CITIES WITHIN SEMINOLE COUNTY

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HISTORY OF SEMINOLE COUNTY

The state of Florida was acquired from Spain in 1821 by General Andrew Jackson who was assigned Provisional Governor of this territory. In 1836 a reinforcement military unit was built on the shore of Lake Monroe and was called Camp Monroe. With the St. John’s River being a major artery into central Florida in those early days, it became the focal point of civilization at that time. In the year 1837, General Thomas Sidney Jesup arranged a peace conference with the Seminole Chief Osceola and as a result of these peace talks, a road was build between Lake Monroe and Tampa connecting Fort Mellon, Fort Reid, Fort Maitland and Fort Meade.

In 1845 Florida was officially declared a State and Mellonville (as it was known as the name of the real estate) became the county seat called ORANGE COUNTY. This invited commercial influx and became the trading centre for central Florida. Orange groves were planted everywhere and small residential houses were being built in and around Orange County.

In 1870, 12,535 acres of real estate was acquired by General Henry Shelton Sanford, former Minister to Belgium, which became the heart of the Swedish settlers which were predominantly workers on the surrounding Orange groves. As founder of one of the first residential areas in Seminole county, the area was named after him and called Sanford.

Mellonville (which used to fall under Orange country) was incorporated into Sanford in 1883. In 1884, due to the efforts of President Ulysses S. Grant, the railroad link connecting Lake Mary, Sanford, Longwood and Altamonte Springs with Jacksonville were completed and became the home of the largest shipper of oranges in the world – which resulted in prosperity for thousands of Orange grove Framers.

But the prosperity did not last long, as in 1887 all of the wooden buildings in downtown Sanford were destroyed by a fire followed by a yellow fever epidemic that broke out amongst the residence of this town. The great freeze of 1894 and 1895, nearly wiped out the town's citrus industry forcing the farmers to look at growing different crops that would be more weather resistant. In 1898 the shipment of celery and other vegetables went out which marked the beginning of diversified farming in central Florida.

From 1900 to 1940, agriculture formed the base of Seminole County's economy and vegetables were transported by rail all over the country. The Citrus industry were revived and prospered until 1985 when the Mediterranean fruit flies and a citrus canker destroyed nearly all the groves in Central Florida.

During the 1970, the arrival of Disney World caused rapid grot in central Florida and the effects and influx of tourism could be seen as far as Seminole county. The further construction of the Altamonte Mall made southern Seminole County a focal point for residential growth in Central Florida. This was followed by big companies opening offices in Seminole such as: K-Mart, Wal-Mart, American Automobile Association, Siemens Stromberg-Carlson, United Telephone of Florida, ESCO, ABB Power Distribution, Sprague Electric, NCR and Southern Bell. This created work opportunity and as a result the residential communities grew rapidly.

The best kept secret of Seminole county, is it’s richness of natural splendor and resources. Through-out the entire county you will find approximately 2,000 fresh-water lakes and rivers with Lake Monroe being the largest lake and the mighty St. Johns’ river being the largest running river in the county. The entire area is home to lush tropical foliage, diverse wildlife, citrus orchards and beautiful residential sub divisions.

"SCENERY PICTURE"

The other great aspect of Seminole, is that it is in driving distance to both Orlando (with all it's tourist attractions) and the gorgeous beaches of Florida's east coast.

Other great attributes of Seminole County, is it’s community services such fire and police protection and the seven incorporated municipalities within Seminole County. Seminole further prides itself with a strong economy, outstanding schools, low crime rate, fantastic weather and a diversity of home choices.

There are a number of other communities in the county which are not yet incorporated into Seminole county. These include Chuluota, Fern Park, Forest City, and Geneva.