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Indian River County is an idyllic vacation spot on Florida's east coast, not far south of Cape Canaveral. Known as part of the state's famed "Treasure Coast," many are unaware of the deep and fascinating history this area played in the development of the Sunshine State. Also lost among its visitors and residents are the chilling stories of the hauntings that accompany this rich history. It is here that a man named Waldo still looks after his family and properties, six decades after his death. Or a retired preacher is seen digging up his hidden treasure, days after he died .

A fascinating journey through the history of Jacksonville, Florida with postcard images and anecdotes from the locals who experienced it.

Jacksonville's Consolidation of 1967marked the end of individual towns in Duval County, but it established Jacksonville, all 840 square miles of it, as the largest city in the continental United States.

Collectors and authors Andrew Bachmann and Maria E. Mediavilla, with the help of the historical society's Emily Lisska and local historian Dr. Wayne Wood, share their personal postcard collections and take readers on a captivating journey through Jacksonville's history. Featured are postcards that show the 1920s real estate boom and transportation across the St. Johns River. View postcards that document the ever-changing Hemming Plaza, a metamorphosis that continues even today. This second volume of vintage postcard images will give readers a deeper insight into Jacksonville's past and the great importance of historic preservation.

Jacksonville Revisitedis a visual and written documentation of how the city has grown and developed since the introduction of postcard communication. The changes in commerce and landscape are illustrated and preserved through postcards.

Travel to the Gulf of Florida and discover the inception, growth and final end to the sunshine state's Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park.

John ""Brandy"" Siebenaler and his wife, Marjorie, founded the Gulfarium, the first marine attraction of its kind on the Florida Panhandle. Since the gates first swung open in 1955, guests flocked to the Gulfarium. Displays of live specimens collected from the nearby Gulf of Mexico waters by Brandy, his associates, and Destin's fishing families gave visitors a chance to view life below the sea as they had never seen it before. The park's spectacular dolphin shows gained national recognition, and the high-flying porpoises were trained by none other than Marjorie, who quickly became an acclaimed expert for her innate ability to connect with the animals. Beyond the on-cue performances of sky-high leaps, hoop jumps, and clever antics in the pool, the Gulfarium is part of a greater mission. It plays a critical role in the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of stranded marine mammals, sea turtles, and other native wildlife--a need it has continued to serve for more than half a century.

Hop aboard the Charlotte Harbor and Northern Railway for a trip across the trestle to Gasparilla Island.

Natural beauty and the sportfishing life brought the Cabots, Vanderbilts and Du Ponts to this island paradise, where local fishing families danced, ate and drank with the rich and famous at their castles on the beach. As the wealthy played, they relied on locals for everything from fishing charters to literally laundering and ironing their money. These are tales of 1920s rum smugglers whose offspring smuggled marijuana in the 1970s, a woman who caught 236 tarpon in one season and a bar owner whose Pink Elephant restaurant fed American presidents. James Bond’s Goldfinger even has a part as an island player. From Placida to Boca Grande Pass to Cabbage Key, fourth-generation Gasparilla Islander David Futch offers a wild ride with Bull Bay hermits and billionaires.

Through vintage postcards and photos, a diverse group of people and places are shown as they actually appeared-sportsmen and their "catches;" bathers whose attire evolved from bloomers and formal dress to one-piece bathing suits; the early "swing" and rickety wooden bridges; rustic frame hotels giving way to modern motels; the "downtown" areas of Indian Rocks Beach, Pass-a-Grille, Madeira Beach, and Clearwater Beach; plus casinos, bathhouses, waterslides, a Grand Hotel, and much more.

Join veteran journalist Chris Wadsworth and Allison Fortuna from the Bonita Springs Historical Society as they recount the history of Bonita Springs and its beginnings.

The pioneer history of Bonita Springs stretches back to the 1880s, when an Alabama cotton planter named B. B. Comer bought 6,000 acres of land along Surveyors Creek. He started a tropical fruit plantation, and his tiny village became known as Survey, in honor of the U.S. Army engineers who had first surveyed the region during the Seminole Wars decades before. When Florida started to boom in the early 20th century, investors bought up much of the land in the area. They quickly gave the community the more attractive moniker Bonita Springs and renamed the nearby creek the Imperial River. Beautiful beaches and world-class hunting and fishing soon turned Bonita Springs into a tourist mecca. Popular roadside attractions sprang up along the fast-growing Tamiami Trail, including the Everglades Wonder Gardens, the original Shell Factory, and the famous Naples-Fort Myers Greyhound Track.

Safety Harbor’s five natural mineral springs have drawn visitors and residents to the shores of Old Tampa Bay for centuries.

A ceremonial mound erected by indigenous peoples offers proof of human life stretching back before written history. Spanish explorers landed here in the 16th century, and 300 years later, the first seeds of Florida’s citrus industry were planted by Odet Phillipe. The Florida boom of the 1920s brought development and population growth. Expansion stalled during the Great Depression, but after World War II, Safety Harbor became a tourist destination for the rich and famous, permanently changing the city’s future. Images of the past create a nostalgic reminder of hardy people and their perseverance despite devastating hurricanes and fires. The timeless tranquility of sunrises and sunsets and Spanish moss draped from massive oaks endures throughout this historical, artsy city on the bay.

Laura Kepner is coauthor of A Brief History of Safety Harbor, Florida; author of the children’s book When Lourdes Was Big; and former editor of the literary journal Odet. She serves on the boards of the Safety Harbor Museum & Cultural Center and the Whispering Souls African American Cemetery. Since 2008, Kepner has walked the land of the Tocobaga, ever in awe.

Once known as Gasparilla Island, Boca Grande has become one of the best places to vacation and live.

Life on Gasparilla Island once had a very different rhythm. With a past intimately tied to Charlotte Harbor and the rich fishing grounds it provided, Gasparilla Island was, in its early history, the site of a small fishing village and a commercial fishery. The discovery of phosphate deposits in the region and the introduction of the railroad soon increased the pace of life, and a thriving port was built on the island's south end. As the twentieth century dawned and the Florida boom loomed on the horizon, the town of Boca Grande began to hum with the activity of a rapidly growing population. Though much has changed through the years--the little fishing village has vanished, the estimable Boca Grande Hotel is gone, and the once bustling port is now a state park--much of the region's unique history continues to inform the modern landscape. The venerable lighthouse, constructed in 1890, now serves as a museum of local history, and the grand Gasparilla Inn still stands firmly upon its original 1911 site. Those who now call Boca Grande home cherish it for the same island magic that fishermen and railroad officials recognized long ago: its unspoiled natural beauty, inviting climate, world-class fishing, and welcoming community.

The story of Sanibel and Captiva Islands stretches back over three centuries, to a time when Spanish explorer Ponce de Leon tried to subdue the Calusa Indians.

The next few centuries were flooded with pioneers, fishermen and clergymen in their quest to tame the wilderness in search of a better life. Discover how anthropologist Frank Cushing visited pioneer Sam Ellis in 1895 after the farmer discovered bones on his homestead and how President Theodore Roosevelt's men saved a little girl from drowning when he lived on a houseboat in Captiva to study local marine life. Join local history columnist Jeri Magg as she recounts the storied history of these little slices of paradise.

As longtime residents and newcomers alike can agree, Jacksonville holds within its city limits wonderful places to grow, play and contemplate the beauty of north Florida.

This entertaining collection of Dorothy Fletcher's ""By the Wayside"" columns will help you remember what it was like to see the world and Jacksonville with a sense of wonder and enthusiasm. From Marineland to the Soul Searchers to Peterson's 5 & 10, Remembering Jacksonville captures this coastal community's glory days, including fond recollections from local citizens who responded to the original columns.

Boasting over 15 million tourists visiting every year, this Florida city is one of America's oldest and one of its most popular.

The Making of St. Petersburg captures the character of this bay city through its past, from the Spanish clash with indigenous peoples to the creation of the downtown waterfront parks and grand hotels. Take a journey with local historian Will Michaels as he chronicles St. Petersburg's storied history, including the world's first airline, the birth of Pinellas County and the good old American pastime, Major League Baseball. The people and events in this work paint a beautiful portrait of a coastal Florida city and reveal St. Petersburg's sense of place.

Preserved in these pages are the rich and storied history of the scenic waterfront town of Panama City Beach.

In a collection of nostalgic and lighthearted vignettes, local author Jeannie Weller Cooper recounts the history of Panama City Beach, the barrier islands and beach for old Panama City. First inhabited by Native Americans in the years before the Spanish arrived in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Panama City Beach has always proved a good hideout for fugitives, from Native Americans fleeing from European invaders to runaway slaves, Civil War soldiers, outlaws and rumrunners. In 1929, the first Hathaway Bridge was completed; connecting Greater Panama City to the beach, but the lagoon and the beach remained a sleepy curiosity until the bombing of Pearl Harbor mobilized the United States to war. Now Panama City Beach is home to thousands of residents, as well as being a renowned tourist destination.

Welcome to Florida! Follow parent and child alligators as they explore the wonders of the Sunshine State together. From the panhandle to the Florida keys and from the gulf coast to the Atlantic Ocean, the pair enjoys the sun, the sand, and the surf. They visit amusement parks, water ski, and cheer on nine sports teams! Whether gliding through the Everglades or enjoying fresh oranges, our scaly tour guides will remind children and their parents of their own great visit to Florida.Bestselling author Martha Day Zschock is an artist and former elementary teacher with a passion for helping children explore new places. The Hello! series illustrates how exploring real places yields new discoveries. Through these journeys, kids can explore and become experts on the world they see inside and outside the book, through the engaging, bright, and detailed illustrations. For ages 0-3. Made in the USA.

Author Robert Redd traces the pivotal moments of the fight for Civil Rights in Florida.

The rights of all people are the rock upon which our American society is grounded. The state of Florida has many important stories in the fight for equality for women, African Americans, the elderly, and the LGBTQ community. Revisit the heroic efforts of Mary McLeod Bethune, the integration of Major League Baseball, the tragic failure of the Equal Rights Amendment, the change in how hurricanes are named, Civil Rights violence in St. Augustine, and more. Florida has often made national headlines in regards to Civil Rights activities. There's ample progress to celebrate, but the struggle continues. As the third most populous state in the country, actions here have an impact nationwide .

St. Petersburg Then & Now retells the history of the area in images comparing its beginnings to present day.

As the ""Sunshine City"" of St. Petersburg forges onward with new and exciting developments, a legacy of landmarks still remains. The founding fathers envisioned St. Petersburg as a city with great potential for progress and growth. Over the past century, St. Petersburg has far exceeded these vast expectations.