In Florida, the Native Americans carried oranges with them, left from the Spanish, and dropped
their seeds in heavily forested areas. Early settlers of Florida planted orange groves in
particularly near newly developed settlements. Citrus today is one of the major fruit crops of
the western hemisphere.
Many orange grove plantings were set among the waterways of Florida where the water
transportation to other states was easily accessible. In 1886, the Florida crop for the first time reached over 1 million boxes distributed. Expansion was steady once railroads were coming to the state. Distribution reached over 5 million boxes over the next several years. When the Great Freeze of 1894/95 impacted Florida production only reached 150,000. Recovery from most of the groves started immediately until they were destroyed again in the 1899 freeze causing many farmers to relocate.
Some of the Pioneer families that started citrus groves in Osceola County are Overstreet, Bass,
Barber, Babb, Thomas Hughey, Tyson, Lee, Bronson, Hillard, and Padgett. Most of these families
are still growing citrus in Osceola County. Each area had its own small packing house with a size sorter.
On display at our Pioneer Village there is an original citrus sorter to be seen. There was one variety of citrus developed in Osceola County by Clay Partin named “Partin Delicious”. The fruit had a bright color and juice content, plus a high resistance to freeze damage. Unfortunately, over the years there are not as many groves as before. They have been lost primarily due to the fast growth that Osceola County has seen.
Sources:
Cody, Robert S. and Aldus M. Osceola County The First 100 Years. Raymond G. Cody, 1987