The History of Maitland- Part two

In 1842 Fort Maitland was abandoned, however the settlement remained; the first settlers came the next year[1]. Orlando area was not settled until 1846; however Orlando’s population would grow far and beyond that of Maitland’s. One possible reason was Maitland was a dry town, while Orlando would come to be the center of the cattle industry[2].

Even in 1885 Maitland lacked the population to file for incorporation. The cities’ founders, Major Josiah Eaton and Lewis Lawrence who had served in the Union navy and Joseph Clark, an African American who worked for Eaton, built a collegian between the two races that allowed the city to incorporate[3].

Only a few years later Eaton would give Clark the land to establish Eatonville the first African American community to incorporate.

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[1] Jim Robison and Mark Andrews, Flashbacks: The Story of Central Florida's Past, Orlando: Orange County Historical Society and the Orlando Sentinel, 1995.

[2] Eve Bacon, Orlando: A Centennial History. Chuluota, Fla: Mickler House, 1975.

[3] Olga Fenton Mitchell, Gloria Fenton Magbie, and Marion Civette Elden, The Life and Times of Joseph E. Clark: From Slavery to Town Father (Eatonville, Florida). Jonesboro, AR: Four-G Publishers, 2003.

The History of Maitland

I hope to start the research for my final document within the next weeks. So here is a little back ground on the history of Maitland Florida. There was little or nothing in the general area of Central Florida until the mid-1800s; other than runaway slaves and Seminole Indians. The area would not begin to see white men until the beginning of the Second Seminole war when the U.S. Army established three forts in the area. General Zachary Taylor had a road built connecting a string of defenses from Lake Monroe to Fort Brooke (now Tampa). All three forts in the area would be the foundation for the first communities in Central Florida. Fort Gatlin, along the shores of modern-day Lake Gatlin south of downtown Orlando, would become the city of Orlando. The town of Mellonville was founded around Fort Mellon in 1842 by Daniel Stewart In 1845 on Lake Monroe. Mellonville would later be rename named after Col Sanford in the late 1800s. Finally there was Fort Maitland. Captain Maitland died from wound he received in battle and never saw the area that was name for him. His friends honored him by naming the fort Maitland.

History is All Around

On Friday, I went to Parker Lumbar, a local lumber yard in Maitland. It’s one of those family businesses that have been around for years. In the case of Parker Lumbar, generations; the Parker family was one of the pioneer families of Maitland Florida. A member of their family signed the charter to incorporate the city in 1884.
In 1934, Willard F. and Laurence Parker started the Parker Lumber Company and the lumbar yard has operated for over 75 years at the same location.

In addition to starting what eventually would be a thriving business for many, many years, the Parker family was very involved in their community. W.L. “Bud” Parker was a member of Maitland’s Volunteer Fire Department and served our City as Mayor and member of the City
Council. As the years passed, Maxine Parker was an avid member of the Maitland Woman’s Club, and Rita Parker was involved in the Maitland Historical Society and helped bring the Waterhouse museum to reality.

There will be more as I hope to have the opportunity to talk with the family about their history in the area.

Brief History of Winter Park

When I think of Winter Park, I think of that fabulous Saturday morning market with the artisan breads and cheeses, the cute shops, the Tiffany museum, and a wonderful French bistro on one of those side streets (Jan Hurndon)

Like Jan, this is the image of Winter Park for many of us who live in Central Florida. But it was not always so.

The first white settlers to come to the area were the Mizell family in 1858. The Mizell were also involved in the cattle war that took place between 1865 and 1875. David Mizell Jr. and his family, the first settlers in what is now Winter Park, buy eight acres between Lakes Virginia. The settlement that grows up around their homestead is called Lake View.

Chartered in 1887, the city was originally developed as a winter resort for wealthy Northerners seeking refuge from the harsh winters and a tranquil place to rest and relax. Fortunately, the city has maintained its natural beauty throughout the years.

Loring Chase and Oliver Chapman, who during an informal discussion, decided they wanted the name to be something about a park in winter - thus the name Winter Park.
In the mid-1800s the Seminole Hotel was completed and was an example of Gilded Age architecture.

The hotel burned to the ground at the turn of the century.

The city of Winter Park does not support the historical association. The association relays on individual donations.

Get started

Monday I started my work with the Winter Park Historical Association. After a meeting with the director and the association chair we have come up with a plan to organize the archive. Over the next few months I well take each box and compare the artifact to the physical record and update their computer files. Also I be photographing all the artifacts and imputing them to the computer files.
This might sound like a lot of work. However when do we get the opportunity to be so involved with our local history.

Here we go

This is the beginning of the next part of my journey. After 25 years in a career as a manager in housekeeping in the Orlando area I working on reinventing myself. The plan is to have my masters finished before the end of the year. Here if you choose you can be a part of my journey.