Tosohatchee Time Line and Events

  1. 1837: During the Second Seminole War, General Thomas S. Jesup sent a Cherokee delegation to "Totalousy Hatchy" (Tosohatchee Creek) to persuade the Seminole Indians to surrender. Upon arrival the delegation found the area abandoned but soon discovered the Indians had moved further south to Chickasaw Hatchee (Taylor Creek).
  2. 1837: About a month later, a column of Dragoons under the command of Brigadier General Abrahm Eustis was dispatched from Fort Christmas to build a stockade along Chickasaw Hatchee. This site became known as Fort McNeil. A military road was also constructed between the two forts.
  3. 1842: On August 4th, the Florida Armed Occupation Act was passed. Any man willing to bear arms for their country was entitled to 160 acres of unsettled land in East Florida. The condition was that land had to more than 2 miles from any fort and it had to be occupied for at least 5 years. None of the land in Tosohatchee was claimed under this act. 
  4. 1845: A survey of Township 23 South Range 33 East conducted by Henry Washington for the US General Land Office shows a military road between Fort Christmas and  Fort McNeil going across Tosohatchee Creek at coordinates N28 30.262 W80 59.645.
  5. 1847: Township 23 South Range 34 East, which covers most of Tosohatchee, was surveyed and sectioned by J. R. Richard for the US General Land Office.  The survey had to be redone in 1851 after someone noticed the St. Johns River wasn't drawn entirely. 
  6. 1850: On September 28th, an Act of Congress enabled the State of Florida to reclaim swamp and overflowed land for the purpose of draining it so the land could be made more suitable for cultivation.
  7. 1851: The Internal Improvement Board was created to administer the state owned land.
  8. 1855: The Internal Improvement Board was replaced by  a new agency of the Florida Government called the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund. Tosohatchee fell into their jurisdiction. 
  9. 1862: On May 20th, The Homestead Act was passed by Congress. It allowed up to 160 acres of unoccupied public land to be offered to homesteaders for a small fee. The requirements being the owner had to continuously live on the land and cultivate it for at least 5 years. Florida did not see any benefit from this act until after the Civil War. None of the land in Tosohatchee was purchased because of this act.
  10. 1883: On May 21st, the Florida Southern Railway Company owned sections 4 and 5 of Township 24 South Range 34 East. [TR19460418]
  11. 1892: On December 7th, the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Fund for the State of Florida conveyed 53,376 acres of land to Elverton R. Chapman from New York, owner of the Blue Springs, Orange City and Atlantic Railroad Company. Part of that deal included 5,690 acres along the west side of Tosohatchee starting north of Power Line Road and going all the way south past SR528. This included sections 6, 7, west half of 8, 17, 18, 19, 20, west half of 21, west half of 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 in Township 23 South Range 34 East. [TR19350415]
  12. 1900: On June 6th, Elverton R. Chapman sold his portion of Tosohatchee to the Florida Land and Lumber Company. [TR19350415]
  13. 1904: On March 31st, the Florida Land and Lumber Company conveyed all of their land to the Consolidated Land Company, which included the 5,690 acres in Tosohatchee. Consolidate Land Company was a subsidiary of the Consolidated Naval Stores Company that existed between 1903 and 1931. [TR19350415]
  14. 1905: On June 14th,  John L Conoley purchased those same 5,690 acres of land from the Consolidated Land Company. Three days later the land was sold to Luther Holland and John J Rupp of Michigan for $20,000. Talk about flipping. [TR19350415]
  15. 1906: On December 1st, the Trustees of the State of Florida's Internal Improvement Fund deeded 117,157 acres of public land along the St. Johns River to the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company. This included in part sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, east half of 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, east half of 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, east half of 28, 34 of Township 23 South Range 34 East and sections 2, 3, 10, 11, 14 of Township 24 South Range 34 East. [TR19140416 & TR19190319]
  16. 1912: Construction began on the Kissimmee Valley Line of the Florida East Coast Railroad. If you look at the old aerial photos from the 1940s, you can still see the railroad as well as a spur coming off of it and heading towards Tosohatchee. It crosses Taylor Creek Road at coordinates N28 30.428 W81 00.229, heads east then turning south before ending at coordinates N28 28.455 W80 57.509 near Fish Hole Road. A white blazed foot trail follows the last mile of this abandoned railroad spur. If you're lucky you can still see some of the old rails and ties.
  17. 1913: On July 24th, the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company conveyed 17,865 acres of land along the St. Johns River to the Florida East Coast Railway Company. This included in part sections 23, 24, 26, 27, east half of 28, 34 of Township 23 South Range 34 East and sections 2, 3, 10, 11, 14, 15, 22, 23, 27, 34, 35, 36 in Township 24 South Range 34 East. [TR19190319]
  18. 1913: On July 25th, Erle W. Thompson and Lester T. Jackson from Illinois purchased 12,737.29 acres of land along the St. Johns River between Hatbill Park and SR528 from the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company for $25,474. This included sections 17, 18, 19, 20, 29, 30, 31, 32 in Township 22 South Range 34 East and sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, east half of 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 21, 22 in Township 23 South Range 34. [TR19140701 & TR19140416]
  19. 1913: On October 5th, the Prudential Land Company in Jacksonville purchased the same 12,737.29 acres of land along the St. Johns River from Erle W. Thompson and Lester T. Jackson for $19,106. [TR19140701 & TR19140416]
  20. 1914: On April 15th, the Florida East Coast Railway Company conveyed all their sections in Tosohatchee to the Flagler System's Model Land Company. [TR19190319]
  21. 1914: Tosohatchee Ranch Company was formed by Sydney Octavius Chase.
  22. 1914: On April 16th, the Tosohatchee Ranch Company purchased 8039.49 acres of land along the St. Johns River between Mud Lake and SR 528 from the Prudential Land Company for $40,197. This included sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, east half of 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, east half of 21, 22  in Township 23 South Range 34 East. [TR19140416]
  23. 1914: On July 1st, the Tosohatchee Ranch Company purchased 4,794.8 acres of land along the St. Johns River between Mud Lake and Hatbill Park from the Prudential Land Company for for $23,974. This included sections 7, 17, 18, 19, 20, 29, 30, 31, 32 in Township 22 South Range 34 East. [TR19140701]
  24. 1914: On August 7th, an issue of the Bradford County Telegraph reported the following. "The Tosohatchie Ranch company composed of Sanford men and organized several months ago made a long step in the right direction when they purchased over twenty thousand acres of good grazing lands and fenced it. Then they added over 4000 head of good cattle and since that time have been busy adding the finest bulls they could purchase and studying the cattle business from every angle. These gentlemen know the needs of the business and the big packers are clamoring for Florida beef.  The Tosohatchie ranch will be among the first in the state to reap the benefits of better culture and better cattle."
  25. 1915: On May 26th, the western half of the northwest quarter of section 19 was conveyed back to W. J. Osteen after being accidentally transferred to the Tosohatchee Ranch company during a multi-acreage land deal that occurred on July 25th, 1913.
  26. 1915: On July 5th, the Orange County Board of Commissioners turned down Tosohatchee Ranch Company's request to have all their lands in Townships 22, 23, 24 South, Range 34 East reassessed at a $1.25 per acre in taxes instead of $2.00.
  27. 1915: On July 6th,  the Orange County Board of Commissioners received a petition from J.W. Savage and J.H. Wheeler, et al., requesting that the Tosohatchee Ranch company keep the gates unlocked on the road from the ford of Taylor Creek to Lake Poinsett Landing. The request of the petitioners complied with by the owners of the ranch.
  28. 1916: According the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, two cattle dipping vats were built in Tosohatchee that year.
  29. 1916: On October 14th, the Tosohatchee Ranch Company purchased all of section 26 in Township 24 South Range 34 East from Erle Thompson and Lester Jackson for for $3,000. This area encompassed parts of Taylor Creek near SR520. [TR19161014]
  30. 1917: On August 13th, W. J. Osteen sold his part of section 19 in Township 22 South Range 34 East to the Tosohatchee Ranch Company.
  31. 1917: The Beehead Ranch House was built for the ranch foreman and his family.
  32. 1919: On March 19th, the Tosohatchee Ranch Company purchased 7,260.11 acres of land along the St. Johns River between Halfway Lake north of SR528 and the Orange/Osceola County Line from the Model Land Company for $23,900. This included sections 23, 24, 26, 27, east half of 28, 34 in Township 23 South Range 34 East and sections 2, 3, 10, 11, 14, 15, 22, 23, 27, 34, 35, 36 in Township 24 South Range 34 East. [TR19190319]
  33. 1920: A survey map of the St. Johns River shows roads going out to Blue Head, Long Bluff & Hunters Point. Interestingly it shows a house about 0.25 miles northeast of the SR528/Long Bluff Road underpass near coordinates N28 27.331 W80 55.871. There was also a free flowing well along Blue Head Road near coordinates N28 30.980 W80 56.544.
  34. 1921: On June 6th, all land belonging to the Tosohatchee Ranch Company was conveyed to Sydney O. Chase.
  35. 1924: On December 31st, the Cheney-Dixie Highway and the Orlando-Indian River City Highway (present day SR 50) were officially opened. A large ceremony with over 4,000 people was held at the bridge over the St. Johns River. At that time the road would have been crossing land owned by Tosohatchee Ranch Company. 
  36. 1925: On July 23rd, the Tosohatchee Game Preserve was formed. A hunt club from Orlando purchased the land from Sydney O. Chase for a little over $5 an acre.  At that time Tosohatchee consisted of 23,000 acres which included sections 7, 17, 18, 19, 20, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 in Township 22 South Range 34 East, sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, east half of 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, east half of 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, east half of 28, 34 in Township 23 South Range 34 East, and sections 2, 3, 10, 11, 14, 15, 22, 23, 26, 27, 34, 35, 36 in Township 24 South Range 34 East. [TR19140416, TR19140701, TR19161014 & TR19190319]
  37. 1928: On May 14th, the timber rights for Holland and Rupp's land were sold to the Brooks Scanlon Corp based out of Delaware. [TR19350415]
  38. 1928: On September 24th, the Tosohatchee Game Preserve purchased the northern and southern halves of Section 16 in Township 23 South Range 34 East from C.F. Dodson and Harry Ely for $7,000. These two parcels were located at the end of Flowing Well Trail near Jims Creek. [TR19280924]
  39. 1932: On August 1st, the county repossessed Holland and Rupp's land for unpaid taxes. [TR19280924]
  40. 1935: On April 15th, all the parcels previously owned by Holland and Rupp were sold to the Tosohatchee Game Preserve. [TR19280924]
  41. 1937: On October 9th, the Peavy-Wilson Lumber Company purchased 97,110 acres of land in Orange and Osceola County from the Michigan Trust Company. Part of this land purchase included sections 1, 2, 11, 12 in Township 22 South Range 34 East.[TR19480715]
  42. 1938: According to the Polk's Orlando City Directory, James L Giles  was working for the Tootoosahatchie Game Reserve League. George A Mitchell was the game warden for Tootoosahatchie. 
  43. 1941: On September 13th, a case involving Lam Savage and the Tosohatchee Game Preserve was filed in the Orange County Circuit Court. Lam was accused of erecting fences and living on an island that didn't belong to him. The property involved was located near SR 50 and the St. Johns River. The case was resolved when Lam agreed to remove his fences and all signs of his dwelling from the island, and in return the Tosohatchee Game Preserve would let him stay at the nearby fish camp.
  44. 1945: On September 21st, the Tosohatchee Game Preserve sold section 7 in Township 22 South Range 34 East to the Seminole Cattle Company. This parcel was located just south of Hatbill Park.
  45. 1946: On April 18th, the Tosohatchee Game Preserve purchased sections 4, 5 in Township 24 South Range 34 East from Peavy-Wilson Lumber Company for $12,800. This parcel were located along the gas line. [TR19460418]
  46. 1946: On May 18th, the Tosohatchee Game Preserve sold all their land north of SR 50 to George W. Phillips and A. H. Reppard. This included sections 17, 20, 29, 18, 19, 30 in Township 22 South Range 34 East. [TR19140701]
  47. 1946: On July 15th, the Tosohatchee Game Preserve purchased the area around Tosohatchee Creek from Peavy-Wilson Lumber Company for $38,496. This included sections 1, 2, 11, 12 in Township 23 South Range 33 East. [TR19460715]
  48. 1947: On January 18th, an article in the Orlando Morning Sentinel identified George McColloch as the manager of the Tosohatchee Game Preserve. Mr. McColloch was the one that created the hand-drawn map of Tosohatchee detailing the creaks, trails, roads and camp sites.
  49. 1947: On March 2nd, according to an article in the Orlando Morning Sentinel, an annual barbecue was held at the Tosohatchee Game Preserve at the ranch house. 
  50. 1947: On March 21st, Peavy-Wilson Lumber Company leased 53.5 miles of the Florida East Coast Railway - Kissimmee Valley Extension  between Maytown and Holopaw until June 30th, 1951. By that time the Tosohatchee railroad spur appears to have been abandoned. 
  51. 1948: On October 15th, the State purchased 60.6 acres of land in Tosohatchee for the construction of SR 520.
  52. 1951: An aerial map of Tosohatchee shows 3 canals were recently dug: Mud Lake, Hunter Point and Hodges Landing. It also shows improvements being made to Long Bluff Road.
  53. 1953: A USGS 3rd order vertical data survey was conducted at Tosohatchee. Benchmarks were stamped "# RC 1953". RC stood for R. E. Carey, the person that performed the survey.
  54. 1954: The state began digging borrow pits for the construction of SR520. By 1956 the highway was opened for vehicles.
  55. 1954: On May 10th, the Tosohatchee Game Preserve sold a small parcel of their land to the county so they could build a segregated public park (half for the "negro race" and the other half for the "white people only").  The park was located on the south side of  SR50 between the east and west channels of the St. Johns River. A county maintained boat ramp is now at this site.
  56. 1955: On February 1st, the SR520 bridge over the St. Johns River, also known as the Bithlo Bridge, was completed at cost of about $60,000.
  57. 1955: On May 30th, Thomas Cox sold his property to the Tosohatchee Game Preserve. It was located along Taylor Creek Road at the present day entrance to Tosohatchee. [TR19550530]
  58. 1957: Power line easement for Florida Power and Light was created in the south section of Tosohatchee.
  59. 1959: Power line easement for Orlando Utility Commission was created.
  60. 1966: The wooden bridge over the St. Johns River for SR 50 was maliciously set afire. The bridge was closed for months causing travelers to use SR 520 instead.
  61. 1967: Gas pipeline easement for Florida Gas was created.
  62. 1969: The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) was created, combining the functions of the State Board of Conservation; the Canal Authority; the Commission on Marine Sciences and Technology; the Florida Keys Aqueduct Commission; the Board of Parks and Historic Memorials; the Outdoor Recreational Development Council; the Board of Drainage Commissioners; and the Suwannee River Development Authority.
  63. 1971: On April 2nd, an easement to allow Long Bluff Road to cross SR 528 was created. Also an easement was created for the Main Back Canal to cross SR 528.
  64. 1971: On December 14th, the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund approved an easement to allow SR 528 to cross Tosohatchee. 
  65. 1972: Construction began on SR 528 to extend the expressway across Tosohatchee and over the St. Johns River. It was finished in 1974.
  66. 1975: The Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund became a part of the Department of Natural Resources.
  67. 1977: On May 20th, the William Beardall Tosohatchee State Reserve was formed. Under the Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) program the state purchased the land from the Tosohatchee Hunt Club for 16 million dollars.1
  68. 1979: Hiking trails were established in Tosohatchee by Doug Sphar and other members of the Florida Trail Assoc.
  69. 1983: On December 9th, a 20 year multi-agency lease was signed allowing the Florida Department of Natural Resources' Division of Recreation and Parks, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services' Division of Forestry, Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, Florida Department of State's Division of Archives, History and Records Management, and the St. Johns River Water Management District to co-manage Tosohatchee. The Division of Recreation and Parks department was the primary agency.
  70. 1993: The Department of Environmental Protection was created, combining the Department of Environmental Regulation with the Department of Natural Resources.
  71. 1993: The Beehead Ranch House was moved to Fort Christmas Historical Park.
  72. 1995: Backfilled 25.4 miles of canals and swales including Main Back, Hunter Point, Hodges Landing, Slough, Duck Field Pond, Taylor Creek and Mulberry Mound.
  73. 1995: On July 20th, contractors began removing the Main Back canal and levee along the St. Johns River between SR520 and Power Line Road.
  74. 1996: During the month of August, a 3.1 mile section of the Mud Lake Canal between Duck Field Pond and Hunter Point Canal was filled in by the Florida Department of Transportation.
  75. 1998: The Orlando Utility Commission replaced the two bridges over Jim Creek along Power Line Road. The park originally wanted to replace them with two concrete culverts and an overflow weir,  but in the end they decided to let OUC use pressure treated timbers.
  76. 1999: Fill dirt from Lake Charlie was used to raise the grade of Long Bluff Road. 
  77. 2006: On August 1st, the Florida Cabinet approved the transfer of lead management authority of Tosohatchee to the Fish and Wildlife Management Commission.
  78. 2007: On August 7th, the Fish and Wildlife Management Commission was granted a 50 year lease on Tosohatchee with the stipulation that the land would be managed in accordance with the management plan approved on June 6th, 2003 until it expires 2013. Which means the current hunting limits (no small game season, 46 hunting days) will remain in effect, a permanent staff must be available on a day-to-day basis, and the commission must continue implementing public recreation and resources according to the management plan.

Maps

Tosohatchee Parcels

GPS Data

File Formats Downloads
Google Earth parcels.kmz

Foot Notes

  1. James L. Giles was mayor of Orlando from 1916 to 1919, 1924 to 1925, 1928 to 1931. He was the 1st president of the Tosohatchee Hunt Club, but another source says Judge John M. Cheney was the 1st. William Beardall was mayor of Orlando from 1940 to 1952. He was the last president of the Tosohatchee Hunt Club. 

 

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Last updated on 30-Aug-2009 at 8:34 A.M.