches and unspoiled landscape along both the Indian River Lagoon and the Loxahatchee River as well as among the coastal sand hills and scrub forests to the west. Among the large homes associated with notable and newsworthy owners on Jupiter Island and the more modest and historic homes located in Old Hobe Sound lie Jonathan Dickinson State Park, Blowing Rocks Preserve, and Nathanial P. Reed National Wildlife Refuge. Hobe Sound has held many identities throughout the years, including Olympia and Picture City, its most famous moniker. This illustrative history offers a glimpse into the evolution of Hobe Sound during the 20th and 21st centuries.

Author Jennifer Gilliland, a local resident and historic preservationist, has taken her love of history and Hobe Sound to compile a tribute through photographs and documents in the hopes that residents and visitors alike will enjoy and appreciate what makes Hobe Sound so unique and special.

Prolific inventor Thomas Edison and automobile pioneer Henry Ford shaped the modern world like few others in history.

The lives of these close friends intersected at their winter homes in southwest Florida. Edison first visited the tiny cattle-ranching community of Fort Myers in 1885, building a home and laboratory soon after. There, he wintered with his wife, Mina, and their children, Madeleine, Charles, and Theodore. Ford purchased the adjacent estate in 1916, wintering in the area with his wife, Clara, and son, Edsel. Here in southwest Florida, these famous neighbors relaxed and found time to explore new projects.

The sweltering heat of the Florida sun breaks as a chill runs down your spine. A dark shadow looms from a nearby tourist trap - you didn't expect to find this kind of shade in Florida.

If only there was some sort of travel guide to steer you through the spookier locales. Well, you're in luck. Check in at The Biltmore in Coral Gables to spot the ghost of slain Fatty Walsh roaming the thirteenth floor. Sit down for a meal with the spirit of Ethel Allen at Ashley's Restaurant in Rockledge. Visit haunted graveyards, museums, parks and battlefields. Hear macabre stories of spectral pirates, gangsters, witches and madmen. From phantasmagoric packs of Madam McCoy's girls on Pensacola streets down to the ghostly clacking of Hemingway's typewriter in the Keys, Mark Muncy and Kari Schultz lead brave readers through the darkest locations in the Sunshine State.

The Sunshine State has a rich maritime history spanning more than five centuries. Tragically, part of that history includes thousands of ships that have met their fates in Florida waters.

Potentially more than 5,000 shipwrecks reside off Florida's 1,200 miles of coastline, with hundreds more lost in the state's interior rivers. In and of itself, the Florida Keys archipelago, consisting of approximately 1,700 islands stretching 200 miles, is littered with the remains of close to 1,000 shipwrecks. In fact, many features of the Florida Keys were named after various shipwreck events, such as Fowey Rocks, which earned its name after the 1748 wrecking of the British warship HMS Fowey, and Alligator Reef, where the schooner USS Alligator met her demise in 1822. Florida's Shipwrecks utilizes captivating images to illustrate dramatic stories of danger and peril at sea, introducing readers to a fascinating cross-section of Florida's shipwreck history.

Join author and Miami native Avi Bash as he exposes the life and activities of Organized Crime in Miami in the 20th century.

While other cities are credited for birthing and honing the legendary crime figures who inevitably influenced and shaped their susceptible surroundings and culture, Miami is where the Mob, like many American citizens, often turned when seeking vacation, vice, or a new beginning. Dating back to the first quarter of the 20th century, resourceful gangsters from across the nation recognized the profitable business opportunities Miami could provide with its booming population, perfect year-round climate, cooperative law enforcement, and mutual understanding among otherwise rival gangs. The promise of an open city, free from familiar encumbrances and restrictions, prompted eager mobsters from around the country to migrate south and trade in their suits and fedoras for swim trunks and flip-flops. Organized Crime in Miami examines the considerable yet heavily underpublicized involvement of the American Mafia in South Florida and its lasting impact on the community through their business activities, both illegal and within the confines of the law.

Author Holly Sprinkle unveils the secrets hidden within Florida’s aquatic wonders. Florida’s springs swirl a spectrum of greens and blues with a crystal clarity seen nowhere else in the world. “Springhunting” is a cherished regional pastime, but these ancient oases have served as a beacon for humans and beasts alike since time immemorial. Giant sloths, mammoths and armadillos once centered their lives around these springs—the endangered West Indian Manatee still seeks refuge in the relatively warm springs during the winter months. These enchanting waters sustain ecosystems and inspire everything from feelings of deep serenity to legends involving curses, ghosts and alien visitation. 

Join Yvonne Hill and Marguerite Jordan in collaboration with the Lee County Black History Society, Inc. as they recount the history of this beautiful island.

Sanibel, a barrier island on the southwest coast of Florida, was originally inhabited by the Calusa Indians around 1500. In 1513, explorer Ponce DeLeon landed ashore the exotic isle, with its brackish estuaries, plush mangrove jungles, and sandy beaches, opening the door for others who would eventually find their way to the island. Over time, Sanibel was visited by European explorers, slave traders, pirates, and Seminole Indians, all of whom added to its colorful and intriguing history. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the original settlers of modern-day Sanibel arrived on the island. These pioneers were a contrasting group of individuals, comprised of diverse ethic origins and cultures, yet all seemed to share a common goal of using hard work, resourcefulness, and determination to make the island their home. Their efforts and sacrifices greatly contributed to the growth and rich history of Sanibel as we know it today.

Florida's Space Coast and its explosion into the 20th century thrust these beach towns into the modern age and paved the way for America's space exploration.

Florida's Space Coast is an area that got its name from one of the most exciting times in United States history. Settlers were living in Brevard County as far back as the 1800s, and even after World War II, it was still a quiet place to live. Cities and beach towns along 74 miles of Atlantic Ocean coastline were thrust into the modern age in the early 1950s, when rockets began lighting up the skies above them. The space race had begun, the nation would set a path to put men on the moon, and Florida would become the backdrop for this thrilling chapter of American history. The area's population surged with over 200,000 new residents, and things would never be the same. It was a time when people risked their lives for space exploration, and a community came together to make it happen.

Celebrate the story of one of southwest Florida's most renowned beach resorts.

Founded as a place where "invalids can escape the chilling blasts of winter," the distant paradise known as Naples was accessible only by boat during its tenuous beginning in 1885. By 1890, the new town boasted a pier, the Naples Hotel-and little else. With train service arriving in Naples in 1927 and the opening of the Tamiami Trail a year later, the once-remote resort was finally open to development, but the Depression turned the dreamed-of boom into a bust until after World War II. The picture-perfect beaches and warm winter climate were soon "rediscovered," and by the time Hurricane Donna stormed ashore on September 10, 1960 and nearly destroyed the town once hailed as the "Summerland in Wintertime," Naples was the fastest-growing city in Collier County.

Florida is largely influenced by the illicit and fascinating activites of pirates. Authors James and Sarah Kaserman recount the stories, legends, and myths of piracy in Florida.

The coast of southwest Florida, with its shallow waters, inlets, and mangrove islands provides the setting and backdrop for a variety of pirates, privateers, and independents. Piracy has a long and rich tradition in this area dating from before the formation of America through the infamous prohibition era. Telling the tales of Anne Bonny, Calico Jack Rackham, Civil War smugglers and prohibition rum runners, the authors provide a compelling narrative of the historically dangerous waters around Southwest Florida and beyond.

Explore Florida's everglades, its history, the native tribes that called it home, and the fight to preserve the grassy wetlands documented through a collection of images.

The Everglades once blanketed a quarter of Florida. Stretching from Lake Okeechobee to Florida Bay, its saw grass prairies, mangrove swamps, and hammocks were home to a profusion of animals, plants, and prehistoric Native Americans, as well as Seminoles, Miccosukees, and Gladesmen of historic times. In 1904, Napoleon Bonaparte Broward ran for Florida governor with the political platform of creating farmland by dredging the Everglades and spilling its water into the ocean. By 1914, this spectacular natural feature was on the verge of destruction, and environmentalist May Mann Jennings led a grassroots movement to preserve Royal Palm Hammock. In the 1930s, Ernest Coe and Marjory Stoneman Douglas fought to preserve a larger area, culminating in the creation of Everglades National Park in 1947.

Wander through the pages of this book and meet the mermaids of Weeki Wachee in their magical underwater theater.

Mermaids are like leprechauns: it's very hard to sneak up and catch a glimpse of one. But in a hamlet on the Gulf Coast of Florida, people have been able to do just that since 1947, when Newton Perry opened a small roadside attraction with an underwater theater. For nearly 60 years, live mermaids have been the unique focal point of Weeki Wachee Springs. Mysterious and enchanting, these young performers have done everything from teaching a class to typing a letter underwater. They are carefully trained, completely enthusiastic, and delightful to see.

For more than 50 years, there was no more iconic Florida tourist attraction than Silver Springs.

Its sheer popularity meant that the surrounding area—indeed, the entirety of Marion County—serviced the entertainment, gas, food, and lodging needs of millions of tourists annually. Visitors flocked to places like Ross Allen’s Reptile Institute, Tommy Bartlett’s Deer Ranch, and natural attractions like Rainbow Springs and Ocala Caverns. Sadly, as Florida tourism moved into the theme park era, scores of smaller attractions and their related businesses were abandoned. Author Tim Hollis revisits these once-thriving tourist spots and what happened when those tourists stopped coming.

Fort Myers, Florida, is known throughout the world today for its tropical weather and local attractions but its origins date back to the 1800s wartimes.

Located just 15 miles from the Gulf of Mexico on the wide and beautiful Caloosahatchee River, Fort Myers, the fabled "City of Palms," is dotted today by exotic flowers and shrubbery, which includes a revitalized downtown, inviting neighborhoods, endless shopping, and a breathtaking waterfront. Like many Florida communities, however, the birth of Fort Myers can be traced to the Seminole Indian wars of the 1800s. The fort itself -named for Lt. Col. Abraham Myers - was established in the frontier region to quell uprisings and help in the Indian Removal campaigns. It was later used by Union forces during the Civil War, was abandoned, and then reoccupied by courageous settlers who relied on the cattle business, and citrus and vegetable farming to sustain their families and their new town. As the years passed, Fort Myers grew and began to attract winter visitors, including such famous Americans as Thomas Edison and Henry Ford, both of whom had homes in the area, as well as wealthy sportsmen eager to try their luck at tarpon fishing in nearby Gulf waters. When the railroad finally reached Fort Myers, tourists, transplants, retirees, and many more would discover the irresistible charms of one of Florida's newest gems.

Storyteller Caren Neile, PhD, shares myths, legends and folktales that reflect the diversity of characters and cultures that make Florida such a fascinating place.

Florida boasts mysterious tales that stretch back more than twelve thousand years. Dive into the lives of the proud Wakulla Pocahontas and the Ghost of Bellamy Bridge. Meet local lawbreakers like John Ashley, as well as transplants like Ma Barker and Al Capone. Stalk stumpy gators or Hogzilla as they prowl Florida's swamps and suburbs. Discover the quintessential Cracker cowboy and the Barefoot Mailman, plus the origin of names like Boca Raton and Orlando.

Anna Maria Island was once inhabited by Native Americans, but as the beauty became known to its first homesteader, George L. Bean, the island's destiny was to be a beacon to paradise.

In spite of mangrove forests and throngs of mosquitoes, people came by boat to enjoy the white sand beaches and the turquoise waters of the Gulf of Mexico, with their cool onshore breezes and blazing sunsets. The Islander newspaper of the 1950s heralded, "Where life is good and the fishing is great." Anglers came from afar to test their skills against tarpon, the world's greatest game fish, and to hunt goliath grouper in the depths of Tampa Bay. Two modern bridges connected the island to the mainland in 1957, and with that the seven-mile-long island was on its way to becoming the jewel of Manatee County.

Author Alan Brown leads readers on a stomach-churning turn through Florida’s dark side.  Florida sunshine beckons, but in can be unrelenting, too. And in the shadows, tragedy strikes. Ted Bundy leads a cast of serial killers who wrought havoc on the state. Storms spin onto its shores with landscape altering fury. Sharks lurk in the sea, and snakes and alligators lie wait in the swamps. Gangsters like Al Capone hit Miami Beach for a respite, but gangsters like Al Capone take no breaks from their trade. A woman spontaneously bursts into flames in St. Petersburg. Anthrax claims a life in Palm Beach. The Bermuda Triangle disappears vessels off the coast. Indeed, Florida knows boundless leisure, but it’s just as familiar with catastrophe.

Explore the life and early times of Stuart, Florida through the lens of vintage images.

On the southeast coast of Florida in the 1880s, a quaint little community was nestled along the tranquil waters of the St. Lucie River in a wilderness of tropical beauty, one of the region's last frontiers. As lucrative pineapple crops and the commercial fishing industry began to flourish, trade boats brought necessary supplies, and new settlers arrived on river steamers. With land available for homesteading or for sale at $1.25 an acre, the small village soon to be known as Stuart would become a mecca for innovative, hardworking young men seeking business and financial opportunities. By the dawn of the 20th century, the railroad had been established, and the town, forged by the fortitude of early pioneers, thrived, eventually becoming a beautiful, friendly incorporated city.

Tiny Amelia Island, in the northeast corner of Florida, was once among the most important ports in the western hemisphere.

Before Florida was granted statehood, the island served as an international gateway between Spanish Florida and the English colonies that would later become the United States. Where Spanish monks and pirates once roamed, the island eventually developed into a significant seaport that exported the rich resources of Florida's interior in the late 1800s. This era was known as the Golden Age of Amelia Island and the town located on its north end, Fernandina. The railroad that connected Amelia Island to the Gulf Coast was largely responsible for the Golden Age, as it brought a burgeoning economy and many of the South's most prominent and wealthy figures. Today the island is best known as a resort community but retains the influence and charm of its remarkable past.

Author Keri Watson guides readers on a tour through New Deal era Sunshine State parks and post office murals. Even before the stock market crash on October 29, 1929, the Florida economy was depressed from two major hurricanes, a citrus export embargo, and the collapse of the real estate market. Florida desperately needed the relief promised by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal and actively participated in and benefited from a number of federally sponsored initiatives during the Great Depression. These programs were aimed at what the president termed “Relief, Recovery, and Reform,” and they impacted every sector of society from banking and farming to art and architecture. This collection offers a detailed look at the state parks and post offices built in Florida between 1931 and 1946. Looking at Florida’s Depression-era parks and post offices in concert elucidates the ways in which the natural and built environments work together to constitute the cultural landscape and provides insight into the role of the federal government in Florida’s construction as an exotic and tropical paradise.

More than 100 years ago, visionary men recognized the attractiveness and potential of this land along the shores of St. Andrews Bay.

Previously known under such names like Park Resort, Floriopolis, and Harrison, Panama City was named such because a straight line between Chicago and the capital of the Central American country of Panama intersected the Florida town, and Panama City became the closest developed port on the mainland to the Caribbean entrance to the Panama Canal. Nothing would have been possible, however, without the hard work and investment of the town's founders. A local newspaper once reported that such men "saw that nature had dealt kindly with that section of the country and that with properly directed effort a great future awaited it.'? After more than 100 years, nature's kindness to those who reside on these shores is apparent. This volume pays tribute to Panama City by recognizing the places, events, and most importantly, the individuals who have inspired its success.

Many are surprised to discover that picturesque Cape Coral's history dates back further than the boom of the 1960s.

Indeed, homesteader families were living a rough-and-tumble life in the Cape's wilderness for much of the 20th century. Still, there is no denying that the city took a turn with the arrival of Jack and Leonard Rosen in 1957. These visionaries brought their Gulf American Land Corporation to Southwest Florida and built a modern city from scratch. Model homes, roads galore, an airport, a police force, the Cape Coral Country Club, the Nautilus Motel, and the famous Rose Gardens-all rising out of the woods on the north shore of the Caloosahatchee River. Hundreds of miles of canals were dug so that nearly every home was on or near the water. Hollywood celebrities turned out to promote properties to Northerners looking for the good life in sunny Florida. It was one of the largest planned developments ever in the United States-and it was a rousing success.

Years before the first shots of the Civil War were fired, Florida witnessed a clash of wills and ways that prompted three wars unlike any others in America's history.

Among the most well-known of Florida's native peoples, the Seminole Indians frustrated troops of militia and volunteer soldiers for decades during the first half of the nineteenth century in the ongoing struggle to keep hold of their ancestral lands. While careers and reputations of American military and political leaders were made and destroyed in the mosquito-infested swamps of Florida's interior, the Seminoles and their allies, including the Miccosukee tribe and many escaped slaves, managed to wage war on their own terms. The study of guerrilla warfare tactics employed by the Seminoles may have aided modern American forces fighting in Viet Nam, Cambodia, and other regions.

Track the history of the Florida East Coast Railway from its beginning in 1885-present day.

The benchmark for US railroad operations, the Florida East Coast (FEC) Railway is often referred to by other American railroads as the best-maintained and -operated railroad in the country. The FEC Railway can trace its lineage back to December 31, 1885, the day Henry M. Flagler purchased the Jacksonville, St. Augustine & Halifax River Railway. The FEC was known for its famous passenger trains, and the last scheduled FEC Railway passenger train ran on July 31, 1968, due to the work stoppage by the nonoperating unions that began on January 22, 1963. Although without passenger trains since 1968, the FEC's partner, All Aboard Florida, with its Brightline trains, will soon establish a new standard for privately operated rail passenger service in America. Today, caboose-less, the FEC operates numerous high-speed freight trains between Jacksonville and Miami.

The Ocala National Forest, founded on November 24, 1908, by Pres. Theodore Roosevelt, is the oldest national forest in the eastern continental United States.

The forest is one of Central Florida's last remaining expanses of forested lands with magnificent palms, towering live oaks, and the largest sand pine scrub population in the world, as well as containing a number of major natural springs, including Salt Springs, Silver Glen, Alexander, and Juniper Run. In addition to wilderness areas for visitors seeking simplicity and solitude, the forest has visitor centers, nature trails, and a section of the Florida Trail.Images of America: Ocala National Forestis filled with fascinating stories and exciting facts on the history of the steamboats, logging, trails, movie sets, Cracker cowboys, modern conservation efforts, and more.

Journey from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico through the pulsing heart of historic Key West that is Duval Street!

Duval Street in Key West, Florida, is one of the most legendary avenues in the United States. This iconic thoroughfare has seen everyone from Ulysses S. Grant to Ernest Hemingway. Collecting remarkable archival photographs, Images of America: Key West's Duval Street features famous buildings such as Key West's Oldest House, St. Paul's Church, the Southernmost House, the Strand Theater, the San Carlos Institute, and La Concha Hotel. Fabled bars and restaurants like Sloppy Joe's and the Bull & Whistle also don this iconic stretch. This book celebrates the irrepressible spirit and heritage of a much-beloved American destination.

The Treasure Coast of Florida had been inhabited by indigenous peoples for many centuries when pioneer settlers began arriving from other parts of the United States in the late 1800s.

When the town of Vero was incorporated in 1919, it was one of several growing communities in the area. By 1925, when it became known as the city of Vero Beach and was designated the seat of the newly formed Indian River County, this small but prosperous coastal city was poised to become a thriving tropical destination that has managed to maintain a small-town atmosphere. In addition to its captivating natural beauty, Vero Beach has been home to a world-renowned citrus industry, a World War II naval air station, the Dodgers major-league baseball organization, the Piper Aircraft Company, and a vibrant cultural life.

Florida State University has attracted a wide variety of students over the years. This pictorial history illustrates the history of this university and those who proudly call themselves Seminoles.

After the Florida State Legislature passed an act calling for the creation of two seminaries of learning in 1851, West Florida Seminary was established in Tallahassee. In the 1880s, the seminary's curriculum was reorganized along the lines of a conventional four-year college, and in 1901, the name was changed to Florida State College, better suiting its well-rounded liberal arts education and the traditional college experience offered to its students. With the passage of the Buckman Act in 1905, the school began a new chapter as the Florida Female College. After the name was changed to Florida State College for Women in 1909, it went on to rank as one of the premier women's colleges in the country. In 1947, in part to accommodate the influx of returning GIs, the school resumed its coeducational status as Florida State University. Combining traditional strength in the arts and humanities with recognized leadership in the sciences, Florida State University is one of the country's foremost research institutions today.

Images in this book include views of early Coral Way and Miracle Mile, Ponce de Leon Boulevard, the Coliseum, beloved restaurants and clubs.

The Venetian Pool, the Biltmore Hotel, Coral Gables High School, the trolleys, the University of Miami, and some of the people who brought Coral Gables to life helped make it the great city it is today. When Solomon Merrick moved his family from New England to a plot of land southwest of Miami in 1898, he had no idea that his son, George, would become the founder of one of America's most fabled cities. When the senior Merrick died in 1911, George, who was working in New York, returned to the Miami area, establishing a major citrus and produce farm on his family's land. Then he entered the booming Miami real estate market of the early 1920s, finally embarking on the building of a city. The story of Coral Gables is also the story of George Merrick, and the photographs in this volume evoke poignant memories of the City Beautiful's storied past.

Florida native Zora Neale Hurston's early twentieth-century ethnographic research and writing emphasizes the essentials of food in Florida through simple dishes and recipes.

It considers foods prepared for everyday meals as well as special occasions and looks at what shaped people's eating traditions in early twentieth-century Florida. Hurston did for Florida what William Faulkner did for Mississippi - provided insight into a state's history and culture through various styles of writing. Her collected food stories, folklore and remedies, and the related recipes food professor Fred Opie pairs with them, are essential reading for those who love to cook and eat.

The Florida Keys have witnessed all kinds of historical events, from the dramatic and the outrageous to the tragic and the comic.

In the nineteenth century, uncompromising individuals fought duels and plotted political upsets. During the Civil War, a company of Key West Avengers escaped their Union-occupied city to join the Confederacy by sailing through the Bahamas. In the early twentieth century, black Bahamians founded a town of their own, while railway engineers went up against the U.S. Navy in a bid to complete the Overseas Railroad. When Prohibition came to the Keys, one defiant woman established a rum running empire that dominated South Florida. Join Laura Albritton and Jerry Wilkinson as they delve into tales of treasure hunters, developers, exotic dancers, determined preservationists and more from the colorful history of the Florida Keys.

This pictorial history of Fort Myers Beach depicts the people, places, and events that have influenced the area's cultural and natural history.

The once sleepy barrier island labeled Estero Island on navigational charts was dubbed Fort Myers Beach in the early part of the 20th century by city folks who spent their weekends on its wide, sandy beaches. Centuries earlier, an abundance of fish and other seafood made the 6.5-mile-long island attractive to its earliest inhabitants, the Calusa, as well as explorers, fisherfolk, and a pirate or two. In the late 19th century, early homesteaders were lured by stories of free tillable soil in a balmy climate surrounded by warm waters and ankle-deep shells. When pink shrimp, labeled ""Pink Gold,"" were found in nearby waters, another influx of residents arrived. Today, the island is best known as an energetic resort community, but it retains the influence and charm of its remarkable past.

African Americans have made rich contributions to Florida throughout its history in all avenues of public and private life, from education, to business, to politics, a keystone of which was the ability to own and sell property. Author Jada Wright-Greene showcases this legacy through historic photographs of black American's homes, detailing the lives of the people who lived in them through engaging narrative.

Author Heather Leigh leads leaders into the haunted remnants of Florida’s ghost towns.  The term “ghost towns” brings to mind communities from the Old West where there were once bustling Boom Towns but today are abandoned and lonely pieces to the puzzles of the past. With this image ingrained into a person’s mind, it is challenging to visualize ghost towns with sandy beaches and palm trees swaying in the wind. A little-known fact about Florida is it is home to more than 250 ghost towns, many of which remain the home for the spirits of former inhabitants, civil war deserters, pirates, and more. Haunted Florida Ghost Towns covers the many abandoned locations in the Sunshine State where paranormal entities are known to roam. Take a journey into the world of the supernatural and learn the history behind why Florida has so many ghost towns and the energy that remains to fuel paranormal activity.

This is the story of how the Tampa Bay area became the “Gem of Florida’s Gulf Coast.”

Thanks to the city’s natural deep-water port and proximity to the Panama Canal, Tampa attracted residents from all over the world. In the 20th century, the founding blocks of the city we know today were set by visionary pioneers who came together with Henry B. Plant’s railroad, the construction of the Tampa Bay Hotel, and Tampa’s five “C’s”: climate, cattle, citrus, cigars, and cheap labor. During this same time in Tampa’s history, the postcard was an extraordinarily popular means of communication. Postcard photographers traveled the nation snapping photographs of busy street scenes, documenting local landmarks, and assembling crowds of local children only too happy to pose for a photo. These images, printed as postcards and sold in general stores across the country, ignited the nation’s passion for the Sunshine State and survive as reminders of an important era in American history.

Join author Gregg M. Turner as he recounts the history during the ecomomic boom in Venice, Florida in the 1920's.

In the 1920s, a tremendous land boom gripped Florida, and waves of people descended upon the Sunshine State. Between just 1923and 1925 an estimated 300,000 people came to permanently settle in the state, and over a dozen new counties were created in this single decade. Fueled by postwar prosperity, tourists and new residents poured money into the state's economy and dramatically increased the demand for land, homes, hotels, industry, recreation, commerce, and services. At the height of the boom, when many believed that the bubble had to burst, there came news that a new resort city was under development on the Gulf Coast below Sarasota, and all eyes turned to Venice. Over the decades since its creation, Venice, with its balmy climate, unlimited boating and fishing, and pristine mainland beach, has grown to be a Mecca for thousands of tourists, snowbirds, and retirees. Carved out of a tropical wilderness by America's oldest and wealthiest union, the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, Venice was made into a Gulf Coast oasis with Spanish-style architecture, beautiful landscaping, and a friendly network of tree-lined streets and boulevards. Visual documentation of this early era has captured a city in its infancy and a valuable piece of Venice's heritage.

From a small agricultural community in northern Florida into a thriving city, many people have helped transform Gainesville into what it is today.

After befriending the Timucuan Indians who originally inhabited the region, Spanish colonizers began recruiting other settlers to move to the area. Despite the early foundations set, the people who brought the railroad to Gainesville deserve the most credit for giving the town its start. Soon after tracks were laid throughout the city, small businesses sprouted and opportunities for new industries arose. The city's population expanded along with its economic growth, and more people began to witness the unique potential of Gainesville. In 1905, the city became home to the University of Florida, and a rich educational heritage began. The university brought great attention to the town and subsequently made Gainesville not only one of the most important cities in Florida, but one of the most prominent educational epicenters in the South.

Visit ""the island where time stands still"" and explore the romantic, almost forgotten history of old Florida in this visual history.

Rich in small town atmosphere and old Florida history, Cedar Key is a quiet island community nestled among many tiny keys on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Refuge for birds and wildlife, Florida's oldest port, and home to artists and writers, the island has long been admired for its tranquility and natural beauty.

This pictorial history of New Smyrna Beach depicts the people, places, and events that have influenced the area's cultural and natural history.

Ponce de Leon is reputed to have entered the inlet now named for him at New Smyrna Beach during his first Florida exploration in 1513. Jonathan Dickenson crossed the inlet to safety with the Spanish in 1696, and Dr. Andrew Turnbull created his short-lived New Smyrna settlement in 1768. Later pirates and plunderers entered through the inlet and wreaked havoc, and American Indian chief Wildcat terrorized the area. Federal navy cannonading destroyed the community in 1863, and the freezes of 1895 and 1896 decimated the orange groves. The people of New Smyrna persevered through it all to make New Smyrna the charming community it is today. This book offers a wide view of this history, mostly through images from the family archives of Zelia Mary Wilson Sweett.

Clearwater, situated on Florida's Gulf Coast, is a progressive city that is rife with history and known for its breathtaking landscape.

Early settlers, which included the Timucuan, Calusa, and Apalachee tribes, had plentiful fresh springs along its shore, and called the area "Pocotopaug,'? meaning Clear Water Harbor. After Florida had been seceded by the Spanish, early developers and speculators drew tourists and new residents touting Clearwater as a resort community with a comfortable climate. Opportunity and adventure brought many pioneering families, citrus farmers, railroad barons, and land developers to the area, and today, Clearwater is a locality that continues to move forward while preserving its distinct past.Images of America: Clearwateris a unique collection of photographs and facts that brings the history of this thriving city to life. Photographs culled from a variety of sources, including the Clearwater Historical Society and Hillsborough County Public Library's archives, showcase the people, places, and events that have contributed to the foundation of this special Florida community. Readers can take a visual journey to the unincorporated town of yesteryear to see how the "father of Clearwater'? James Stevens, Rev. C.S. Reynolds, and Henry Plant's grand hotel, the Belleview Biltmore, turned Clearwater into a prosperous city.

Join author and historian James C. Clark as he chronicles the history of the Sunshine State in this concise and captivating history.

In 1513, Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon first set foot on Florida's east coast. The land he discovered was a geographic anomaly so distinctive that astronaut Neil Armstrong said Florida was the first shape on earth he recognized on his return from a visit to the moon 456 years later. This unique state witnessed momentous events from the 1959 arrival of the first Cuban exiles under Fidel Castro to the 1981 launch of the Columbia, the first space shuttle.

Author Jeff Suwak guides readers on a tour of the often overlooked and all-but-forgotten components of Amelia Island history.  Beneath the sands and cobblestones of Amelia Island lies a richness of history disproportionate to the location’s relatively small size. The bones of this place are composed of pirate treasures literal and metaphorical, remnants of ancient Timucuan Indians, a grim role in the illegal slave trade, tales of bravery and madness, and a scene for the triumph of the human spirit. Eight different flags have flown over Amelia Island. It was an important stage in the 1812 Patriot War, which most people have long forgotten. From Gregor MacGregor to Abraham Lincoln Lewis, characters strange and inspiring have left their mark in this island’s psychic currents. Dead in some ways, they’re still here in others, etched into the land itself and waiting to be discovered. Let’s go find them.

Between 1824 and 1840, Florida’s government functioned out of several log cabins and rented rooms in the newly established territorial capital of Tallahassee. In 1839, the federal government gave $20,000 to construct a permanent capitol building; the bones of the structure were laid by enslaved craftsmen. The first session took place in 1841, and additional funds requested each year ensured the capitol was complete when Florida entered the Union as the 27th state on March 3, 1845. Over the years, four significant capitol expansions reflected the needs of a growing state until a new and modern Capitol Complex, designed by architect Edward Durrell Stone, was completed in 1977. The aging former capitol was slated for demolition until the people of Florida spoke out in a successful campaign to save the historic building and restore it to its 1902 appearance. Highlighting the photographic collection of the State Archives of Florida, Florida’s Historic Capitol Building reveals stories about the state’s political past, the development of a capital city, and the legacy of an iconic Florida building.

Protruding further out into the Atlantic than any other point along Florida's east coast, Jupiter has long served as a port of call for sailors, settlers, tourists, and the occasional hurricane.

Before the famous Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse began sending flashes of warning to those at sea in 1860, Spanish explorers, Black and Seminole inhabitants, and early American pioneers began building their own histories there, contributing to the consciousness and pride of residents today.

Author Beverly Mount-Douds highlight's Florida's Forgotten Coast in her book compiled of historic images collected from Gulf County citizens.

Carved out of Calhoun County on June 6, 1925, Gulf County is one of Florida's youngest counties. The county seat, Port St. Joe, was founded in 1913, and construction of the St. Joe Paper Company's plant in 1937 revitalized the area. The popular fishing site Wewahitchka was the county seat until voters elected to relocate it to Port St. Joe in 1964. Until recently, Port St. Joe was a typical company town, anchored by the paper mill headquarters. The town is near St. Joseph, where Florida's first constitution was drafted in 1838, and which was later destroyed by yellow fever and hurricane surge. Today Gulf County is a thriving, growing area of industrial and recreational resources with nostalgic reminders of a glorious past and a promising future. Port St. Joe and Wewahitchka remain away from the hustle and bustle of large cities.

For a city that only incorporated to pass legislation about unruly hogs, Dunedin has experienced more than a century of progress, struggle, and success.

In 1878, when two Scottish merchants were granted a petition to open a post office in their small unincorporated Florida community, they were also given the privilege of naming the area. They called it Dunedin, the Gaelic word for Edinburgh, their Scottish home. The town only incorporated officially in 1899 due to conflicts among residents about hogs roaming the streets. From the ineffective "hog law'? to the development of romantic "Honeymoon Island,'? now preserved as a state park, Dunedin's history is full of interesting stories, people, and images. The beautiful oak-lined streets, the yachting clubs and competitions, and the development of the citrus and fishing industries in Dunedin are all an integral part of the area's rich heritage.

Despite Marco Island's common distinction as the largest of Florida's Ten Thousand Islands, there are only 12 square miles of land upon which to wander - making the enormity of its history all the more remarkable.

Marco Island projects prominently from Florida's mainland at the peninsula's southwestern fringe, where the waters of the Everglades and the Gulf of Mexico commingle. Its tropical climate, verdant landscape, unique topography, and abundant wildlife sustained prehistoric Native American cultures for centuries. The first pioneer settlers arrived in 1870, carving out a niche on the harsh Florida frontier. Bustling villages soon sprang up on the island, bolstered by strong leaders and economies centered around farming and fishing. The crash of Florida's land boom, along with the Great Depression, devastating hurricanes, and a series of failed developments, ultimately stunted the island's growth. Most of Marco Island was sold to the Deltona Corporation in 1964, which transformed the island into a place its early residents might find unrecognizable.

While it may be hundreds of years younger than its Italian namesake, Naples, Florida, has an exciting history all its own!

Naples was not much more than a bend in the road in the 1940s, but by 1950, its beautiful beaches and balmy weather had been rediscovered, and development and tourism became the city's lifeblood. Although Hurricane Donna struck Naples in 1960, the building boom continued, and by the late 1970s, few undeveloped areas remained, culminating in 1972 for the development of a new gulf-front luxury community called Pelican Bay. More than 200 images offer insight into this rarely chronicled period of Naples' history, including seldom-seen historic photographs from the archives of the Naples Daily News (formerly the Collier County News) and vintage postcards from the collection of Nina Heald Webber.

See the people and places that helped shape Boca Raton, Florida, into the proud city that it is today.

Boca Raton has long served as a beautiful home to a host of interesting and talented people, from the Tekesta Indians and the buccaneers who sought refuge in the calm waters of its natural inland harbor, to today's proud residents. From a hardscrabble agricultural outpost along Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast line, the city is today one of America's great resort destinations and a prime address for a growing number of people from all over the world who want to live ""the good life."" Personalities including first settler Thomas Moore Rickards, society architect Addison Mizner, and inventor Domina Jalbert have all helped define Boca Raton, adding to the brick-and-mortar landmarks, attractions, and natural features that shape its landscape.