Instructions:
1....Print this file.
2....At its end, click on "rules" to see a copy of the trail rules, print it, and then click where indicated at the end of the the 3-page rules and patch order form to get back to the list of Florida trails.
3....If you want a hand-drawn map showing the locations of all of the sites, send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Steve Rajtar, 1614 Bimini Dr., Orlando, FL 32806.
4....Hike the trail and order whatever patches you like (optional).
WARNING - This trail may pass through one or more neighborhoods which, although full of history, may now be unsafe for individuals on foot, or which may make you feel unsafe there. Hikers have been approached by individuals who have asked for handouts or who have inquired (not always in a friendly manner) why the hikers are in their neighborhood. Drugs and other inappropriate items have been found by hikers in some neighborhoods. It is suggested that you drive the hike routes first to see if you will feel comfortable walking them and, if you don't think it's a good place for you walk, you might want to consider (1) traveling with a large group, (2) doing the route on bicycles, or (3) choosing another hike route. The degree of comfort will vary with the individual and with the time and season of the hike, so you need to make the determination using your best judgment. If you hike the trail, you accept all risks involved.
Leonard Knox and his brother Charles built the first High Bridge over the canal, later replaced by the county's Leonard B. Knox Memorial Bridge, which was dedicated in 1955.
Leonard B. Knox married Rosa D. Beed in 1888 and bought this area for the raising of oranges. Their son Donald planted date palms which still line the banks of the canal, which was dredged to allow the shipping of fruit to Ormond. Knox's house, which sat on high ground overlooking the marshes and grove, burned down in May of 1977. The Mound Grove area is sometimes called Cobb's Corner.
This large tree was dedicated on March 16, 1989, in memory of Elizabeth Boardman (1905-88), who worked to preserve the area.
The road which ran this way was a part of the Dixie Highway, the dream of Carl Fisher of Indianapolis. He had made his fortune in the new auto industry, and wanted to build a highway from Chicago to Miami. When news got out, many communities formed associations to lobby for inclusion on the route.
The Dixie Highway Association met in Chattanooga and chose a route passing through Tallhassee and Jacksonville, and proceeding south along the east coast. Frenzied lobbying also produced an inland route passing through Gainesville, Ocala, Winter Park, Orlando, Kissimmee, Bartow and Arcadia, rejoining the coastal route at Palm Beach.
In 1915, Fisher led an auto cavalcade from the Midwest to Miami, popularizing auto trips to Florida. The Dixie Highway was officially open for traffic in October of 1925 from the Canadian border at the northern tip of Michigan to Miami.
Originally, this was a portion of the King's Road, started in 1632 by the Spanish and completed in 1771 by the British. From here, the road headed south to Andrew Turnbull's plantation in New Smyrna, and north to St. Augustine.
This is a very late example of the Carpenter Gothic style of architecture, which was popularized in this country through the writings and plan books of Andrew John Downing, Alexander Jackson Davis and Richard Upjohn in the 1830s through 1850s. The style extensively uses sawn wood ornamentation on vergeboards and eaves. Also frequently found are windows extended into gables, often in a pointed arch form, steeply pitched roofs, steep cross gables, and sometimes flat castellated parapets.
This particular church has lancet windows, jigsaw wood trim, steeple and pinnacle.
This style was typical in the late 1800s along the St. Johns River. This church was built in 1914 by Polish immigrants. Most were disappointed when they settled here, because crops that they were used to in Chicago did not grow well in the local soil. The first mass was celebrated in it by Rev. Father Andrew Baczyk on May 3, 1914.
This shrine was built in 1935 by Rev. Father C. Hoffman.
This is an example of the Masonry Vernacular style, built in about 1926. Later modifications hide its original appearance.
This building was erected in about 1926 and is another example of the Masonry Vernacular style.
Located here was a Frame Vernacular style home, built in about 1926. On December 16, 1999, it was destroyed by a fire. Some singed bark on the trees may still be evident.
James Russell brought his family and 100 slaves to this area from their home in the Bahamas in 1812. When he got here, he traded his schooner, The Perseverance, for 2,500 acres. He started the Good Retreat Plantation and died three years later.
This plantation was founded in 1821 when Maj. Charles Wilhelm Bulow of Charleston acquired 5,675 acres for $9,944.50 from the Russell heirs. In 1822, he bought 2,000 adjoining acres from John Addison for $4,000. The plantation got underway, but Bulow unexpectedly died in May of 1823. His son, John Joachim Bulow, took it over.
At it peak, the plantation employed about 300 slaves in the raising of 1,000 acres of cotton, 1,500 acres of sugar cane, plus some rice and indigo. Local limestone was used in constructing a sizeable two-story home.
In 1835, the Second Seminole War broke out. Bulow was not in agreement with the relocation of the Indians to west of the Mississippi River. He and other Halifax plantation owners had friendly relations with the Indians. When Maj. Putman and his Mosquito Roarers entered the plantation, he fired on them with a four-pounder cannon.
The Roarers captured the plantation and took Bulow prisoner, then used it as Camp Bulow, a base of operations against the Indians. The soldiers contracted yellow fever and lost battles to the Seminoles, then retreated to St. Augustine. On January 31, 1836, the buildings were destroyed and the plantation plundered by the Indians. Bulow remained in Charleston and did not rebuild, then moved to Paris and died within the year.
What remains are the crumbling foundations of the mansion, the coquina sugar mill ruins, several wells, and a spring house. This was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970.
Drive east on Highbridge Rd., then south 3.3 miles on John Anderson Dr. to the intersection with Pierside Dr.)
Architect Chauncy A. Bacon of New Britain, Connecticut, bought 172 acres here in 1876, extending eastward to the ocean. He had considered eight previous homesites and finally built Number Nine, a small two-story frame house. In 1895, he built a second home here on an Indian mound on the riverfront, and the older one became a jelly factory. The doors and mantels were made from mahogany logs washed ashore from the 1880 wreck of the City of Vera Cruz.
This house was a favorite picnic ground for the area's early settlers, and was reachable only by water. Bacon was referred to as "The Duke of Number Nine" because he brought his elegant top hat into the wilderness. He planted 55 varieties of citrus, mulberry trees, guava, and other tropical fruits.
The house was later owned by his widow, Jennie, and her son, Earl, who continued to make pralines, jellies, jams and preserves. In December of 1909 the home was sold to M.C. Hillery, and two years later it was acquired by a company organized by Ferd B. Nordman. During the 1930s, it was known as the Bryan place. In 1986, it was repaired and restored to its original imposing appearance.
Florida Back Roads, by Bob Howard (Sentinel Communications Company 1991)
Florida's History Through Its Places: Properties in the National Register of Historic Places, by Morton D. Winsberg (Florida State University 1988)
Historic Daytona Beach (a self-guided tour), The Halifax Historical Society, Inc. (1992)
Historic Properties Survey of Flagler County, Florida, by Historic Property Associates, Inc. (1987)
History of New Smyrna, by Gary Luther (1987)
Hopes, Dreams, & Promises: A History of Volusia County, Florida, by Michael G. Schene (News-Journal Corportion 1976)
The King's Road to Florida: The Stagecoach Route, by Charles W. Bockelman (1975)
New Smyrna: An Eighteenth Century Greek Odyssey, by E.P. Panagopoulos (University of Florida Press 1966)
The Peninsular State Story: Florida's Fabulous History, by Charles J. Williams (Peninsular Life Insurance Company 1958)
Ruins of the Early Plantations of the Halifax Area, by Edith P. Stanton (Burgman & Son 1957)