Preview
Creation Date
1-1-2015
Description
The marker reads: "GAINESVILLE'S RAILROADSThe coming of the Florida Railroad opened up the interior of Florida for both settlement and trading and helped establish Gainesville. On February 1, 1859 the Florida Railroad entered town and connected Fernandina Beach with Cedar Key by 1861. Built from the northeast along what is now Waldo Road, the rails crossed 13th Street at Archer Road, and continued southwest along Archer Road to Cedar Key. The 19th century Florida roads were sandy, swampy and nearly impassible, so early rail access to two ports dramatically increased Gainesville's prosperity. Railroads provided transportation for outgoing agricultural products and brought in the region's first tourists, creating a demand for hotels, restaurants and other services. As the demand for North Central Florida agriculture grew at the turn of the 20th century, more railroads crisscrossed the region. The last railroad passenger service in Gainesville ended in 1971. The Atlantic Coast Line (ACL) Railroad built a modern depot in 1948 rerouting its trains from Main Street downtown to tracks on Northwest 6th Street. The ACL depot is presently part of the downtown campus of Santa Fe Community College. F-473 A FLORIDA HERITAGE SITE SPONSORED BY THE ALACHUA COUNTY HISTORICAL COMMISSION AND THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF STATE 2003"
Recommended Citation
Taylor,, George Lansing Jr., "Gainesville's Railroads Marker Gainesville, FL" (2015). George Lansing Taylor Collection Main Gallery. 7417.
https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/historical_architecture_main/7417
