Current Search: Morris Park (x)
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Title
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Map of Morris Parak.
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Abstract/Description
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Morris Park was a community created by Ruskin Founder, George Miller in 1913 By 1911, the new town of Ruskin was a thriving, cooperative community, and Miller sought to create a ‘twin town’ to the east. Through a complex series of land deals involving Wimauma Founder Captain C. H. Davis, Miller acquired development rights to lands northeast of Wimauma. It was here, midway between Wimauma and Balm, along the Seaboard Air Lines rail tracks, that Miller laid out his new town: Morris Park, named...
Show moreMorris Park was a community created by Ruskin Founder, George Miller in 1913 By 1911, the new town of Ruskin was a thriving, cooperative community, and Miller sought to create a ‘twin town’ to the east. Through a complex series of land deals involving Wimauma Founder Captain C. H. Davis, Miller acquired development rights to lands northeast of Wimauma. It was here, midway between Wimauma and Balm, along the Seaboard Air Lines rail tracks, that Miller laid out his new town: Morris Park, named in honor of William Morris of England. Morris was the philosophical successor to England’s John Ruskin, whose ideas of social organization and education initially inspired Miller to found Ruskin in 1908. Nothing remains of Morris Park today, although a neighborhood in Wimauma is named in memory of the town (Morris Park Farms.) Welfare Hall. A thriving poultry industry arose. By May 1913, the new railroad station opened. Growth continued into 1914 with announced plans for a canning factory and a cane mill. The telephone connection with Ruskin became a reality. Beginning in 1915, however, Miller seemingly lost interest in Morris Park. In a major blow to the town’s survival, the sawmill closed, and its employees and their families moved away. By 1916, Miller’s and Ruskin’s attention was diverted by World War I, which took many of Ruskin’s young men, resulting in the eventual closing of Ruskin College. (This excerpt, below) is by historian Charles Nelson (affiliated with HCC Ruskin's South Shore History Project). The full article was published in the Osprey Observer on Nov 7, 2019) Early growth in Morris Park seemed promising. By February 1913, the town boasted a boarding house and a store. A Sunday school was organized in Few land sales are reported in 1918/19 and plans for connecting rail lines were abandoned. The community never recovered, and by 1930, much of the town’s lands were sold in chancery court.
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Identifier
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HCC0101MP001
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Image (JPEG)