In the 1870’s the state of Florida wished to develop Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor as trade centers with Cuba.  Railroad companies that agreed to build and operate railroads that would improve transportation to those ports could receive large grants of state land as compensation.

           

The Florida Southern Railroad Corporation (FSRC) started construction of a railway running west from Palatka to Gainesville and south to Charlotte Harbor.

 

In 1881, N.R. Gruelle, chief engineer for the FSRC arrived two miles south of present-day Interlachen to plan the location of the intended railroad.  Another engineer in Gruelle’s group directed his attention to the picturesque spot between the lakes (Lake Lagonda and Blue Pond or Lake Chipco).  After camping on the site, Gruelle changed his plans and arranged for the railroad to be constructed on this site between the lakes.

           

Even though the railroad owned the center part of the town, the town was plotted into city blocks.

 

George W. Hastings held the east end, and Mr. Canover, from Canada, the west end.

 

The railroad brought northern immigrants that were attracted to the mild climate, the countryside, and the possibility of the citrus industry between the lakes.

 

By 1882, Mrs. Elizabeth Brush had built the first post office and general store.  The store sold postcards, sewing supplies and many small things that made life a little easier in the new community.

 

The town had been called Blue Pond or Wilcox until 1887; Blue Pond (now called Lake Chipco) as it was referred to on the surveyors map, and Wilcox simply because Mr. Wilcox owned the first log cabin built there.

 

The new name was Interlachen, a Scottish word meaning “between the lakes”.  The Bank of Interlachen opened in 1890, the new city hall had built, and at least three hotels capable of entertaining one hundred guests and several boardinghouses were available for the prospering Interlachen. 

 

The developers of the late 1800’s capitalized on the romance of the citrus industry in the south, and Interlachen was no exception to this.  Citrus fruit was a luxury item sent to the north during the holiday season, much of it shipped in barrels padded with Spanish moss.  In 1894, it was recorded that Interlachen shipped the second highest number of oranges in the entire state.  The town boasted two thousand acres of citrus groves within the city limit.

The Florida freeze of 1894-1895 sent many northerners home.  Some homes were reported vacant, but with food still left on the table, as though the occupants had left in a great hurry. 

 

Interlachen, like many other north Florida communities, has not since seen such a boom time as in the late 1800’s.  However, many of the buildings and homes of this era still stand as heritage to those who remain.

 

Interlachen is also centrally located approximately 30 miles from Gainesville, 40 miles from St. Augustine, 60 miles from Jacksonville, and 40 miles from Ocala.

 

HALE REAL ESTATE, INC. 

1023 STATE ROAD 20 (P.O. BOX 233), INTERLACHEN, FL 32148

Phone: (386) 684-6110  --  Fax: (386) 684-6120

Web-site: www.halerealty.biz                  E-mail: hale@halerealty.biz

 

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