Instructions:
1....Print this file.
2....At its end, click on "rules" to see a copy of the trail rules, print it, and then click where indicated at the end of the 3-page rules and patch order form to get back to the list of Florida trails.
3....If you want a hand-drawn map showing the locations of all of the sites, send a self-addressed stamped envelope to Steve Rajtar, 1614 Bimini Dr., Orlando, FL 32806.
4....Hike the trail and order whatever patches you like (optional).
WARNING - This trail may pass through one or more neighborhoods which, although full of history, may now be unsafe for individuals on foot, or which may make you feel unsafe there. Hikers have been approached by individuals who have asked for handouts or who have inquired (not always in a friendly manner) why the hikers are in their neighborhood. Drugs and other inappropriate items have been found by hikers in some neighborhoods. It is suggested that you drive the hike routes first to see if you will feel comfortable walking them and, if you don't think it's a good place for you walk, you might want to consider (1) traveling with a large group, (2) doing the route on bicycles, or (3) choosing another hike route. The degree of comfort will vary with the individual and with the time and season of the hike, so you need to make the determination using your best judgment. If you hike the trail, you accept all risks involved.
This congregation organized on August 1, 1880, and after holding early services in the Rich cabin built a small sanctuary on this land, donated by J.W. Howry. It cost $2,500 and was dedicated on February 23, 1883. Rev. J.T. Lewton served as its first pastor, succeeded in 1886 by Rev. M.S. Leete. A parsonage was located behind it in the 100 block of Howry Ave.
A new sanctuary was dedicated on March 7, 1920, incorporating the old church into the structure.
This church was founded in 1878, with Rev. S.C. Baker as its first pastor. The present sanctuary was built in 1914. An annex was completed in 1954, and the entire property was renovated in 1970-74.
During the 1890s, the College Arms golf course clubhouse was located here. In 1918, a new one was built and the course was enlarged to 18 holes. Now, the site is The Cloisters retirement community.
This home built in 1909 was the home of Grant Bly. It has been restored as a facility to rent for weddings and social functions.
The Wilbur family built a house here in about 1914 and named it The Woodlands. It was later owned by W. Max Acree and his wife, Elizabeth "Ibby" Hargreaves Acree. It was torn down in June of 1972.
This house was built in about 1922 and was the residence of Curtis and Maud Lindstrom. Curtis' father, Nels, moved in with them after his wife, Eliza Jane, died in 1922.
Seward W. Baker's house is the only local example of the Richardson-Romanesque architectural style. Baker donated it to the library, which was located here from May of 1932 until April of 1964. The garage in the back was used by Edith A. Selter and her book review group, the Literary Leaves, and was called the "House of a Thousand Tales". The building was then converted into the DeLand Children's Musem on May 16, 1964, and later became the DeLand Museum of Art. Subsequently, it was turned into a dentist's office.
In 1885, the Leete family built a large hotel on this site, then sold it to the Parces, who ran it as the Parceland Hotel. The hotel and ten acres were sold in 1896 to Parce's brother-in-law, John B. Stetson, who hired an architect named Pearson to enlarge and remodel it. He renamed it the College Arms.
At each end, large square towers were added, giving guests a place to catch a pleasant breeze, sunshine, or a good view of the building. It was torn down in the 1940s. Later, the College Arms Towers residential highrise was built on the site.
Amelia Ave. is named for Amelia Leete.
The Orange Ridge, DeLand and Atlantic Railroad incorporated in 1880. Eber W. Bond obtained control of it in 1881, and laid the narrow gauge tracks from DeLand to DeLand Landing. The line's first run occurred on July 28, 1884.
D.B. Parce of New York arrived in DeLand by riverboat at DeLand Landing during the winter of 1885-86. While he was walking across the wharf and wooden platform to the train to take him to town, he stepped into a hole in the planking. He injured his ankle, sued Bond, and won the suit. As a result, he became the owner of the railroad.
In 1886, the Jacksonville, Tampa and Key West Railroad reached Beresford. It absorbed the previous line and built a depot here.
In 1895, Henry Clay Baker moved with his family to DeLand, and he became employed in overseeing some of Stetson's groves for $1 per day. When some of the trees surviving the 1895 freeze began to bear fruit, his pay was doubled. In 1896, they bought a home here for $50 down and $10 per month.
The two-story residence and dental office of Dr. William H. Messimer was located here until 1929, when it was torn down.
The first frame house was built here during the 1880s by Thomas E.C. Brinly and his wife, Catherine Goodnight Brinly. It survived the 1886 fire and in 1929 was raised to become the second story of the Minnesota Hotel.
In the early 1900s, this was the site of the three-story wood frame Melrose Hotel.
In about 1916, the DeLand Hospital opened here, the first in town. It was run by a doctor and registered nurse, Amy Mann. It was known by the local residents as The Willows.
A company headed by Walter Geissinger built the Dreka Theater here in 1920-21. In about 1923, it was leased to the Sparks organization, a statewide theater chain.
In 1903, J.A. "Gus" Allen took over the furniture and undertaking business started by his father in 1877. He split off the undertaking portion and moved it to 109 E. New York Ave., then in 1945 moved it here.
George Augustus Dreka and Godfrey Kilkoff established a store in November of 1878, using goods they brought from Philadelphia plus the stock of J.B. Jordan's store which they bought. They moved it into a new two-story building on this corner in 1882. Their store was Volusia County's largest department store for half a century. Dreka added two more stories to the building in 1885, also housing the Carrolton Hotel. The hotel lobby was on the first floor along with the store.
The four-story building was moved and later torn down. In its place on this corner Dreka erected a three-story brick building in 1909, now known as the Whitehair Building. Later, it was the home of the J.C. Penney Co.
In the 1870s and 1880s, Mr. Fisher had a drug store on this corner. Just to the south was the post office, and then the Cole photographic studio.
During the 1920s, the J.G. McCrory Co. 5 and 10 Cent Store was located here.
In 1925, Edward L. Power retired as postmaster and formed a partnership with Earl Westfall Brown. They opened their real estate office here.
In the 1920s, the Bruce and Brown firm sold Hudson and Essex cars here.
The automobile dealership located at 108 S. Woodland Blvd. was called the Haynes and Nahm Garage until 1918, when the Nahms bought out Haynes. In 1925, Russell Holmes Nahm and Joe Frank Nahm moved the business to this location. After R.H. Nahm died in 1933, the name of the company was changed to the J.F. Nahm Corporation. It stayed in business until the 1960s, selling Dodges and Plymouths, with gas pumps on the sidewalk.
A lodging also called McLeod's Hotel was located here beginning in the 1910s. It was later called the Pope Hotel and was torn down in the 1950s. This later became the site of the Volusia County Council office.
This building designed by G.M. Peek was completed in 1926. It included the fire station as well as the city administrative offices until 2007.
In the early 1910s, this corner was the site of the Lexington Hotel.
The Commercial Club was chartered on March 27, 1916. The clubhouse was completed in 1918 for $12,000. On June 29, 1926, the club changed its name to the DeLand Chamber of Commerce, which remained here until the late 1960s. From 1923 until May of 1932, it was also the home of the public library. The building here was torn down and replaced by a parking lot.
There was a miniature golf course located here during the 1930s.
The first hotel here, known as the DeLand Grove House, was built in 1885 with 85 rooms on three stories. It was managed by Mrs. O.P. Terry. Shortly thereafter, it was sold to Arthur Putnam who renamed it the Putnam House. He sold it in 1888 to Gardener D. Gould, who renamed it the Putnam Inn. In 1902, rooms let for $2-3 per day, $10-15 per week. It was sold to B.E. Brown in 1906.
It burned in March of 1921 after an explosion in the basement and was replaced by the DeLand Company that same year by the present structure.
The Landis home on this corner was demolished to make room for the present post office.
Clara Ave. is named for Clara Rich, the first child born in DeLand.
A group of Christian Scientists was organized by Sarah J. Clark of Toledo, Ohio, in 1915. Services were first held in members' homes, then in the Codrington and Conrad Buildings. They broke ground for a church in February of 1929 and dedicated the completed building nine months later.
In 1902, Warren C. Jackson, Sr. and his wife, Catherine McMillian Jackson, moved here from a turpentine camp across the St. Johns River. They soon built a three-story house here, and he retained his involvement in the timber and turpentine business. He later was a director of the Tomoka Land Company and a vice president of the First National Bank of DeLand.
The first settler in the city limits of today's DeLand was Capt. John Rich, born in Stamford, New York, in 1839. He went into business in South Carolina after the Civil War, and then moved in 1874 to Jacksonville. In November of 1875, Rich moved here and built a log cabin with the help of Cyrenius Wright, J.S. Craig and O.P. Terry.
Rich Ave. is named for Capt. Rich.
Palatka Catholic missionary Rev. William J. Kenney began coming to DeLand in 1883, and the following year a small chapel was established. He led the first mass in the chapel on April 19, 1884. Father Michael J. Curley built the rectory in 1906, and in 1910 the church was moved to the present larger tract acquired from John and Clara Rich.
A wooden two-story school was built here in 1898 at a cost of about $12,000. When the new school was built across the street, the one here was cut in half. The southern section was moved west, turned to face Rich Ave., and was used as classrooms. The north section facing Clara Ave. was used as classrooms. The north section facing Clara Ave. was used chiefly for manual training, band, and gymnastics.
A three-story brick school was built in 1917 to replace the wooden one across the street. It burned down in 1979.
This property was owned by O.P. Terry. His house located here was named The Oaks. It was later operated as the Oaks Hotel by the Hayes family.
This area was a black settlement in the early 1900s. It became Perkins Park and was approved by the city commission in 1962 for the construction of a new library. It opened on April 15, 1964. The present library opened at 130 E. Howry Ave. on April 15, 1989. This building then became an annex for city offices.
Emmett C. Feasel and C.H. Horning in 1921 formed a painting and decorating business and opened a shop in a vacant building behind the Athens Theater. They moved to an old building on the south side of W. Rich Ave., and then in 1928 moved here. By that time, the painting contracting business had grown to 45 painters.
In the 1960s, this store was used by the library for its annual book sale. Later, the Feasel Shop was moved to the southeast corner of Woodland Blvd. and Wisconsin Ave.
This was the site of the old county jail built in about 1890, having a Greek Revival architectural style. In about 1910, a new jail was built on W. New York Ave. and the one here became used by the Superintendent of Public Instruction. It was torn down in 1987 to make room for the present facility.
In the early 1900s, this corner was a mud hole. The city tried to beautify it by planting dasheens. The post office was built here during the term of postmaster Edward L. Powe, who served from 1916 until 1924.
This was the site of a livery stable run by Mr. Cannon, a former mayor of Orange City. The fire department's horses were kept here.
William B. Currey came here in 1912 and formed a partnership with Willis McCormick. They opened a flower shop here, which was later solely owned by Currey. His wife, Eva, followed him to DeLand in 1913, and they established a fernery on Lake Lindley.
L.M. Patterson recruited 40 to 50 stockholders and formed a company to build the Athens Theater, construction of which began in about 1920. Patterson wanted a real theater with a stage accommodating road shows as well as movies. It was completed in 1921. In about 1923, it was leased to the Sparks organization, a statewide theater chain.
Edith Reeve and Grace Howard opened a store in 1905, called by some the "old curiosity shop" on N. Woodland Blvd. It later moved here.
Isaac Stewart, a circuit judge from Mount Vernon, Kentucky, moved to DeLand and opened his law office here. He formed a firm called Stewart and Bly. After his house burned in 1912, he and his family moved onto the second floor. Downstairs at the time was the law office of Stewart and Stewart, consisting of the father, son and daughter.
In that building, the public library had its reading room from December 16, 1912, until January 1, 1915. They then moved to a room which had recently been vacated by the Naval Store Office.
Miller's Livery Stable was located on this site in the 1880s. Just to the east of here was the previous red brick courthouse, built in 1888-90 on land donated by Henry DeLand. The offer of DeLand, John B. Stetson and Fred S. Goodrich to build the $15,000 courthouse at no cost to the county was a factor in having the county seat moved here from Enterprise in 1888. In about 1910, the courthouse was improved, enlarged and covered with stucco.
The new $500,000 courthouse was built in 1927-29. The massive clock 110 feet above the foyer cost $15,000.
The structures torn down to make room for the courthouse and jail complex included the Campbell & Miller Ford Garage, which sold Model T's.
This building belonging to Judge Isaac A. Stewart in 1927 had electrical installations, skylights, and hot water heating. Judge Stewart shared the first floor with the Land Title Abstract Company and the Postal Telegraph.
The predecessor of this bank was started on December 13, 1882, under the management of J.T. Whitmore. On April 7, 1883, it was bought by F.W. Goodrich who operated it in back of his jewelry store. It was sold in 1889 to John B. Stetson and J.B. Clough, who in 1909 organized it into Volusia County Bank, located here.
This building was erected in about 1910 for the bank, and was leased and remodeled by the public library from 1918 until 1923. At the time, the building was owned by the Volusia County Real Estate Company, a subsidiary of the Volusia County Bank & Trust Co. Upstairs was the law office of Judge Murray Sams.
James B. Jordan moved to DeLand in 1877 and opened the first store here. A post office was opened in it in September of that year with Dr. Lancaster as the postmaster, assisted by T.J. Southworth. Jordan sold the stock of the store in 1878 to Kilkoff and Dreka. Dreka and Company moved it in 1882 to another location and built a four-story store.
Jordan and Lancaster subsequently dissolved their partnership and sold the property to Moon and Harshey. It was later acquired by W.A. Allen and operated as the Allen Drug Store, and this was known as Allen's Corner. Upstairs there was a lodge room and six offices.
During the 1890s, the building here was known as Bushnell Hall. It included a room large enough to stage operas, including "The Chimes of Normandy" and "The Midado", produced and directed by Otto Erhart while he was here visiting his sister.
In 1923, the Allen-White company opened a store just west of Woodland Blvd. They specialized in office supplies.
This financial institution was organized on December 7, 1926, and was located in this building.
A building was erected here after the 1886 fire and in 1899 Charles A. Miller opened the Walts and Miller Hardware Store in it. The Miller Hardware Company stayed in business for 26 years. In the same building was located the Clyde Lines agency office.
In 1930, this corner block was bought by Bert Fish, who had it remodeled. Later, V.M. Fountain left his position as head of Dreka's dry good and clothing departments and opened his men's shop here. Even later, it was the home of Woolworth's.
During the night of January 12, 1879, a hole formed at this corner, thought to be caused by an earthquake.
St. Johns Lodge 37, F.& A.M., was organized in DeLand in 1882. By 1884, their meeting hall was located on this corner. In 1885, the Chambers and Dunn Store was located downstairs and the upstairs was used as the meeting room of Magnolia Lodge 21, I.O.O.F.
This was later the site of the First National Bank, built in 1924 at a cost of $250,000. It was then the largest office building in Volusia County, containing the bank, 28 offices and five stores. On July 11, 1929, the bank opened for an hour and then closed permanently.
Approximately here was located Wilcox's Saloon. A fire began in the saloon in 1886, burning buildings on both sides of the street. The Carrollton Hotel was saved by hanging wet blankets from its windows.
J.F. Allen and H.C. McNeil founded the Allen and McNeil Furniture Company in 1877 and opened a store on W. Indiana Ave., which burned during the 1880s. Later, it moved to this location and was known as J.F. Allen's Furniture Store and Undertakers.
A theater opened here in about 1910. Howard Stewart and Tom Hays installed the projection equipment.
Woodland Blvd. was cut through the woods north from New York Ave. (formerly known as Kentucky Ave.), a mile long and 60 feet wide. The land for the right of way was donated by Henry A. DeLand. A row of alternating oak, magnolia and oak trees was planted in the middle.
From 1901 to 1907, the Masons, Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias shared the expenses of the rental of this building. They bought it in 1907 and rented out the downstairs. Tenants included Fudger's Ice Cream Parlor and Arthur Marsh's Meat market.
Hetie Austin raised money in 1876 for the construction of a school, which was completed here by Cosner and Bloomer in March of 1877. It consisted of one large room with a bell tower, facing south. Classes began on May 7, 1877, with Rowena Dean as its first teacher, serving until 1879. The building also served as a church for all denominations.
Later, the building was moved west to become the courthouse, then a school, and then the fire station. It was later moved to 420 N. Amelia Ave. and converted to a residence.
In 1908, Fountain's Man's Shop was built here. It later housed Stetson Flower & Gift Shop.
In 1926, Wyatt and Emma Lou Stoudenmire came here to manage the Piggly Wiggly Grocery Store on E. New York Ave. Later, they opened their own store here. Truett Stoudenmire, their son, continued the family business until 1983.
In about 1912, W.D. Haynes built a new brick structure here for his grocery business. It was later known as the J.G. Michaelos Building.
On this corner was the office of DeLand Electric Power & Ice Company, managed by E.L. Hon in 1914. The company was sold to Florida Public Service Company in 1924, which was sold to Florida Power Corporation in 1944.
During the 1930s, this two-story brick building was the home of Smith Real Estate. In 1948, the Florida Bank of DeLand opened here as an outgrowth of Orange City Bank. In the 1970s, Gould Realty moved in here.
On this corner was located the Stallings Blacksmith Shop, and later this office of The Florida Agriculturalist, edited by Col. C.C. Codrington starting in 1878 and sold to E.O. Painter in 1888. In the 1880s and 1890s, the printing here was said to be the most complete in the South, handling contracts for all kinds of printing. It produced a farm journal with a statewide distribution.
Teacher B.F. Beelar came to DeLand from Indiana in 1897 and rented a room at this corner. In it, he started a private school specializing in banking and bookkeeping. In 1899, he moved to a larger space on the second floor of the Bennett House on Woodland Blvd. Rent for it was $1.50 per month.
In the early 1900s, he moved to the second floor of the building here, and also taught banking in the business school at the university. After a year, he moved to the Bushnell Building. After two years there, he moved to the second floor of Haven's Block on Woodland Blvd., where he remained for more than 20 years.
In the 1910s, the Orange Belt Pharmacy was located here, and also served as the bus station.
The next building north in 1914 was I.T. Blane's Fancy Groceries.
On this corner in the 1920s was a Gulf Refining Company filling and service station operated by C.E. Lamson.
A Baptist church organized with 13 members on October 31, 1880, and its first building was erected here and dedicated on April 16, 1882. Rev. A.L. Farr was the first pastor. The building was sold to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, which moved it to E. Rich Ave. in 1895. A new 800-seat Baptist church was built here for $16,000 and dedicated on April 21, 1885. It was torn down in 1960.
A Presbyterian church was organized by Rev. Gilbert Gordon in the home of W.W. Cleveland on July 2, 1882. The 24 charter members held their early services in the Rich cabin, and then in the schoolhouse. Rev. Henry W. Gelston served as the first minister. The first sanctuary was completed here on March 11, 1888. It was enlarged and remodeled in 1912.
In 1953, the church purchased the Moorhead house located at 734 N. Woodland Blvd. and moved it to Pennsylvania Ave. to be used as a manse. The present church building was opened on January 18, 1959, at 724 N. Woodland Blvd.
Alva C. Williams ran a boarding house here, and in 1922 started a real estate business on her porch. She graduated from Beelar's Business School in 1924 and devoted all of her time to her real state business. She leased the dining room in her boarding house to Mr. and Mrs. Mullet.
Across the street on the southwest corner was the Olive Branch Hotel.
In the early 1900s, Mrs. Swift operated a boarding house here.
The Church of Christ was organized by settlers from Kentucky on March 11, 1883, and used a small frame church building at the corner of Florida and Voohis Aves. built in 1885. It burned down in 1891.
They bought this lot for $500 and built the brick sanctuary in 1894. The first minister of the church was Rev. W.B. Young.
William A. Todd arrived in DeLand in 1925, worked at the ice plant on Rehbehn Ave., then opened his own ice house and wood yard here. This business included a small grocery and meat market, and survived into the 1950s.
This building houses the world's second-largest private collection of minerals, established by Stetson University in 1958 with specimens donated by Thomas Byrd and Nellie Estell Gillespie of St. Augustine.
When Hugh Vernon Bracey came to Beresford with his father in 1870, this area was known as Persimmon Hollow because the spring water caused wild persimmons to grow well. After 1875, most of the people arriving chose not to settle by the river, but instead to come into what is now known as DeLand.
Henry A. DeLand, the brother-in-law of O.P. Terry, was persuaded into traveling to Florida to see the property Terry had just bought in Persimmon Hollow. The day they arrived, DeLand bought the 159.1-acre Hampson homestead fronting on New York Ave., between Clara and Amelia Aves.
On March 11, 1882, the citizens of DeLand unanimously voted in favor of incorporation.
The city hall was located in 1918-19 on Indiana Ave., next to the former school that was converted to the firehouse. The city hall was later moved here.
This science center is named after Mrs. Henry J. Sage of St. Petersburg, who donated a large portion of its $1,500,000 construction cost. It is built on what had previously been Minnesota Ave., which the city commission closed in 1964 between Woodland Blvd. and Amelia Ave. At the same time, they closed Hayden Ave. between Minnesota Ave. and May St.
When the library room in Elizabeth Hall was outgrown, Andrew Carnegie was contacted and he gave a substantial donation allowing for the construction of a new building. In 1908, the Sampson Library and its 32,000 volumes moved to the Carnegie Library.
On this site was previously located Holmes Hall, a stately residence for the university president. It was in disrepair and was removed for the construction of the new library, which opened on May 7, 1964. It was named after its chief donors, Jessie Ball duPont and Edward Ball. Costing over $1 million, it was designed by architects Perry, Shaw, Hepburn & Dean of Boston.
The Presser Foundation donated $200,000 to build this building in 1960-61. It was the result of president Edmunds' urging for the construction of a fine arts center.
This building was designed by George T. Pearson and was begun in 1891 and the center section was complete in 1892. It is named after Mrs. Stetson, whose husband paid the $45,000 construction cost. The two wings were completed in 1897, including the stained glass windows in the chapel which were designed by William A. Sharpe, the director of the university art department. Along with the organ and furniture, those wings cost Mr. Stetson $150,000.
The library was located in the north end of this building until 1908, and was known as the Sampson Library.
This two-story, eight-room building is the oldest on the Stetson University campus and is the oldest continuously used building of higher education in the state. It was the home of the DeLand Academy, which began on November 5, 1883, in a lecture room of the First Baptist Church. The first classes were taught by Dr. Fenner, and then by Dr. J.H. Griffith.
Henry A. DeLand built this on a four-acre plot, with it first being occupied on October 13, 1884. On April 1, 1885, a temporary board of trustees named the school DeLand College. In 1887, it became DeLand University. In 1937, this became the home of the university's school of music.
The Stick style building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 27, 1983.
In 1886, this dormitory was built and new local resident John B. Stetson donated $3,500 toward its construction. It was named after him, and he was elected to the board of trustees in 1887, becoming its president in 1889. Over the opposition of John Stetson, at the request of Henry DeLand the name of the school was changed to John B. Stetson University later that year.
This building was enlarged in 1945-46 for an additional 168 female students.
This clubhouse for boys named after lumberman J.B. Conrad, who was its largest donor, was built in 1902 and burned in 1903. It was rebuilt in 1909 and repaired and refurbished in 1937.
This building was completed in 1957 for a total cost of $1,800,000. It replaced the Commons Building, designed by G. Medwin Peek and built by E.K. Jones in 1936 for a cost of $60,000, which burned in 1954.
This women's dormitory was built in 1891-92. It was named after Dr. W.N. Chaudoin, secretary of the Florida Baptist Convention and pastor of the Bethlehem Church in Osteen. A wing was added at the south end in 1935, increasing the capacity to 86 women.
This was built in 1954 as a 113-woman dormitory named North Hall. In 1962, a new wing was added and it was renamed to honor Emily Bryant (Mrs. J. Ollie) Edmunds.
During the 1920s, the home of Agnes Willat was located here. Her three sons were involved in the motion picture industry. Edwin was an expert technician, Irvin was a well-known director, and C.A. "Doc" Willat helped to perfect color movies.
A three-story house was built here in 1907 by John Henry Tatum, who had moved here from Barberville. He was involved in the turpentine and naval stores business, and became the president of the First National Bank. The house was torn down to make room for the College Plaza Shopping Center.
In 1898, DeLand was visited by Theodore and Candace Richey Strawn. In 1904, they began buying groves and other land near DeLeon Springs. By the time they moved to DeLand in 1913, they owned several hundred acres. They built their home on this corner. They grew and marketed the "Bob White" brand of oragne through their packing plant near DeLeon Springs.
Seven charter members organized this church on December 28, 1946. The sanctuary was built in 1951-52, with the educational building added in 1958.
This restaurant contains an ornamental opalescent window made in 1910.
The two-story brick building behind the courts was built in 1930 as the Women's Assembly Hall, and was renamed in 1938. Because of financial pressure during the Depression, President Hulley kept the stage small, without space behind the backdrop.
This area, to be used primarily for young women, was defined by the Stover Theatre on the west, the Cummings Gymnasium on the east, and heavy brick walls on the north and south. It was named after Mr. and Mrs. Frederick P. Beaver of Dayton, Ohio, who donated $50,000.
The first campus gymnasium was built in 1891, and was later moved to become the Band Hall. Later, it was used by the teacher education department, and then by the purchasing department.
This structure was built in 1910 on the site of an earlier athletic field. It was named after Howell Cummings of Philadelphia, who donated $6,000 for it, about half of its total cost. Cummings later became the president of the Stetson Hat Company.
The Hulley Gymnasium was completed elsewhere on campus in 1929, and was named after university president Lincoln Hulley. It and several other buildings were used by 300-400 men in 1943-44 participating in the Army Specialized Training Program. It was torn down in 1974.
This Baptist Student Union Building was a gift of the Florida Baptist Convention and was dedicated on November 16, 1950. It was named after William Sims Allen, the Stetson president from 1934 until 1947.
The trustees went to Henry Flagler for financial assistance in establishing a law school. Flagler chose the style of this building, with some similarities to his Ponce de Leon Hotel in St. Augustine. The outside walls are more than two feet thick at the base.
The original plan called for a two-story building, but during construction the basement was lowered by two feet on the first floor was raised. This necessitated seven steps to enter the building, but allowed for three usable stories. It was initially called Science Hall because Flagler stipulated that his name could not be on the building until after his death, which occurred in 1913.
The building was designed for engineering, law, chemistry and physics.
Also known as the White House, this residence was built by shoe store owner W.A. Steed in 1910. It was bought by the university in 1948 to replace Holmes Hall as the president's mansion.
This home was built in 1886 for attorney George Hamlin, the developer of the Hamlin orange. It was bought by John B. Stetson in 1893 and converted to faculty housing for Stetson University. In 1903, it was acquired by Prof. Charles Farriss, who worked with stained and leaded glass which can still be seen on the house.
Before 1940, the house was converted to apartments and expanded by the addition of the sunrooms on the western side. It was sold to Robert and Hawtense Conrad in 1988, and they donated it to the city. Since 1990 it has been a museum with furnishings, photographs and memorabilia from the early days of DeLand.
This home lying just south of the former railroad spur line was built in 1895. On July 4, 1900, Nels Sven Lindstrom and his wife, Eliza Jane Rushing Benton, bought it. She took in boarders who worked for the railroad and daughter Nellie played the piano for vaudeville shows and silent movies at the Princess Theater until 1913.
This congregation organized on September 24, 1882, J.C. Rich donated this lot and its first pastor was Rev. Charles Francis Adams Bielby who moved here from Little Falls, New York. The church, modeled after a parish church in England, was dedicated on April 12, 1884. It and the parish house built in 1911 were enlarged in 1922.
The church contains 35 stained glass windows produced by the Lamb Studio in 1885, four made by the Tiffany Studio in 1886, and many others.
This church was organized as the Methodist Episcopal Church, South by Rev. Benjamin S. Hall on February 20, 1895. They met for a time in a store on the corner of Woodland Blvd. and Rich Ave., then moved into the old Baptist church building which was moved here in 1895 and purchased by the Methodists for $1,000 for 1898.
From 1905 to 1920, this church was known as Grace Methodist, and then returned to its former name. In 1926, they erected a three-story brick church here at a cost of $100,000.
Frank E. Bond and Jacob B. Conrad started the Bond Lumber Company in 1880 with a sawmill about three miles northwest of DeLand. It burned in 1883 and was replaced with another about a mile north of Glenwood.
The company had a local yard on the east side of Amelia Ave., between New York and Rich Aves., which was moved in 1912 to this corner.
In the 1930s, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad had its depot here.
The two and a half story hospital here was built with public donations in 1920-23 for the treatment of white citizens of DeLand. The land was donated by Mr. and Mrs. George H. Smiley of Minnewaska, New York, in memory of their son, Charles, who was killed in World War I.
During the mid-1920s, this hospital had 20 beds and four private rooms. The best room, known as the College Arms Room because it was furnished by guests at the hotel, cost $6 per day. The next best room was $5 per day, and ward beds cost $3 per day.
Medical services were transferred in 1948 to the DeLand Naval Air Station. This building was later converted to the offices of the Volusia County School Board and still shows its Italian Renaissance architectural style.
Nearby was the DeLand Colored Hospital, designed by Gouveneur Medwin Peek and built in 1926. Before that time, black residents had to rely on local doctors and Mandy Worthy, a practical nurse and midwife. In the event surgery was needed, equipment was borrowed from the white hospital across the parking lot.
The fund for the hospital was begun in 1925, with major contributors including Dr. and Mrs. A.J. Burgess. The building was rededicated on April 17, 1993, with exhibits of early medical and electrical equipment.
Members of the First Baptist Church established a mission in October of 1928. It officially organized as the Stetson Baptist Church on November 24, 1929, at a meeting in a tent at this location.
The area bounded by Boundary, Plymouth, Euclid and Ridgewood Aves. was owned by John B. Stetson and was known as West DeLand in 1887. By the mid-1890s, it became known as Stetson. At this location was a railroad freight depot and post office. John Stetson's personal office was located just to the south of the depot.
John B. Stetson built an ice and power plant built here in 1888 for A.G. Kingsbury. In the west section where ice was made, the walls were two feet thick. Since the electricity was used only for lighting, the generators were operated only at night.
Later, the building was used by Florida Power Corporation. It was remodeled in 1961.
John B. Stetson, a hat manufacturer from Philadelphia, visited here in 1886 and bought a 300-acre tract from Dr. H.H. Gillen. He had George T. Pearson design this winter home for him, and it was built that same year. This home which Stetson named "Gillen" has a Frame Vernacular style and he and Mrs. Stetson wintered here for 20 years.
It was built mostly of lumber from Pennsylvania, carried here by Clyde Line steamboats. It has leaded glass, mahogany and oak floors, and six fireplaces.
A small schoolhouse was built behind the main home. When they came here for the winter, they brought along a private tutor for the children. After the children grew up, the school became the home of the gardener, B.H. Alden. Stetson's covered orange grove stretched from here to New York Ave. to Montgomery St. to Spring Garden Ave.
Stetson slipped and fell in his bathtub, possibly resulting from a minor stroke. His death in 1906 was partly blamed on that fall. Mrs. Stetson then closed the house and returned to Philadelphia.
The property was handled by a caretaker from 1906 to 1925, and was then sold to the DeLand Holding Company. the 300 acres were subdivided into lots called the "Stetson Estates", and sold off individually. The mansion was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 21, 1978.
The first black school in the area was a small house in Beresford in 1886 with J.W. Roper as the teacher. It was moved to Brooksville ("Dunn's Bottom") in 1887. The three-room school was destroyed by a storm in 1898.
The Amelia Avenue School, previously used for white students, was then made available to blacks and was later moved to this corner. It was renamed Athens High School, and later Euclid Avenue School.
This church was established at this location in 1915. A later name for it is the Saint Paul House of God Saints in Christ.
A building was erected on this site in 1925 as the Safe Home Orphanage for black children, run by Eva Bradfield. It became a private residence in abut 1950.
In the early days, this area known as the Yemassee Settlement was populated exclusively by black residents.
James Washington Wright came to DeLand in 1890 at age 15 with $1.50 in his pocket. He worked, saved his money, and bought five acres of land following the freezes of 1894 and 1895. Later, he bought this building in which he and his wife, Ethel, operated a grocery and meat market. Wright also had a shipping business on W. Minnesota Ave., grew crops, and helped to improve the lives of other blacks.
This building was designed by Francis Miller, who also designed the DeLand Memorial Hospital. This was built in 1920 for $15,000.
This is the oldest black church in DeLand, having been established in 1888. The sanctuary was built in 1893.
Ohio native Williams N. Eyles built this home in 1888, and after his death his widow, Coralinn Eyles, ran it as a boarding house. It was constructed with a Frame Vernacular design and a veranda across the front. The home was sold in 1911 to E.B. Willcoxon, who enlarged it and modified it to have a Classical Revival design. It was later turned into the 1888 House, a bed and breakfast establishment, also known as the DeLand Country Inn.
Cornelius and Catherine Edmunds O'Neill came to DeLand during the late 1880s. A mason-contractor, he built their house at this location and did masonry work for a number of Florida courthouses, the Fisher Drug Store, the Allen Drug Store, and the first Catholic Church in the city.
During the 1940s, this lot was the home of the DeLand Lawn Bowling Club.
After Albert John Guenther bought the Hodgkins Iron Works in 1918, he moved into an existing home here and renamed the company Dixie Iron and Wood Works. The business was located on the south side of Short St. (later called Georgia Ave.).
During the 1920s, the Masonic Lodge was located here, with the Florida Motor Lines bus station downstairs.
F.P. "Robbie" Roberson and J.M. Stevens established a furniture store here in 1935. After Stevens moved to New Smyrna Beach in 1936, he was replaced by George Clark. The business was then known as the Roberson-Clark Furniture Company.
A Guide to National Register Sites in Florida, (Florida Department of State 1984)
A Pictorial History of West Volusia County 1870-1970, by William J. Dreggors, Jr. and John Stephen Hess (E.O. Painter Printing Co. 1989)
African Americans in Florida, by Maxine D. Jones and Kevin M. McCarthy (Pineapple Press, Inc. 1993)
An Uncommon Guide to Florida, by Nina McGuire (Tailored Tours Publications, Inc. 1992)
Bicentennial Pictorial History of Volusia County, by Henry B. Watson (The News-Journal Corporation 1976)
Black Florida, by Kevin M. McCarthy (Hippocrene Books 1995)
Centennial History of Volusia County, Florida 1854-1954, by Ianthe Bond Hebel (College Publishing Company 1955)
Centennial of First Presbyterian Church, DeLand, Florida 1882-1982, by Ethel C. Kinum (1982)
DeLand, A City in the Pines, (Echo Publishing Co. 1895)
DeLand, Florida, (Reprint of Saint Johns-Oklawaha Trading Company brochure 1981)
Echoes of Yesterday: A History of the DeLand Area Public Library 1912-1995, by Louise Ball Caccamise (Luthers 1996)
Florida Bed & Breakfast Guide, by Valerie C. Bondy (Queen of Hearts Publications 1995)
Florida Stained Glass Survey: Sites of Historic Windows in Public Facilities in the State of Florida, by Robert O. Jones (Florida Members of the Stained Glass Association of America 1995)
Florida: The Long Frontier, by Marjory Stoneman Douglas (Harper & Row 1967)
Florida's History Through Its Places: Properties in the National Register of Historic Places, by Morton D. Winsberg (Florida State University 1988)
Guide to Florida's Historic Architecture, (University of Florida Press 1989)
Historic Homes of Florida, by Laura Stewart & Susanne Hupp (Pineapple Press, Inc. 1995)
Historic Properties Survey of Lake Helen, Florida, by Historic Property Associates, Inc. (1993)
History of Volusia County, Florida, by Pleasant Daniel Gold (The E.O. Painter Printing Co. 1927)
Hopes, Dreams, & Promises: A History of Volusia County, Florida, by Michael G. Schene (News-Journal Corporation 1976)
Reflections: West Volusia County, by M.E. Ross et al. (1976)
Saga of Baron Frederick deBary Hall, Florida, by Edith G. Brooks (Convention Press, Inc. 1968)
Steamboats In the Hycinths, by Ella Teague De Berard (College Publishing Company 1956)
Stetson University: The First 100 Years, by Gilbert L. Lycan (Stetson University Press 1983)
Story of DeLand and Lake Helen, Florida, by Helen Parce DeLand (The Academy Press 1928)
Volusia: The West Side, by Arthur E. Francke, Jr., Alyce Hockaday Gillingham, and Maxine Carey Turner (West Volusia Historical Society 1986)
Wish You Were Here: A Grand Tour of Early Florida Via Old Post Cards, by Hampton Dunn (Byron Kennedy and Company 1981)
Click here for a copy of the trail rules.