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Source
State Library of Florida, WPA - Historical Records Survey, County Histories
Description
Brief history of Levy County, Florida collected by the Works Progress Administration's Historical Records Survey.
Date
March 31, 1938
Format
Coverage
Personal Subjects
Corporate Subjects
Subjects
Geographic Term
Note to Researchers:
Though the WPA field workers included extensive citations for the factual information contained in these county histories, it should be noted that these historical narratives were produced in the 1930s by federal government employees, and might reflect the inherent social biases of the era.
LEVY COUNTY.
Levy County was created from a portion of Alachua County, March 10, 1845, the same year the State was admitted to the Union, with an area of 1129 square miles or about 741,000 acres. The territory included in the county remained substantially the same, except the eastern part including Williston, Montbrook and Morriston, formerly a portion of Marion County, which was added by a Legislative enactment,
Levy County was named for David Levy, first United States Senator. Levy's wife did not like his name, so by a Legislative enactment it was changed to David Yulee. The father of David Levy was a Prince in the [Moroccan] Government, a Mohamaden, and his mother was a Jewess.
There are no county records to be found earlier than 1850. On April 5, 1850 the then acting Board of County Commissioners met at the home of P. H. Davis, for the purpose of examining the State tax books, this being their first meeting. They found records correct with the exception of four cents in favor of the State. Members present at this meeting was John R. Hatcher, president of the Board; other members Joseph Williams, James C. Barco and Isaac Highsmith. Apparently the Board did not have a regular meeting place, as the second meeting was held at the home of J. F. Thompson.
The first County site of Levy County was known as Sodom. March 8, 1852, it was at this location that the Board of County Commissioners made plans for a building 20 feet wide and 30 feet long to be erected, to be used as the County Court House; supposedly to have been constructed of logs cut from timbers of the county. The said building to be well sealed outside. It was ordered that a room be [partitioned] off at one end or corner to be used as juror room. Location: Range 15, Township 12, Section 11, Northwest quarter. At this time a house owned by Elijah Hunter was being used, rent $3.00 per month.
Meeting held March 14, 1853, the Court House still under construction, it was voted on and agreed to use Moses Cason's house as the County Court House at rent of $175.00 a year. April 8, 1854, the Court House being completed and occupied the Board ordered the county site be called Mount Pleasant and not Sodom. Meeting January 21, .[sic]1856, the Board ordered that the county site be known and established in the future by name of Levyville, remaining the same until 1869.
April 9, 1860, the Board called a special meeting in reference to constructing a more substantial building for a County Court House, to be located at same location in Levyville. It was not until April, 1861, a year after plans were made for a new building that bids were let, the
MAR 31 1938
Title
Levy County
Subject
Cities and towns--History
Florida--Levy County
Works Progress Administration, Historical Records Survey
Description
Brief history of Levy County, Florida collected by the Works Progress Administration's Historical Records Survey.
Creator
Works Progress Administration, Historical Records Survey
Source
State Library of Florida, WPA - Historical Records Survey, County Histories
Date
1938-03-31
Format
local histories
Language
eng-US
Type
Text
Identifier
wpa_county_history_levy_02
Coverage
Depression Era Florida (1926-1939)
Thumbnail
/fpc/memory/omeka_images/thumbnails/wpa_county_histories.jpg
Geographic Term
Levy County (Fla.)
Cedar Key (Fla.)
Bronson (Fla.)
Chiefland (Fla.)
ImageID
wpa_county_history_levy_02_01
wpa_county_history_levy_02_02
wpa_county_history_levy_02_03
wpa_county_history_levy_02_04
wpa_county_history_levy_02_05
Subject - Corporate
Seaboard Air Line Railway
The Cedar Key Telegraph (newspaper)
E Faber Manufacturing Company
Standard Manufacturing Company
Subject - Person
Yulee, David Levy, 1810-1886
Highsmith, S. V.
Transcript
LEVY COUNTY.
Levy County was created from a portion of Alachua County, March 10, 1845, the same year the State was admitted to the Union, with an area of 1129 square miles or about 741,000 acres. The territory included in the county remained substantially the same, except the eastern part including Williston, Montbrook and Morriston, formerly a portion of Marion County, which was added by a Legislative enactment,
Levy County was named for David Levy, first United States Senator. Levy's wife did not like his name, so by a Legislative enactment it was changed to David Yulee. The father of David Levy was a Prince in the [Moroccan] Government, a Mohamaden, and his mother was a Jewess.
There are no county records to be found earlier than 1850. On April 5, 1850 the then acting Board of County Commissioners met at the home of P. H. Davis, for the purpose of examining the State tax books, this being their first meeting. They found records correct with the exception of four cents in favor of the State. Members present at this meeting was John R. Hatcher, president of the Board; other members Joseph Williams, James C. Barco and Isaac Highsmith. Apparently the Board did not have a regular meeting place, as the second meeting was held at the home of J. F. Thompson.
The first County site of Levy County was known as Sodom. March 8, 1852, it was at this location that the Board of County Commissioners made plans for a building 20 feet wide and 30 feet long to be erected, to be used as the County Court House; supposedly to have been constructed of logs cut from timbers of the county. The said building to be well sealed outside. It was ordered that a room be [partitioned] off at one end or corner to be used as juror room. Location: Range 15, Township 12, Section 11, Northwest quarter. At this time a house owned by Elijah Hunter was being used, rent $3.00 per month.
Meeting held March 14, 1853, the Court House still under construction, it was voted on and agreed to use Moses Cason's house as the County Court House at rent of $175.00 a year. April 8, 1854, the Court House being completed and occupied the Board ordered the county site be called Mount Pleasant and not Sodom. Meeting January 21, .[sic]1856, the Board ordered that the county site be known and established in the future by name of Levyville, remaining the same until 1869.
April 9, 1860, the Board called a special meeting in reference to constructing a more substantial building for a County Court House, to be located at same location in Levyville. It was not until April, 1861, a year after plans were made for a new building that bids were let, the
MAR 31 1938
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contract going to the lowest bidder. S. V. Highsmith of Levyville, $1861.00. The old building was ordered sold to the highest bidder by the Board but at this time the war between the states broke out and evidently prohibited this as it remained the County Court House until it was destroyed on Feb. 9, 1865, from an unknown source. It was thought by citizens that it was set fire by members of the Federal Army as they were scattered throughout the section at this state.
Contract with plans let to S. V. Highsmith in May, 1861, for Court House were as follows: 36 feet square, two story frame building. First floor, 2 rooms, 11 ft. x 12 ft. a 12 foot passage. Second floor, 2 rooms, 12 ft. x 36 ft., 5 windows and one door to each room in the building, shingle roof. The building to be constructed of the very best material to be had. This building was not completed until 1867, by a contractor, by the name of L. B. Lewis.
Meeting held Feb. 20, 1869, it was ordered that an election be held for the purpose of selecting another county site, it being put to the vote of the people by an act of the Legislature. This being carried out and Bronson was the winner and made the county site. Immediately following the decision, plans were drawn and contract was let for the construction of a County Court House, contract going to lowest bidder; W. A. Jones, $2200.00. Plans, a two story frame building (specifications not given); first floor being used for offices, second floor for court room. Building to be completed by January 1, 1870. This building served the purpose until 1906 when the citizens decided it too small and storage space inadequate for the proper housing of the county records, moved it to another location near the square and erected a two story brick building, which was torn away in 1937 for the construction of the present building which is one of the most attractive in the State.
The old Court House located at Levyville was sold to the Masonic order and deed to same was presented November 1, 1869.
The following are family names of some of the early settlers of Levy County: Willis, Epperson, Mixson, Newsome, Price, DePass, Abercrombie, Hodges, Yearty, Hudson, Hatcher, Godwin, Davis, Highsmith, Carson, Cannon, Collier and Hardee.
The early mode of transportation was no doubt the ox cart, then the horses and cart for it was not until after 1870 that wagons and buggies were known only to a very few citizens of the county. In 1858, David Yulee for whom Levy County is named secure right-away and began constructing a railroad from Fernandina to Cedar Key, this road was known as the "Florida Railroad", the second to be built in the state. At the time this road was being constructed a stage coach route was opened up from
MAR 31 1938
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from Bronson to Cedar Key, by way of Levyville, and Long Pond. The "Florida Railroad" bore many names after being constructed, the last being "Seaboard Air Line Railway". Something like five or six years ago this road was discontinued and all tracks from Archer, Florida, to Cedar Key being taken up.
Early records show that a newspaper was published in Cedar Key in 1860, as it was used in publishing legal notices. "The Cedar Key Telegraph" also shows that there was one published at Newnansville in Alachua County known as "The Florida Dispatch." Evidently the Cedar Key Telegraph was the earliest publication in the county.
Public schools were established in Levy County in the year 1860. Cedar Key, Levyville, Wacasassa, Copper Sink, Wekiva, Bronson and No. 4.
The Board of Public Instruction was created June 9, 1869, inaugurating the public school system which has from time to time been changed, as very few of the pioneer rules are carried out today. At this time, a term of school was not more than three months, today eight to nine months constitutes a school term.
The principal resources are naval store products and lumber, very little if any phosphate mined, although Levy County supplied a great, [sic] portion of supply of phosphate shipped from Florida for a number of years. In the southern part of the county is located a Dollomite mine, this being used as a fertilizer filler, and no doubt in the future will be mined and shipped in great quantities.
Farming, trucking and live stock raising are the principal industries of the county.
Bronson, the present county site, a town of a population of near 700 people is located in the central part of the county. Bronson was originally known as "Chunky Pond". When the Florida Railroad was being constructed "Chunky Pond", now Bronson was the terminus for several years.
Chiefland, a small town with a population of something like one thousand people, is located some 14 miles west of Bronson, a very substantial town, being backed by general farming, live stock raising, trucking, naval store products and lumber manufacturing.
Cedar Key, located near the Gulf of Mexico is one of the oldest towns in the State, having a population of approximately 1000 people, at one time was considered one of the leading summer resorts in the State, but like many others of our small towns has had a struggle to go ahead. Back in the 80's it was termed a small seaport town where transfer of mail, passengers and freight from steamers that touched the docks were made to
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and from the Florida Railroad, going to other sections of the state and country. For several years the E. Faber Manufacturing Company, [manufacturers] of the famous Faber pencil, utilized the cedar timber from all sections of the country, being shipped out from Cedar Key.
Located at Cedar Key is the Standard Manufacturing Company, an industrial plant manufacturing broom, brushes and other products from the palmetto fiber. These products can be found in many of the leading department stores in other states. Cedar Key is also known as a great fishing center, thousands of pounds of fish being shipped annually.
Willliston, Morriston, and Montbrook are towns situated in the eastern section of the county. Williston is a town of approximately 1300 people, located in the best trucking section of the county, and is progressing by leaps and bounds, the town is backed by farming, trucking, live stock raising, also a great peanut growing section. The other named towns apparently have gone backward instead of forward.
Yankeetown is a small tourist town located on the Withlachoochee River, and is known for its beauty.
The county is served with something like 160 miles of automobile highway and 81.61 miles of railway.
Levy County can boast of five accredited High Schools and with these five modern-built and equipped High School buildings, speak well for the public school system and its management.
FIRST SESSION OF CIRCUIT COURT HELD IN LEVY COUNTY.
The first session of Circuit Court held in Levy County, October 11, 1852, at the home of Mrs. Mary V. Andrews, J. B. Lancaster Judge of said court.
The first case to come before the court was that of John A. Summerlin vs Sylvester Bryant & Ike P. Hardee.
Court adjourned on October 13, 1852.
The first session of Circuit Court to be held in the County Court House, was held October 10, 1853, O. B. Hart, State Solicitor.
Chicago Manual of Style
Works Progress Administration, Historical Records Survey. Levy County. March 31, 1938. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. <https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/321131>, accessed 20 May 2024.
MLA
Works Progress Administration, Historical Records Survey. Levy County. March 31, 1938. State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory. Accessed 20 May. 2024.<https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/321131>
AP Style Photo Citation
(State Archives of Florida/Works Progress Administration)