The Punta Gorda herald. [volume] (Punta Gorda, Fla.) 1893-1958, 1915-06-24

For the purpose of supplying
information such as is desired by
many people of other section;
who are interested in this locality
1.-THE following facts are given:
Punta Gorda is on the Charlotte
Harbor Division of the Atlantic
Coast Line r. r., 295 miles south
of Jacksonville, so miles east OF
south from Tampa on the south
side of Charlotte Harbor, 25 miles
from it's mouth, Boca Grande
Its population by the federal cen
sus of 1910 was slightly in excess
of 1900, but this number has been
considerably increased by people
who have located here since the
census was taken, and the number
of people in the town now is vari-
ously estimated at from 1,500 to
1900. Of this population about
300 are black people.
There are Methodist, Presbyter-
ian, Episcopal and Baptist church.
es with regular services for white
people, and Methodist and Baptist
churches for negroes. A public
school for white children, embrac-
ing grammar and high school de-
partments, employs eleven teach
ers and has an enrolment of sew
eral hundred pupils. The negroes
have a good public school with
two teachers and an enrolment
about forty pupils.
The taxation for city, county
and state purposes is not consider
ed excessive, and considering that
property heretofore has been as
sessed at ab.ut one-third its real
value there has been little occa-
sion for dissatisfaction from this
source.
The town contains two substan-
tial banks, an excellent telephone
system with connections all over
the neighboring counties; post
office, telegraph and express Off
ees; several private boarding
houses, four hotels plenty OF
grocery, dry goods, drug and 9TH
er stores to supply all the de-
mands Of the trade; machine, wag-
ON and boat shops; ice factory,
two bottling works, three cigar
factories, livery stable, newspa-
per and job printing office, bakery
restaurants, a town hall; flourish
ing lodges of Masons, Woodmen
of the World, Red Men and Mac
cabees, a plant for making con-
crete building blocks; five law
yers, four physicians, ONE dentist,
a number of real estate men, etc.
The chief industry is fishing, in
which six wholesale firms with 300
or more men are engaged. Capt.
tai invested in the business is es-
timated at $150,000, and large
shipments of fish on ice are made
almost daily during the fishing
seasons. The bulk of the fish
are mullet, but many
Spanish mackerel, bass,
.rout, sheep-head, snapper and
,ther fine food fish are shipped.
The oyster business is small.
Next to fishing, the cultivation
If fancy pineapples engages most
as the profits of this
often reach $500 an acre.
t requires about $500 to prop
.rly prepare and plant an acre in
,ineapples, but after this, 5000 a
,ear would cover the cost of cul-
ivation. The plants bear IN
welve to eighteen months after
,lanting and continue to bear an
Iually thereafter without replant-
ng for five or six years.
Truck farming is an industry ;
.et in its infancy and offering
.ood returns on intelligent and
rell directed efforts. Profitable
nd easy crops to raise are sweet
otatoes, Irish potatoes and sugar ]
ane, which pay $3.50 to $500 per
ere. L
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