The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1897-08-10
BEAUTIFUL BELL EVIEW.
An Interesting Past With q Bright
Future.

1t has been some years since
we took a look at Belleview, not
that we have not passed through
it, tarried moment in it to chat
with an old acquaintance, but
fully decade since we passed
around from point to point and
noted the changes time has
wrought. 1t is difficult to real
ize that only a dozen years ago,
where now stands as neat a vii
lage as can be found in Florida,
was nothing but the pine forest
primeval and the only house that
dotted the shores of Lake Lillian,
then known as Roach's pond, was
the home of Frank Pelot, ST.,
since gathered to his Father, but
in his day tobacco grower of
note, besides emboding in his per-
son the official distinction of
farmer, merchant, school teacher,
doctor, jurist and minister of the
gospel.
True, "Uncle Bill' Mason,
"Aunt Duck" and son, Vince,
and the Fogg family constituted
the resident population, but they
led an easy, everyday sort of a
bucolic existance, at peace with
the world and the rest of man.
kind, when the Marion Land &
Improvement Company, in the
persons of Jas. III. Foss, DR..
Knight and Rev. Woodward. of
the Old Bay State, e. w. Agnew
and John f. Dunn, of Ocala, as
it's largest corporate existance,
invaded the quiet, restful, ozone
atmosphere of that section and
inside Of twelve months wrought
a change that truly did astonish
the natives. Land that had lit
tie or no value rose in night
from S. to $50 and 500 an acre.
Prospectors and settlers came in
on every train; lots were staked,
trees felled, houses erected, lands
cleared and groves planted and
in a few months the population
grew from prospector to sever
al hundred souls.
1t is needless to follow the his
tory of the town during the past
ten years, it has been repeated a
hundred times since then in Flor
ida. Not like many of it's fa-
vored sister villages that rose
quickly to splendor and renown
and then sank as suddenly into
decay and forgotten, for through
all these years it has held its
own, although badly stricken by
Sthe freeze of 1895, but with the
Introduction of tobacco growing
expects in a few years to largely
increase it's trade and population.
Among the things we admired
in the model village of Belleview
was it's neat church, it's attract
i've school-house and it's planting
of magnificent water and turkey
oaks through all it's streets anG
around Lake Lillian, which now
in their graceful proportions ano
grateful shade, are already a de
light to the eye and an inspira
tion to the soul.
The sight of Belleview's idea
school house brought to mind the
old Roach log cabin, in which
Miss Nichols, now Mrs. Bittinger
taught the first school ever held
on the shores of the lake. The
population grew SO rapidly that
it's scholars outgrew the capacity
of the Roach mansion, and tht
next fall it was decided to build {
new temple Of learning. But
how? for Marion county was mo-
as liberal in those days in invest
ing it's money in school structures
as now. Miss Nichols sugges
tion of an ice cream festival wa:
quickly seized, put into execution
and netted s64. Everybody tool
a hand, native and newcomer
and jolly evening it proved. TX