Putnam County, Florida
"150 Years of History"
It was on January 13, 1849, just four years following Florida's 1845 statehood, that Putnam County became the State's twenty-eighth county. With the St. Johns River flowing northward through it, Putnam County was formed from neighboring Alachua, Orange (Mosquito), Marion, Duval, and St. Johns Counties. It was to be named "Hilaka County", perhaps after Welaka, which was to be the county site, but instead became "Putnam County" in honor of Major Benjamin Alexander Putnam, a local statesman and Seminole War officer. Pilatka, or present day Palatka became the county seat.
The rest, one might say, is history - 150 years of fascinating history that has included much to be remembered. Central in Putnam County's history has always been the water - the glorious river, and abundant lakes and springs. First, there were the Timucuan Indians, who found sustenance from the land and left in their memory mounds of shell. There were settlers - French, Spanish, and English anxious to make Putnam County their home. There was war - the Seminole Wars, and the War Between the States, which brought with them the kind of tragedy that is common in all war. There was Reconstruction, with booming land development and a flourishing tourist industry. There were the grand hotels, the steamboats, the massive cypress trees, and orange groves. There were the freezes and the fires; and the railroad that left the county with growth traveling southward. There were towns and small communities, and homes, schools, churches, and businesses. But all along it has been the people - the people who have made this county their home, that have woven the rich fabric of Putnam County's history.
At first, there was only the spoken word to keep track of the history. The oral history was passed among the native Indian tribes, Putnam County's first inhabitants. With the European settlers came the written word, recorded in letters and journals and fine leather-backed books. There were ledgers and official records, scribed with pen and ink in beautiful longhand to document the times. One had to picture or envision the written word, as authors and poets and common people sought to describe the wildly beautiful flora and fauna that made up Putnam County, Florida.
There were talented artists who sketched, and etched, and painted life in early Florida, but it was not until the advent of photography, which flourished following the Civil War that a visual record of the times became widely available. It was the photographer, aided by the realistic eye of the camera that began to capture the southern land and its people.
There was the daguerreotype, a mirrored image on a silvered-copper plate; followed by photographs on glass and tin and paper; but it was the stereoview that actually brought Florida to Victorian homes. The stereoscope enabled the viewer to see two similar photographs through twin lenses, which when viewed, merged together into a single three-dimensional view. And as a result, Florida with its pineapples and palmettos, and oranges and alligators came to life right there in the comfort of one's parlor!
And so, it is with the stereoview, circa 1870 to 1910, that I share with you a "view" of Putnam County's interesting history. Happy 150th Birthday, Putnam County, Florida. After all these years it is still a great place to live and visit!