The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1914-04-30
JACKSONVILLE
AND THE REUNION
Veterans Will Find a Modern,
Progressive City
Many Points Of Historic Interest TO
Be Visited BY Survivors of Gray
Army During Week.

ssmbls here for their oath annual re-
union, they will be introduced to city
and community, proud of the present
and loyal to the ideals Of the cid South.
Making Jacksonville the hub OF
wheel twenty. five miles in diameter,
. territory 10 covered rich in historic
associations and interest and at the
same time Q At exponent Of all that
10 progressive in the Southern States.
Jacksonville is q city OF $4,000 popu-
lation, with handsome business blocks,
modern skyscrapers, commodious no
tells and residence sections that COM
pare favorably with the best IN the
country. The citys business has
grown into large proportions, embrac-
ing every line known to q modern
city. Jacksonville Of to-day Is in all
respects q thriving center OF trade
and commerce, much Of Its commerce
going across the seas into foreign
countries on ocean steamships. Its
transportation facilities are superb,
both by rail and water. Railroads
feeding the great Florida Peninsula
center here. Thousands OF tourists
and uncounted tons Of freight pass
through the city and port every year,
tie one hunting health and pleasure,
the other scattering out over the civil
lied world tc do its part in supplying
the demands Of the consumers OF the
earth.
And while the visitors are enjoying
this view and prospect Of modern
business and community thrift, they
will be given an opportunity to look
down the past three hundred and nifty
years. All OF this territory was in dis
pute three and q half centuries ago
between the French and Spanish, with
the wild Indian holding the balance OF
power between the combatants. The
Frenchman and the Spaniard both laid
claim to the Florida territory. Which
was first to discover 1t Is Q matter
over which historians differ, but 1t Is
we'll authenticated that the arst white
mon to set foot upon the soil now sov-
cred By Jacksonville were Frenchmsn
under Rene Laudonnere.
The first white man TO enter the
mouth Of the st. johns river was
Jean Ribsult, In somnsad Of . com
pany Of Hugusaotss who Aad lsft
france because Of religious psrsscu-
tsoAs. He made his landing 81 Nay
1, 1859, Atty years after the landing
Of Ponce Dc Leon st Q point to the
south Of Jacksonville. Some histort
ems are Of the opinion that Ponce ds
Leon sailed - far nsfth - the mouth
Of the 81. Johns, but the weight OF
evidence 10 against this opinion. II
he wSss here Ae left NO trace. The
evidence is that he did not travel IN
Q direction from his original landing
dat would have brought him to the
Vicinity OF Jacksonville. It is thor
eughly established that Ribault en-
tered the mouth Of the st. Johns yivsr
May /, 1859, and sailed up the river
some miles to q hluH, where he erect.
cd . stone column on which was IN.
scribsd the arms Of France. But RI
bault did not ascend the river as high
as Jacksonville. He went from the
mouth Of the river to Port Royal, 8. c.
In 1854, one year after the depar
ture Of Ribault Rene Laudonnere,
who had been with Ribault on the
frst expedition, came to the mouth OF
the st. Johns with another colony Of
Huguenots, and ssoended the river as
far as the present site Of Jacksonville,
camping probably on the south side Of
the river on territory 2ow covered
by South jacksonville. These were
the FIRST white mon TO penetrate the
country above the mouth Of the river.
In honor OF the day Of discovery, May
/, Ribault gave the river the name Of
May, and this stood until the Span
iards whipped out the French, some
years latsr. The Spaniards called It
the River San Aateo at frst, but later
changed It's name to San Juan. From
this 1t finally became the st. Johns.
Old Fort Caroline was situated At St.
Johns bluff some miles below the
city of Jacksonville. No sign of this
historic fort remains, not even a slab
to commemorate its mournful story.
During the reunion, steamboat e1.
curs!ons will be run to all the points
Of historic interest on the St. Johns
river. It 10 but twsnty-seven miles
from Jacksonville to the mouth Of the
et. Johns, whore the government has
constructed, with the aid Of Jackson
Vile, and the State Of Florida, sys-
tenn Of jetties, deepened the water on
the bar and otherwise protected navi-
CATION. In passing between Jackson
vile and the jetties, the visitor will
have no trouble locating the sites Of
old forts that were erected nearly four
hunased years ago by the French and
Spanish. The trip is one Of the most
delightful in the Southern States.
While Jacksonville has not a6ver
tised itself as a large manufacturing
city, of recent years many large indus
trial plants have been established, CIV
ing employment to 5000 wage-earners
o,5 +ur,ino ont S14 1O0 non IN S15 0O0-