"Beluthahatchee" as defined by noted author Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) is a mythical "Florida Shangri-la, where all unpleasantness is forgiven and forgotten." When Florida author/activist Stetson Kennedy (b. 1916) moved here, the site was named and set aside as a wildlife sanctuary. After WWII, he infiltrated and exposed the KKK and other domestic terrorist groups. Kennedy's books include Palmetto Country (1942), Southern Exposure (1946), Jim Crow Guide (1956), and The Klan Unmasked (1957). The latter two were translated around the world. This site served as headquarters for his pioneering 1950 "total equality" write-in bid for the U.S. Senate. His book, After Appomattox, was completed here in 1995, with the help of his wife Joyce Ann. That year he won the Gustavus Meyer Award for doing the most to combat bigotry in the USA. In April 2005 Kennedy was inducted into the Florida Artist's Hall of Fame. Beluthahatchee also served as a Florida hangout for America's legendary folk balladeer, Woody Guthrie. Here, Guthrie completed his autobiographical book, Seeds of Man, and over 80 Florida songs, including "Beluthahatchee Bill." This site was designated a Literary Landmark by Friends of Library-USA in 2003.

On November 9, 1838, during the Second Seminole Indian War (1835-42), the U.S. Army established Fort Gatlin in Mosquito County. This fort was named for Army Assistant Surgeon John S. Gatlin (1806-1835), who was killed in the Dade Massacre in 1835. The site of the fort was chosen as a military outpost due to its strategic position overlooking three lakes and because the area was frequented by Native Americans led by Seminole Chief King Philip and his son Coacoochee. The fort served the state militia during the war until the Army withdrew in 1849. A few soldiers and families remained in the area, growing citrus and raising cattle. In 1856, Fort Gatlin became the county seat of Orange County, created from Mosquito County in 1845. The community's name was later changed to Orlando, a name attributed to militiaman Orlando Reeves, who was reportedly killed in a skirmish during the Second Seminole War. It is believed that Reeves is buried near the site of Fort Gatlin. In 1941, during World War II, the United States Navy established the Underwater Sound Reference Laboratory near this site on Lake Gem Mary because of the great death of the lake. The lab was closed in 1997.

Here from the early 1900s stood Surfside "Casino." Casinos did not offer gambling ~ They were entertainment centers. Surfside was built as part of the Capo family resort destination of 165 acres. The yacht Pauline II ferried visitors from St. Augustine up the North River to Capo's Landing at the west end of Surfside Avenue where they could stay at Capo's Hotel and have a five course meal at a 120-seat restaurant for 25 cents. A horse drawn trolley brought visitors to Capo's Beach where the casino offered an upstairs dance hall, a downstairs bathhouse, and a venue for horse races, organized sports and picnic events. A bathing beauty might have her photo taken in front of a biplane on the beach. The North Shores Improvement Association began meeting here in 1939 to improve the quality of life on this barrier island. During and after World War II, Surfside was popular with military personnel where local bands and jukebox music were enjoyed. The building remained a favorite place for young people to have parties through the 1960s. In the 1970s the aging building was torn down and the site converted to a county oceanfront park.

Georgianna United Methodist Church was built in the community of Georgiana on Merritt's Island in 1886. The ringing of the church bell still marks the beginning of worship as it has for many decades. Franklin C. Allen, Jr., a local homesteader, donated the land where the church stands. In the summer of 1886, led by Edwin Nelson, men of the Georgiana community started their building program. Lumber was brought in from St. Augustine by sailboat and unloaded along the Indian River shoreline then carried to the work site. By the end of September the roof was in place and Sunday school was held using chairs on loan from local households. Crafting of the pews was the next project. D.C. Munson crafted the pews by hand from rough lumber. The first service was held on Thanksgiving in 1886. With its dark wood, white pews, red carpet and bright stained glass windows, Georgianna United Methodist Church is one of the most unique worship centers on the east coast of Florida. Georgianna United Methodist Church has always been a vital part of its community and remains so today.

Native Americans, explorers and settlers hauled or carried canoes and small boats over this narrow strip of land between Mosquito Lagoon and the Indian River. Eventually it became known as the "haulover." Connecting both bodies of water had long plagued early settlers of this area. Spaniards visited as early as 1605 and slid boats over the ground covered with mulberry tree bark. Early settlers used rollers and skids to drag schooners across. Fort Ann was established nearby in 1837, during the 2nd Seminole War (1835-1842), to protect the haulover from Indians and carry military supplies from the lagoon to the river. In 1852, contractor G.E. Hawes dug the first canal using slave labor. It was 3 ft. deep, 14 ft. wide, and completed in time for the 3rd Seminole War (1856-1858). Steamboat and cargo ships used the passage until the railroad arrived in 1885. By 1887, the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Co. dug a new and deeper canal which you see now, a short distance from the original. The Intracoastal Waterway incorporated the Haulover Canal as a federal project in 1927 to be maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Since then the channel has been dug wider and deeper, and a basin added for launching boats.

Brevard County was founded in 1855 and Titusville became the county seat in 1879. The first courthouse was a two-story classical revival wood structure built in 1882, on land donated by Titusville founder Col. Henry Titus. In 1912, County Commissioners ordered the construction of a new courthouse which opened in March 1913. The old wooden structure was moved to the back of the site and sold at auction. Lightman, McDonald & Co. of Jacksonville built the two-story structure of re-enforced concrete for $30,566. Four large classical columns mark the original main entrance on the east side. On the north and south entrances were two small piazzas with one-story classical columns. County Commissioners, Clerk of the Court, Treasurer, Tax Assessor/Collector, and Surveyor offices were on the first floor. On the second floor were a large courtroom, lawyer's offices, judge's chamber, and jury rooms. In 1926, a three-story wing was added to the west side. On the third floor were jail cells, warden's quarters, kitchen, and hospital ward. Sheriff, other county offices, and vault room were located on the second floor. The courthouse continues to serve Brevard County, and the jail facilities on the third floor are no longer used.

Founded by Tom Johnson Cockshutt in 1869, this was the first organized Protestant Church on the East Coast of Florida between New Smyrna and Key West. Tom donated land for a cemetery and built a small log structure located on what is now the northern part of LaGrange Cemetery. It was used as a public meeting place, church, and the first public school in Brevard County. In 1872 a two-story structure of vertical logs was built on the present site. The first floor was used as a church and the second floor for public meetings and a schoolhouse. In 1893 the second story was removed, a bay window was added between the two front doors, and horizontal boards were placed over the vertical logs, encompassing the old structure within the walls of the new. Depicted on one of the eight memorial windows are the names of those who built the church: J.N. Feaster; J.C.C. Feaster; Tom J. Cockshutt; W.S. Norwood; B.J. Mims; R. Singleton; and W.P. Day. The first ordained pastor was W.N. Chaudoin from 1871-1904. Several other congregations were formed from this small church that included: First Presbyterian of Titusville; Mims Methodist Church; and Greater St. James Missionary Baptist Church of Mims.

The King's Road (also called Old King's Road ~ named for King George of England)crossed north to south near this site. It was the first graded road built in Florida. Approximately 1.14 miles extends through Ormond Lake's subdivision. Centuries ago, it originated as an Indian trail connecting Timucuan Indian villages along Florida's East Coast. The Spanish laid out the primary trail during their first occupation of Florida (1513-1763). The British developed the winding trail into a working road (1763-1773) as area residents and the British Parliament put up funds for the highway's construction. Among other uses during the British Period (1763-1783), it served the many large plantations being created along Florida's East Coast. During the Second Spanish occupation (1784-1821) the Spanish regained control but preferred water routes to land passages and the King's Road fell into disrepair. Following the American acquisition of Florida in 1821, the United States Congress appropriated funds to reconstruct the road. U.S. Army engineers completed the work between 1828 and 1831. The King's Road was constructed from St. Mary's, Georgia, to New Smyrna Beach, Florida where it terminates at the remains of a stone wharf.

This portion of the St. Augustine sea wall, extending from King Street to the south end of St. Francis Barracks, was constructed during the period 1833 to 1844. The coquina wall with granite top served as protection for the homes and businesses on the waterfront. Stone for the walls was quarried across the Matanzas River on Anastasia Island. The granite coping came from Pennsylvania and Connecticut. Together with the refurbishing of the Castillo de San Marcos, renamed Fort Marion by the Army, this project was an early example of the work assigned to graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, the first engineering school in the United States. This was one of the earliest federally funded projects in the Territory of Florida. The West Point graduates who designed and supervised the work were: 1st Lieutenant Stephen Tuttle (1797-1835; Class of 1820); 1st Lieutenant Francis L. Dancy (1806-1890; Class of 1826), 1st Lieutenant Henry W. Benham (1818-1884; Class of 1837) and 1st Lieutenant Jeremy F. Gilmer (1818-1883; Class of 1839).

Fellsmere, the northernmost town in St. Lucie County in 1919, had a population of over 800 people. The county built the first public road to cross the St. Johns River marsh in St. Lucie County (now Indian River County). Promote as the Fellsmere-Tampa cross state road, this road allowed travel between the interior and the coast. From 1919 until the 1940's, this road served as an important transportation route from Fellsmere, across the river to Kenansville, the sawmill at Holopaw, and the cattle markets of Kissimmee, but it never reached Tampa. During these decades it became a state road (SSR 170) and provided a corridor to Central Florida and a recreational access to the St. Johns River marshes. The town of Fellsmere was dependent on the sportsmen attracted to these resources. In the late 1940's the bridges burned across the river and the Fellsmere Grade ended in the marsh six miles from this site. Today this road serves the public as a recreational access.