Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
51
orange groves now boasts the world's
greatest collection of thrill rides, fine din-
ing, luxury accommodations, and superior
shopping—not to mention an array of
cultural and natural attractions. This,
however, did not all happen overnight.
Over the years, Orlando has felt its fair
share of growing pains, even during its
earliest days.
SETTLERS VS. SEMINOLES: THE ROAD
TO STATEHOOD Florida history dates
to 1513—more than a century before the
Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock—when
Ponce de León, a sometimes misguided
explorer, spied the shoreline and lush
greenery of Florida's Atlantic coast while
he was looking for “the fountain of youth.”
He named it La Florida —[“]the place of
flowers.” After years of alternating Span-
ish, French, and British rule, the territory
was ceded (by Spain) to the United States
in 1821. Lost in the international shuffle
were the Seminole Indians. After migrat-
ing from Georgia and the Carolinas in the
late 18th century to some of Florida's rich-
est farmlands, they were viewed by the new
Americans as an obstacle to white settle-
ment. A series of compromise treaties and
violent clashes between settlers and the
Seminoles continued through 1832, when
a young warrior named Osceola strode up
to the bargaining table, slammed his knife
into the papers on it, and, pointing to the
quivering blade, proclaimed, “The only
treaty I will ever make is this!”
With that dramatic statement, the hos-
tilities worsened. The Seminoles' guerrilla-
style warfare thwarted the U.S. Army's
attempt to remove them for almost 8
years, during which time many of the
resisters drifted south into the interior of
Central Florida. In what today is the
Orlando area, the white settlers built Fort
Gatlin in 1838 to offer protection to pio-
neer homesteaders. The Seminoles kept up
a fierce rebellion until 1842, when, unde-
feated, they accepted a treaty whereby
their remaining numbers (about 300) were
given land and promised peace. The same
year, the Armed Occupation Act offered
160 acres to any pioneer willing to settle in
the area for a minimum of 5 years. The
land was fertile: Wild turkeys and deer
abounded in the woods, grazing land for
cattle was equally plentiful, and dozens of
lakes provided fish for settlers and water
for livestock. In 1843, what had been
Mosquito County was more invitingly
renamed Orange County. And with the
Seminoles more or less out of the picture
(though sporadic uprisings still occurred),
the Territorial General Legislature peti-
tioned Congress for statehood. On March
3, 1845, President John Tyler signed a bill
making Florida the 27th state.
Settlements and statehood notwith-
standing, at the middle of the 19th cen-
tury, the Orlando area (then named
Jernigan for one of its first settlers) con-
sisted largely of pristine lakes and pine-
forested wilderness. There were no roads,
and you could ride all day (if you could
find a trail) without meeting a soul. The
Jernigans successfully raised cattle, and
their homestead was given a post office in
1850. It became a way stop for travelers
and the seat of future development. In
1856, the boundaries of Orange County
were revised, and, thanks to the manipula-
tions of resident James Gamble Speer, a
member of the Indian Removal Commis-
sion, Fort Gatlin (Jernigan) became its
official seat.
How the fledgling town came to be
named Orlando is a matter of some specu-
lation. Some say Speer renamed the town
after a dearly loved friend, whereas other
sources say it was named after a Shake-
spearean character in As You Like It. But
the most accepted version is that the town
was named for plantation owner Orlando
Reeves (or Rees), whose homestead had
been burned out in a skirmish. For years,
it was thought a marker discovered near
the shores of Lake Eola, in what is now
downtown, marked his grave. But Reeves
3
Search WWH ::




Custom Search