The Punta Gorda herald., 1908-12-31
A SUMMARY OF FACTS
e--------
OF INTEREST ABOUT PUNTA GORDA
information for the Homeseeker, the In
vestor and Those in search Of Health
Rest or Recreation.

Punta Gorda Is on the Charlotte
Harbor Division of the Atlantic
Coast Line r. r., 2o5 miles south OF
Jacksonville, 80 miles east of south
from Tampa on the south side of
Charlotte Harbor, rs miles from rs
mouth Boca Grande. Its popula-
ton by the State census OF 1905 was
1900 OF whom about 800 are black
people
There are Methodist, Baptist, Epis-
copalan and Presbyterian churches
with regular services for white peo-
ple,' and Methodist and Baptist
churches for neproes. A public high
school for white children employs six
teachers and has an enrolment of 22s
pupils An excellent private school
for primaries is also well maintain
ed The negroes have a good public
school, with one teacher and about
IS pupils
The ad valorem tax rate is rs mills
on the dollar, 10 which 3 mills should
be added for sub-district school tax.
The total school tax, by the way, IS
III mills on each dollars worth OF
property, viz, county tax, z mills,
State, mill, sub-district QocaD s
mills--which shows how literally the
public schols are supported People
pay this school tax without murmur-
ing. Exclusive of the town FAX proper
and the local (3-mill) school tax, the
total state and county rate Is rs f-2
mills, making grand total for all
purposes of "a Ia mills. But prop
erty is assessed at one-third its
value; hence, on a correct valuation
the total tax rate would be less than
IS mills.
The town contains a substantial
bank, an excellent telephone system
with connections all over the neigh
boring counties; postofiice, telegraph
and express Offices; several private
boarding houses, two hotels; 0lenty
of grocery, dry-goods, drug and 9th
err stores to supply all the demands
OF the trade machine, wagon and
boat shops; ice factory, bottling
works, cigar factory livery stables,
newspaper and job printing office,
bakery, restaurants, town hall;
flourishing lodges of Masons, Wood
men and Red Men; three lawyers,
two physicians, three dentists, sew
eral real estate men. etc, ETC.
The chief industry is fishing, in
which six wholesale firms with 800
or more men are engaged Capital
invested in this business is estimated
at $Iso,ooo and the annual shipments
of fish on ice amount tc 6,5oo,ooo
pounds. The bulk of these are null
let, but many pompano, Spanish
mackerel, bass, trout, sheep-head,
snapper and other fine food fish are
shipped. The oyster business is small.
Next to fishing, the cultivation OF
fancy pineappleS engages most at
tention, as the profits OF this in
dustry often reach $500 an acre and
in several instances have gone as
high as $4,000 Der acre. 1t requires
$500 to properly prepare and plant
an acre in pineapples, but, after this,
5000 year would cover the cost
Of cultivation. The plants bear in
twelve to eighteen months after
planting and continue to bear an
nually thereafter without replanting
for FIVE or six years.
Very profitable and easy crops to
raise are sweet potatoes and sugar
cane, which pay $I5o to $500 an acre. |
Sugar-cane needs to be planted only
once in three to five years.
Oranges, grapefruit, lemons and
lines are successfully grown; so are |
some other fruits OF lesser note. |
Grapes grow naturally All kinds OF |
vegetables yield profitable crops.
Prices Of town lots and Of lands |
out of town vary so greatly that Il
is impracticable to give quotations;
but almost any one who dogs not ex-
pect to find in new ana sparsely |
settled country like this, the improve
ments and conveniences ofVOho and
Massachusetts,. can find htret some
thing to suit him in pricefahd char
acter, whether he wishes iihproved.or
unimproved property
The town government consists OF |
a mayor, marshal, five aldermen, clerk
and assessor, treasurer, collector sIhe
streets are paved and so are miles OF
public roads leading into town We
have more cement sidewalks than any
other town Of the same she in the
State.
The location is one Of incoAparable
health to which the salt -breezes
from the bay contribute. Malsfia is
unknown; no epidemic has everkyisit-
ed the town; pneumonia has never
appeared here; even colds are rlte.
People who have visited the SSa-
moan and Hawaiian Islands say Mat
their climate is duplicated here. IN
deed, we do not hesitate to say tli3t
this climate is the most delightful al}-
the-year-round climate in America,|
In winter, the temperature never goe$I
below rs degrees and it rareIyV
reaches as low as SO, the average for