The Portland daily press., 1898-05-11
FLORIDA SINK HOLES.
The Queer Way Streams have of D:sap
pearing into These Pits.
(From the Gainesville Sun.


The sinks Of Florida are numerous. and
one of the States most attractive features
to strangers visiting this part of the
country. Around Alachua Lake, three
miles south of Gainesville, there are hun
dreds of sink holes of various sizes and
depth. 1t is apparent from the existence
of SO many sinks that the whole country
is honey oombed with subterranean pas
sages Portions of the land in that region
have been sinking for ages. Many of the
sinks have trees growing in them, the
dimensions of which indicate that the
must be centuries old. There is no telling
at what moment the earth may give way
and new sink be formed. Only few
years ago the ground under the track of
the Florida Southern railroad, near
Alachua Lake, gave way, and in the
darkness of night train ran into hole
seventy or eighty feet deep. A train was
completely wrecked, but fortunately all
aboard escaped death.
There are sinks in various parts of
Alachua county, but they are more
numerous in the vicinity of what the In
dams called "Blue Jug Or Alachua,
meaning the deep sink-hole through
which the water in the lake at different
periods has run out. leaving an immense
| savanna, or many thousands of acres of
! prairie land. Many years ago several acres
| of ground on the public road leading from
this city to Newannsville sank and
formed lake, in which the tops of tall
trees could be seen beneath the surface of
the water This spot is known as the
R1ul Sink SoUQn rOlllC nyrth Of
Gainesville is a mammoth sink known as
the Devils Mill Hopper. 1t is a great
natural curiosity, and is a popular resort
for picnic parties as we'll as for pleasure
seekers. who, during the winter season,
visit this part of Florida. One mile west
of Gainesville is the Green Sink, contain
ing considerable volume of water in
which it has been the custom for many
years for colored people to battle, and
many uutimely denths have occurred in
this sink by drowning A notable sink is
that in which Hogtown Crack empties,
about five miles southwest of this city.
Hogtown Creek is quite stream, which
runs into this sink hole and gradually
disappears through a subterranean outlet.
At this point quite lake is formed,
which is we'll filled with all species of fish
known to inland Florida waters.
The natural wells, which are numerous
in the western part of Alachua county,
are but sinkholes reaching to large under
ground passages, through which hundreds
of thousands Of acres of land are drained.
The natural bridge over the Santa Fe
River, in the northern part of Alachua
county, is one of Florida's unique and
most interesting scenes, presenting the
spectacle of large stream sinking from
view for distance of several miles. ALI
the streams in the San Felaska hammock
q large body of land a few miles west of
| (yalnPEyjlla HiSonf,aar ir,fn t16 Il
passages Most of the sinks are dry, but
hundreds OF them are filed with water
flowing from springs. The depth of the
sinkholes varies all the way from twenty
tive feet down to where no bottom can be
found
The water in sinkhole three miles
west OF Winter Park was measured a
short time since and it was found to be
$50 feet deep. The hole is 1926 TO 100 yards
from side to side and about 40 feet in
depth to the surface of the water at the
bottom. From the top of the bank the
water has the deep-blue tint OF the ocean.
The banks are SO steep as to render de-
scent and ascent somewhat difficult.