Commercial Industry in Central Florida - 1847

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Citrus growing slowly recovered from THE killer freeze of 1835.  The industry moved south from the St. Augustine/Jacksonville area to warmer regions of Central Florida.  There were areas along both the East and West coasts of Florida that grew citrus.  Captain Douglas Dummit budded wild trees on Merritt Island that survived THE freeze. Odet Phillip introduced grapefruit in the Tampa Bay area that was not eliminated by THE freeze.  This excerpt from the 1928 Lake County Soil Survey highlights the sign that a strong and growing citrus effort was under way in Central Florida.

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“About seven years after the first settlement (in Leesburg) the citrus industry had its beginning in Lake County.  Melton Haynes, in 1847, started the first seedling nursery on the north shore of Lake Harris.”   Haynes was a Confederate soldier, civil engineer and early settler of Lake County, Florida. He is known for bringing the first sweet oranges to central Florida.  He recognized the need for young trees as the citrus industry started to gain momentum.

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This post civil war period saw many farmers move to Central Florida seeking the fortunes offered by citrus.  ‘Orange fever’ fueled the interest as the fledging industry started to grow attracting not only those willing to plant and grow the golden globes, but also investors from the North.  It was not an easy venture.  One had to prepare the land by removing pines and palmettos.  Next the trees were planted and cultivated for anywhere from 3 to 5 years before that first marketable crop appeared.  There were pests; dry and wet times; limited technology; and poor marketing options.  Many growers did not make it!  The industry struggled to gain traction.  Once a crop was produced, it needed to be marketed.  During the early part of this period the fruit was transported by ships which presented a challenge to move the crop to a ‘port’ along the river networks of Central Florida.  The introduction of trains greatly improved the transportation issue – check out the story down the citrus time line of early efforts to move the crop to market!