FLORIDA TRAILBLAZER

Magazine Article “Into The Woods” by Sandy Parrish

Exploring the history and wilderness of Florida, Florida Trailblazer.

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“Florida Trailblazer” Featured in Lutz, Land O’ Lakes and Wesley Chapel Magazines in Pasco County, Florida

September 16, 2019 / floridatrailblazer / Leave a comment

Florida Trailblazer in Lutz Magazine I am honored and extremely grateful to be featured in the September 2019 issues of Wesley Chapel, Lutz and Land O’ Lakes Magazines distributed in Pasco County, Florida.

Pasco County is a local stomping ground for me where there are many wilderness areas and historical sites to see and learn about. So over the years I have always strived to help educate people around these areas about some of these places through my various videos and other projects. So when I was presented with the opportunity to be featured in these magazines I was really excited! Although it is much more than about sharing about the history and wilderness in these regions but all over Florida as well.

I am so glad that I am able to inspire so many people through my adventures and really grateful for the opportunity to share about them. I appreciate your support thank you very much! I hope you enjoy this article see the link below. Special thanks to Sandy Parrish and KEM Media Group for the feature.

Thanks to Jae Patrick (Cover Photo Credit)

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St. Francis Trail in Ocala National Forest

St. Francis Trail in Ocala National Forest (St. Francis Ghost Town)

September 3, 2019January 25, 2022 / floridatrailblazer / Leave a comment

Old Cypress Tree at St. Francis Ghost Town2 — Old Cypress Tree at St. Francis

I enjoy exploring the St. Francis Trail in Ocala National Forest it leads you through a scenic wilderness and to a historical ghost town site. There is a kiosk at the trailhead that describes some of the history on the town. Today the town is long gone and nature has reclaimed the area. Walking through this lush wilderness you’d never think that there was once a booming town out here.

St. Francis was once called Old Town, it was a river town that served the steam boat traffic on the St. Johns River in 1888. They had a post office from March 15th, 1888 to Oct. 15th 1909. When the train line came out of Jacksonville in 1886 it began taking the business from the steamboats. Steamboats worked their way from Jacksonville upriver along the St. Johns to Sanford. Here they would stop to exchange household goods for citrus and timber. The town faded away after river traffic vanished in the wake of railroads for commerce.

As I explored along the trails and surrounding woods I could see some old Cypress stumps and even some old logging trams. One of them I found a large Cypress tree still standing with some cut marks on the side of it from loggers.

I enjoy the views by the river here and the different habitats you experience along the way. I followed the trail towards the townsite, there you can see the old wagon road and follow that back to the where the trail loops back to the trailhead. That direction leads to an old railroad line as well. On this adventure I spent some time by the St. Johns and St. Francis Dead River areas. You can see the old townsite on maps but it always has been difficult for me to find the exact location. If you look closely by the shoreline you can see some old dock pilings. You can see an old dock there in photos from the 1870’s where the packing house once was. It is quite amazing to be standing there in modern times and being able to reflect back upon the past. There is something about being in these places that takes you back to another time.

There were several homesteads scattered throughout the property and by one of them I found an artesian well. The wells furnished the residents with an abundant supply of water. Typically these are capped off now and days but this one is still flowing out of a pipe there. I wondered if there was a homestead nearby. Everything is very overgrown so it’s hard to really know the layout of the town but some maps available give you the general idea. I always enjoy the adventure of exploring these areas and learning about the past. Thank you and enjoy the adventures!

Videos:

RESOURCES

St. Francis Ghost Town (Florida Ghost Towns)

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Goethe State Forest Website

Old Homestead Site in Goethe State Forest

May 14, 2019January 25, 2022 / floridatrailblazer / 1 Comment

Goethe Abandoned Homestead6 — Pond by Homestead Site

On this adventure I explored an old homestead site that is now part of Goethe State Forest located in Levy County. There is a lot of history here along with a scenic wilderness so I always enjoy visiting. I’ve seen everything from railroad, ranching and turpentine history here. So it seems like there is an always adventure that awaits when I explore this wilderness.

This area was located by a pond and the homestead and pond can be seen on old aerial photos from the 1940’s but not sure how much older than that it may be. When I look at these documents it is amazing to see how the areas have changed over the years compared to modern times. Nature has reclaimed most of these sites. Back then this section was cleared out around the homestead and the pond would have been a good water source. There may have been some livestock on the property as well.

Today the area is popular for equestrians and some of the horse trails go by the site. I found an overgrown path off of the trail that may have been a road to the homestead at one time. So I followed that for a little while until I came into a clearing by the pond, I could see some pieces of wood and metal scattered around. I was by the homestead area and the same pond that I saw on the aerial photo was just through the clearing and surrounding woods.

That is an incredible feeling standing in a place like this and you think of times gone by, who lived here and the memories that were made. It is lost to nature now but you still get a sense of the past in these places. Seeing some of the remnants from those days around the area only adds to that feeling. So as I roamed around I also found what appeared to be a well or cistern used for storing and collecting water. Nearby I saw some old bricks and part of a foundation. I spent a lot of time exploring the woods here and you can’t help but think what else may be out here. That is part of the mystery in exploring these places. Later I went down by the pond along the wooded shoreline and just took in the scenery, thinking “this is the real Florida, the old Florida…”

Below are some photos and a link to my video enjoy and thank you!

VIDEO:

RESOURCES:

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Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve

Abandoned Homestead Site in The Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve

April 23, 2019January 25, 2022 / floridatrailblazer / 2 Comments

Green Swamp Homestead2 — Old Vehicle at Homestead Site

Over the years I have explored many areas of The Green Swamp Preserve located in central, Florida. It is a scenic and vast place that spans 4 counties so there is a lot to explore. The area is rich in history as well so I enjoy learning about and tracking down of that kind of stuff in this wilderness. It took a very long time to begin finding some of this history out here but I find that with dedication and just getting out there as much as possible in the more you begin to find and experience. There was logging, turpentine and ranching history in this place well over a hundred years ago. Even longer before that dating back thousands of years Native American Indians found this area to be a refuge and also a place with abundant resources.

One of the sites I have explored is this abandoned homestead site. During the 1800’s and into the early 1900’s some families lived in these areas. They built ranches, had orange groves and lived an old Florida lifestyle. This particular site seems to date back to at least the 1930’s according to some aerial maps I have. The area is mostly being reclaimed by nature so it looks a lot different than it did in the early days of this place. There was a homestead, a place for livestock and orange groves close by as well. Some of the orange trees still grow out here. There was a railroad line that was close by as well and many folks lived along them when trains were one of the main sources for transportation. I could see some of the old roads throughout the area which is all woods now and the roads have become trails. It makes for a very scenic exploration and there are many areas to venture into here. Around the area I could observe some old vehicles, foundations and other remnants from the homestead.

Being out here transports you back in time to another era and it is one of the sites where you can just feel the history. I truly enjoy these types of places and I’m very thankful to still be able to experience them in modern times.

Many historical sites and wilderness areas in Florida are being developed so it is important that we cherish and take care of these places while we still have them. I feel this way every time I visit these places and it’s part of the reason why I like to document them as much as I can so that in someway they can be remembered when they are gone.

Check out my video and photos below. If you visit this site or others like it please be respectful and leave everything as you see it, thank you and enjoy!

VIDEOS:

RESOURCES

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Florida Trailblazer Merchandise

Florida Trailblazer Podcast on YouTube

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Florida Trailblazer E-Newsletter

Florida Trailblazer Podcast (Episode 1)

March 12, 2019March 12, 2019 / floridatrailblazer / Leave a comment

Florida Trailblazer Podcast

I have been working on lots of new projects for Florida Trailblazer and one of them involves a podcast. It is something I actually had in mind to do for a long while now but it wasn’t until recently that I began putting it together. It is still a work in progress and will evolve in time. I have finished the first episode which is now available on my YouTube channel and will be published online at other outlets soon where podcasts can be heard.

The YouTube version has images to go along with the conversation which I think is a good way to help illustrate what I am discussing during the episodes. This first episode is about a couple of lost cemeteries that I explored.

If you are contributor to Florida Trailblazer you get first access to the episodes before they are published online. If you are interested in donating check out the links below. All of the contributions help go towards providing more content like this and so much more that I plan on producing in the near future.

I am very thankful for all of you that follow along with my adventures and this is just one of the ways I wanted to help give back to show my appreciation. These episodes will highlight some behind the scenes stuff about my adventures and provide an insight to a lot of the production and work involved when I am exploring all of these great places that I post about. I hope you and enjoy it and stay tuned for more exciting news!

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HULL-SMITH CEMETERY IN OCALA NATIONAL FOREST

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Hull-Smith Cemetery in Ocala National Forest

March 3, 2019March 3, 2019 / floridatrailblazer / 1 Comment

Hull-Smith Cemetery

During the 1800’s many families and early settlers had homesteads and cemeteries throughout Florida. I have been visiting a lot of these old cemeteries over the years and some are in better conditions than others. One of the areas I have visited recently is now part of Ocala National Forest and there are several old cemeteries around this forest. It is some of the remaining history and evidence from the past that still remains in these areas.

This particular cemetery is called Hull-Smith Cemetery and it’s located within Marion County. It appears to date back to the 1800’s and early 1900’s, although most of the tombstones here are either broken or missing. So it is hard to know the exact dates and the history of the folks buried here. Most likely the people who are buried in the cemetery were early settlers and had homesteads in the surrounding area. It was a simple life then but a very hard one.

As I explored around the cemetery I noticed maybe one or two tombstones that were still legible and in decent condition. I could see some of the tombstones had the name of Smith on them, one of the tombstones that was still legible had the name of Hull. According to burial records there is a Civil War soldier buried by the name of Daniel Hogan and he passed away in 1886.

It is my hope that one day the cemetery will be restored and kept up, sadly today is very neglected. I went there and recorded a video and took photos to help document and share about this place to help maybe bring some attention to the site. Although the cemetery isn’t in good condition the memories of these people and the history here is not lost. May their souls forever rest in peace…

Check out my video, photos and burial records posted below and if you visit this place or others like please be respectful of the sites, thank you.

VIDEO

RESOURCES

BURIAL RECORDS FOR HULL-SMITH CEMETERY

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