Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1892-03-03
JACKSONVILLE TO JUPITER
Wanderings Through the Land of
Flowers and Sun.
On the st. John-Indian River "A Success.
full Settler-The Mangrove Tree.
Fine Fishing.
JUPITER. February

Arrived at Jacksonville on the 27ti
January, from Aiken, ). c., through
Charleston, Savannah and Waycros
where rest of one week was taken, anC
tour through southern and centra
Florida planned, that would take in OF
the route the Indian River country, the
lake region, and also Ocala, the Silver
Springs and the Ocklawaha River
Therefore to carry out the program made
out, boarded one of the steamers of The
Clyde line, The City of jacksonville. =
and on the I'd February, at 800 p NJ
sailed from that port up the grand old
st. Johns River, to Blue Springs, within
20 miles of Sanford, where we landed
and took train on the Atlantic and
Western Railroad 10 New Smyrna, a
bright little town on the Hillsborough
River near the coast. Here is very
nice hotel, where one day was spent very
pleasantly with about a dozen other la
dies and gentlemen who came over with
US on the train, two couples from Phila-
delphia, two from Lowell, Mass, one
from New Jersey, and one young man
from Germany, all very cOngenial and
social people, which, together with the
eating of oranges we picked from the
trees in the yard, made the time pass
pleasantly away. The next morning Il
steamer was taken, and descending
the HillsborOugh to place called "Haul-
over which is canal that has been
dredged out to connect the latter river
with the celebrated Indian River-the
place was so called because formerly
they had to haul over goods and passen-
gers across the narrow strip of land di-
viding the two rivers. Through this ca
nal our boat endeavored to go, but ow
ing to boat that preceded US having
stuck fast in a shallow place in the chan
mel at the lower end of the canal, which
she could not get by, transfer
had to be made to smaller boat that
had accompanied us from New Smyrna,
which succeeded in passing the stranded
boat, after prolonged effort of five hours,
after which the passengers rs-about fifty
and baggage, were taken in life
boats past the stranded boat, and about
mile beyond, to the other steamer. This
was delay, but it was rather enjoyed by
us than otherwise. We were now in the
Indian River, at its very head or north
end, and going down it a short distance
to Titusville on the west bank, thence
continuing 26 miles farther brought up
at ROckledge, where our boat stopped for
the night. it being the end of its line; but
it was not the end of our line, however;
we stopped too, disembarked, went to one
of the hotels, of which there are three
fairly good ones, retired to our room, and
slept till morning.
Spent the incoming day in looking
round. 1t is quite a pretty place, beau
tifully situated on the west bank of the
river in palmetto grove, having. in ad
dition to the three hotels, quite number
of handsome cottages dotted around, and
is noted for its tiourishing orange groves
and the superior quality of its fruit,
which has become world-renOwned The
hammock is three and half miles long,
and is one continuous grove its entire
length. Fishing and duck shooting, to-
gether with fleet of sail and row boats
and steam launches, which are here kept,
afford great amusement to the sportsman,
and source of pastime and pleasure TO
visitors generally. Along the border of
the river, above and below the town, and
in front of the orange grove is lett stand
ing, as protection to it, narrow strip
of palmetto trees, intermixed with vari-
ous other trees, vines and bushes in their
natural state-a perfect jungle. Through
this wild labyrinth, on the margin of the
river, winds path along which pedestri-
ans ramble, quite romantic walk, shady
and pleasant too; but to the supersti-
tiously inclined, there are spots that
might look to them as though there
might be 'spooks" concealed. This whole
region along the Indian River from Rock
ledge to Jupiter, and inclduing Juno and |
Lake Worth, twenty yeats ago, was
wholly unimproved and unOccupied, save
by the wild beasts and wilder Indians. |
During talk with Mr. McGruder, who |
lives mile and a half below Rockledge, !
at a landing bearing his name, who is the
owner of an orange grove consisting of
eight thousand trees, he remarked that
when he came there twenty years ago, !
there was nothing whatever in that re-
gion in the way of Improvements or in
habitants save one small hut in Rock |
ledge That he purchased 100 acres of
the hammock land, went to work on it, |
cleared off patch to raise some corn, !
potatoes and vegetables on which to live, !
built small shanty to live in, shot wild
cats and panthers that chased his hogs, |
shot bears and dear for meat, and thus |
fought and toiled on clearing more land, |
planting out orange and other fruit tree;
of divers kinds, and built new and bet |
ter house. This shows what energy, |
pluck and skill properly applied, will do. |
He has now a fine house with convent |
ent outbuildings, beautiful grounds and
large vegetable garden-three artesian
wells, which supply water in abundance
for irrigation and other purposes, found |
at depth of from $50 to 300 feet. He of
course, as pioneer, had to toll hard to
achieve all this in twenty years, but h IS
now an independent fortune-worth, per
haps, 100000 | mention these things
as a specimen to show what some are do
ing, and others can do, even under un-
beginnings. What the prophet
Isaiah says in spiritual sense, can be
applied here in literal sense: 1.-The will
derness and the solitary places shall be
glad; and the desert shall rejoice, and
blossom as the rose."