"Millions come to Florida and
never see it"
"The best treasures are yet
to be found."
-Mel Fisher, noted contemporary treasure hunter
Take the by-ways, drop into quiet little towns
where neon does not yet hide the stars, visit the Suwannee and the upper
St. Johns, cruise up the St. Lucie River. Be able to say, We
saw the real Florida." Ernest Lyons, newspaper columnist,
author of "My Florida".
Welcome to one of the most beautiful areas
of Florida -the Treasure Coast. As Governor Lawton Chiles said,
"Our warm sun, pristine beaches and abundant natural beauty are
yours to enjoy."
Situated on the east coast of Florida, west
of Lake Okeechobee (the Seminole Indians called it "big
waters"), south of Cape Canaveral and north of Palm Beach - this
three county area is home to much of what we call the " Real
Florida.
"There it was...just paved with golden
doubloons. I think we found 1,300 of them, just dazzlingly, blindingly
beautiful. They don't rust or corrode. They all just shine like mad in
the sunlight," Mel Fisher told the Vero Beach Press Journal after
that first find in 1964.
As far back as the late 1500s, Spanish treasure
ships used the swift Gulf Stream, some twenty-six miles out to sea, as a
highway to sail from Havana to Spain. Often they came close to the
coastal land for food and supplies. Storms sunk an untold number.
Although the Treasure Coast derived its name
from the lore of these sunken ships, the real treasure of the area can
be summed up in one word: beauty. The sandy beaches, the lavish homes,
the velvet green country side, the parks, the waterways, rivers and
canals all are naturally beautiful.
Other treasures are the excellent fishing, the
magnificent weather and the casual lifestyle - including golf, boating,
great dining and exciting entertainment.
Location
The Treasure Coast stretches from the Jupiter
Inlet on the south to the Sebastian Inlet on the north. The major
communities are: Hobe Sound, Jupiter Island and John's Island where
there are probably as many Fortune500 CEOs as there are in Palm Beach;
Jensen Beach, self dubbed the "Turtle Capital of the World";
Stuart, where sail fishing is king and sailing the inlets is a popular
pastime; the exclusive community of Sewell's Point; Port. St. Lucie,
home of the Mets' spring training camp and the first U.S. Club Med;
Hutchinson Island and its fantastic ocean beaches; Fort Pierce, where
the hometown flavor is still friendly even despite its growth; Vero
Beach, home of the Dodgers; and Sebastian, where claming is excellent
along the river.
The facts are, no two places in the world are
exactly the same, but life on Florida's Treasure Coast is really
different for the new comer. It means a change of climate, a change of
scenery and a change of lifestyle.
Climate
One of the greatest attractions of South
Florida is the constant sunshine .Since it is the only subtropical zone
in the United States having an air conditioner in your car is a must,
forget about heaters, heavy wool sweaters, mittens or fur coats. They'll
sit in your closet unused at least eleven months out of twelve.
One shouldn't think it never rains in Florida.
It rains in heavy torrents almost every afternoon during the summer. The
lightning flashes and thunder roars. Then in a matter of minutes, the
rain dries up and smiles of sunshine are brought back to the earth
again.
The world is flat here and your eye for natural
beauty must adapt to a different perspective to see the loveliness of
Florida's woods and wilderness. The cabbage palm, sable palm and
palmetto flourish in wooded lots. Oleander brings sweet scents to the
air. The true green bahia grass, tough under the feet, compensates for
the heat by bearing thick stalks that retain water.
Early History
It isn't true that almost everyone from Florida
is from somewhere else. There are a few native Floridians around, but
even their heritage mostly only goes back a hundred years or so. After
all, the settlement of Florida historically has been recent. Many of the
natives' great grandparents came to farm the state from other southern
states like Georgia and Alabama. The farther south a pioneer settled in
inland Florida, the more they encountered flat land that would be
saturated with water after torrential rains. It wasn't until the
government began digging canals that the water was drained off enough to
build roads and homes. Also there wasnąt easy access to the beaches as
there is now. The barrier islands on the Atlantic Ocean could only be
reached by boats crossing the Indian River from the mainland.
Describing the early days of Jensen Beach, a
Fort Pierce journalist of the era, Charles S. Miley, had this to
say, "Paved roads were unknown in the early days of the Jensen
area. Indian River Drive and side roads consisted of deep sand ruts
which made traveling by horse and wagon or buggy quite a chore. Most
settlers had river docks and used sailboats and motorboats. First road
paving in the early 1900s was mostly shell, brought on by the arrival of
automobiles and trucks. Driving an automobile in the deep sand ruts
along Indian River Drive was some job, but quite a few car owners did
just that."
So wild and woolly, was the living in this
subtropical paradise where conditions were harsh, only a few places
became highly populated.
The first real land boom of Florida was in 1929
just before the depression. "The boom started in the Miami-Fort
Lauderdale area and steadily move up the coast and across all Southern
Florida, reaching its climax in the summer of 1925," wrote Miley in
his journal called Miley's Memos. "Millions of war-time profits
were invested in Florida land and millions spent in buildings,
development of new towns and what have you."
According to Miley, people got great deals
10 percent down and the balance in easy payments.
"Streets were hacked out of the woods,
sidewalks were lain, buildings were erected and lots sold like
hotcakes."
The Future
The great depression ended the growth period.
The boom was over. The next one hit in the 1950s. Since then the growth
rate has been overwhelming. During the last fifteen years, the once vast
farmlands or marshland west of A1A have been turned into lavish country
clubs and huge luxury home developments. Expect to see huge parcels of
land transformed into commercial land residential sites, seemingly
overnight, when you live in Florida.
The Treasure Coast has been leading the way in
development and growth. With its large amount of undeveloped land and
comfortable country-like atmosphere, it is a desirable place to live.
People from Miami and Fort Lauderdale keep moving north to get away from
the congestion. With a commitment to careful planning, the Treasure
Coast will retain its spacious and lush landscape and its warm and
friendly environment.
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