TOMOKA HISTORICAL TRAIL

(From Interstate 95 Exit 278, drive east, southeast and south on Old Dixie Hwy. to park at the south end of Ormond Tomb Park. Walk northwest 300 feet.)

1 West side of Old Dixie Hwy., between Walter Boardman Ln. and 0.0 Bulow Creek

James Ormond Tomb Park

Capt. James Ormond of Scotland received a grant for a plantation near here in 1804, which he named Damietta. He was killed by a runaway slave in 1817 and was buried at Nordman's Point. James Ormond II moved here with his wife and four children in 1824. The settlers were on friendly terms and knew Indian chiefs King Philip, Billy Bowlegs, and Coacoochee. Ormond died in 1829 and was buried on the plantation. The family moved to Charleston, South Carolina in 1832. Damietta became the property of Samuel H. Williams, who turned it into his Orange Grove Plantation. Two-thirds of it was sold by the tax collector for his failure to pay state and county taxes for 1849. Inscribed on the grave of James Ormond II is "An Honest Man". The tomb was badly damaged by vandals but was restored and maintained by Maud Van Woy. The nine-acre site was donated to the Park Service in 1945.

(Walk northeast to Old Dixie Hwy. and north 700 feet, then east on the park entrance road to the large oak tree.)

2 Bulow Creek State Park, east of Old Dixie Hwy. 0.4 Ormond-Fairchild Oak

This tree is said to be over 2,000 years old and is one of the largest in the county. It is sometimes called the Harwood or Haunt Oak because Norman B. Harwood committed suicide near it. The coquina boulder with the bronze plaque was dedicated in January of 1956 while the plantation was owned by the Portland Cement Company. It bears the names of James Ormond, the former owner, and David Fairchild, a botanist who admired and often visited this tree. He believed it to be a natural cross between a live oak and a laurel oak.

(Walk northeast 175 feet.)

1 3 Bulow Creek State Park, east of Old Dixie Hwy. 0.5 Harwood House

Norman Harwood of Minneapolis moved here after 1870 and bought plantations Damietta and Rozetta, plus other land, totalling 40,000 acres. It was placed in the name of his wife, Susan. He attempted to raise cattle and oranges. His reputation in Minnesota was poor because of some debts he had left unpaid, so he was ostracized in this area. While he lived here in the small home built of coquina blocks, he incurred more debts than he could pay. He took poison and died in this home so that Susan could collect on his $45,000 life insurance policy. Harwood was buried in a coquina rock grave about 25 feet south of the house, but later his remains were exhumed and taken to Atlanta. The grave was used as a moonshine cellar and then as a home for a pet alligator.

(Exit the park to the west and walk south on Old Dixie Hwy. 1000 feet past James Ormond Tomb Park.)

4 Old Dixie Hwy., between Walter Boardman Ln. and Bulow Creek 0.7 Site of Rozetta

Maj. John Moultrie settled a plantation of 2,000 acres here in 1770. With 180 employees, he cultivated 1,784 of the acres. He lived in a two-story house with ten rooms, the first story being built of stone and the second of wood. Moultrie became the Lieutenant Governor of East Florida. He had to evacuate when the area was ceded back to Spain. Robert McHardy in 1808 received a grant of 1,000 from Spain which included much of this plantation. He added a sugar mill and other improvements.

(Continue south and southeast on Old Dixie Hwy. to the unmarked turnoff and parking area on the northeast side of the road, before crossing over the canals.)

5 Northeast side of Old Dixie Hwy., between Bulow Creek and the 3.5 Tomoka River

Dummitt Sugar Mill

In 1804, John Bunch received a grant of 2,175 acres. After living on it for 20 years, he sold it and his slaves to Col. Thomas Dummitt, who brought his sugar boiler here from Barbados. Reuben Loring built the mill in 1825. P.D. Gold had believed this to be first a Franciscan mission known as San Antonio De Anacape and built in 1655 and

2 later turned into a sugar mill. The two-story coquina and brick remains may resemble some early Spanish construction, but they date to the 19th, rather than the 17th, Century.

(Continue southeast on Old Dixie Hwy. (which becomes N. Beach St.) 1300 feet past the entrance road and sign for Tomoka State Park.)

6 N. Beach St., south of Tomoka State Park 5.7 Mount Oswald

On July 20, 1764, 20,000 acres were granted to Richard Oswald of London by Gov. James Grant. Grant was supposed to settle it with white Protestants, but did not cooperate. Frame houses were built for white employees, forming a settlement known as Ferry. The plantation was made up by Oswald's mansion (40 x 20 feet), the overseer's house, huts for 175 slaves, a sugar mill, barn and stables. Acreage was planted in sugar cane, indigo, rice and provisions. Samuel Huey served as the first overseer, and was later replaced with an Indian named Johnson. Over 100 slaves worked the plantation by 1767. Oswald lived in London and was knowledgeable regarding the colonies. In 1777, he assisted Benjamin Franklin, John Jay, John Adams and Henry Laurens in drafting the Paris peace treaty to end the American Revolution. He also served as Commissary General during the Seven Years' War. The estate passed to his agent, James Darley, who sold it to the Marquis De Faugeand. It was later incorporated into Tomoka State Park.

(Walk north on N. Beach St. to the entrance to Tomoka State Park.)

7 North end of Beach St. (2009 N. Beach St.) 5.9 Tomoka State Park

This park began in December of 1918 as the five-acre Sunset Park. It was developed by E.J. Mills and was open to the public. It featured a two-story hotel, palm garden, lunch and tea rooms, pavilion, canoes and a dock.

(Enter the park and follow the main park road northwest to the visitor center.)

8 Across from the Marsh Museum 6.7 Addison Tomb

3 John Addison settled a plantation of 1,414 acres in 1816 and named it Carrickfergus after his birthplace in Ireland. He had 67 slaves and raised crops usual for this area, particularly cotton. Addison died in 1825 and the plantation passed to his brother, Tom, who died a few months later. John was buried at the plantation to the north, but vandalism resulted in his tomb being moved here for protection. The museum is dedicated in memory of Fred Dana Marsh, an artist who moved to Ormond Beach in the late 1920s and married Mable Van Alstyne. The museum contains much of his sculpture.

(Walk northwest 1000 feet on the nature trail to the bench past the slash pine marker.)

9 Tomoka State Park, northwest of the visitor center 6.9 Site of Tomoka Stone

A settlement near here known as Tomoka Stone dates to the Late Archaic period. Found here were fused, stone-like masses of coquina shell, sharks' teeth, animal bone, and Orange fiber-tempered pottery. Portions of the site were preserved by water which covered it when the sea level rose.

(Continue northwest on the nature trail until it ends at a clearing.)

10 Tomoka State Park, near the confluence of the Tomoka and 7.1 Halifax Rivers

Site of Nocoroco

The Timucuan Indian village of Nocoroco was documented here by Alvaro Mexia, sent here in 1605 by the Spanish governor to explore the area. The village was probably established by 1500 and was gone by the mid-1700s. This was one of the last Timucuan strongholds in northeast Florida, and later was a part of the Richard Oswald property. Nocoroco was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 7, 1973.

(Continue north 325 feet.)

11 North end of Tomoka State Park 7.1 Tomokie Fountain

The warrior chief depicted in this fountain is said to have refused to abide by certain religious practices. Other Indians were offended by his drinking out of a sacred spring,

4 so they fought and killed him. It is likely that the legend was completely fabricated so that the fountain could be accompanied by a story. Fred Dana Marsh of Ormond Beach sculpted this fountain. He also built a grand oceanfront home in the early 1930s in the form of an ocean liner. It later became part of Embry- Riddle Aeronautical University.

(Walk south 1000 feet on the park road.)

12 Tomoka State Park, west of Tomoka Stone 7.3 Vicinity of Strickland Mound

At a nearby mound were found a series of early coquina middens and mounded burials. They date to the Middle Archaic period.

(Walk southeast on the road and exit the park, then walk northwest on N. Beach St., until it curves to the west and becomes Old Dixie Hwy.)

13 Intersection of N. Beach St. and Old Dixie Hwy. 8.6 Dixie Highway

This section of roadway was a part of the Dixie Highway, which was the dream of Carl Fisher of Indianapolis. He had made his fortune in the new auto industry, and wanted to build a highway from Chicago to Miami. When news got out, many communities formed associations to lobby for inclusion on the route. The Dixie Highway Association met in Chattanooga and chose a route passing through Tallahassee and Jacksonville, and proceeding south along the east coast. Frenzied lobbying also produced an inland route passing through Gainesville, Ocala, Winter Park, Orlando, Kissimmee, Bartow and Arcadia, rejoining the coastal route at Palm Beach. In 1915, Fisher led an auto cavalcade from the Midwest to Miami, popularizing auto trips to Florida. The Dixie Highway was officially open for traffic in October of 1925 from the Canadian border at the northern tip of Michigan to Miami.

(Walk northwest on Old Dixie Hwy. to the intersection with Addison and Pine Tree Drs., and look to the southwest.)

14 West of Old Dixie Hwy. 9.2 Site of Carrickfergus

5 The property which had been purchased in 1816 by John Addison was purchased by Duncan McRae and his brother, who turned it into a sugar plantation. The 135-foot long mill, constructed in about 1832, was one of the largest in East Florida. It was later burned by the Seminoles. Over the ruins of the plantation kitchen, the army hastily built Fort McRae in February of 1836 to protect it from the Seminoles. The troops were from the Carolina Regiment of Volunteers and included Lt. W.W. Smith and Capt. M.M. Cohen, each of whom wrote a book about the building of the fort. The soldiers had been heading south from St. Augustine to meet up with the troops led by Gen. Winfield Scott. The Indians attacked the fort once, killed two of the soldiers, and then withdrew. The most interesting item remaining is the block house built of coquina, the only one standing in this area. Other ruins include parts of a sugar mill, a chimney (which may have been part of a house), and a circular coquina well. Unfortunately, the ruins are on private property and cannot be seen from public roads.

(Continue northwest and north on Old Dixie Hwy. to the point 13.1 of beginning.)

Bibliography

A Guide to National Register Sites in Florida, (Florida Department of State 1984)

The Colonization of Ormond, by Ada Green Hinkley (E.O. Painter Printing Co. 1931)

Discover Florida: A Guide to Unique Sites and Sights, by Robert Tolf (Manatee Books 1982)

"Dummett Family Saga", by Alice Strickland (The Journal of the Halifax Historical Society, Vol. II, No. 1 1957)

Florida Back Roads, by Bob Howard (Sentinel Communications Company 1991)

Florida Historical Markers & Sites, by Floyd E. Boone (Gulf Publishing Company 1988)

Florida State Landmarks, by Stuart Lynn Patton (Southern Arts Syndicate, Inc. 1967)

Florida's History Through Its Places: Properties in the National Register of Historic Places, by Morton D. Winsberg (Florida State University 1988)

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Historic Daytona Beach (a self-guided tour), The Halifax Historical Society (1992)

Hopes, Dreams, & Promises: A History of Volusia County, Florida, by Michael G. Schene (News-Journal Corporation 1976)

Ormond-on-the-Halifax, by Alice Strickland (Southeast Printing and Publishing Company 1980)

Ormond's Historic Homes, by Alice Strickland (Ormond Beach Historical Trust, Inc. 1992)

Ruins of the Early Plantations of the Halifax Area, by Edith P. Stanton (Burgman & Son 1957)

True Natives: The Prehistory of Volusia County, by Dana Ste. Claire (Hall Publishing Company 1992)

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