HISTORY OF PASCO COUNTYOrigins of Place NamesThis page was last revised on Jan. 22, 2010. ABBOTT was named for Dr. J. M. Abbott, who ran a drug store and practiced medicine at what is now the intersection of U. S. 301 and 5th Ave. The name was chosen by Simon J. Temple, who purchased the land in 1886. In 1896 the name became Abbott Station as the Seaboard Coast Line depot was built. ANCLOTE. According to Wilfred T. Neill in the Pasco Times of March 20, 1977: “The name Anclote dates back to early Spanish times. The Spaniards called these islands Cabo de Anclote—Cape of the Kedge Anchor—because ships had to use a kedge to winch their way through the shallow water or the winding channels. And early French sailors called the islands Cap d'Anclote, which, of course, has the same meaning as Cabo de Anclote.” According to Neill, Anclote is by far the oldest place name in Pasco County and one of the oldest in Florida. The name is found on a 1715 map which I have seen, and a 1545 map, according to a newspaper article. The Red Race of America (1847) by Henry Rowe Schoolcraft has: “ANCLOTE, an island on the southwest coast of Florida; also, a river flowing into the gulf at that locality, which is also called, in the Seminole dialect, the Est-has-hotee.” Some early maps label Anclote Keys as Haley’s Keys; this name was given by Capt. James Cook (1728-1779), and the islands were named for his mate. However, an 1854 gazetteer by John Hayward has: Anclote Keys, Fa. These islands lie off the coast of Benton co., S. from Helley’s Keys. ARIPEKA. Florida Place-Names of Indian Origin and Seminole Personal Names by William A. Read has: Sam Jones, a famous Mikasuki chief, went by the name of Aripeka or Arpeika. There are other insignificant variants of his name, such as Apiaka, Apeiaka, and Appiaca. In 1841, the year before the close of the Seminole War, Aripeka occupied the region near the mouth of the Kissimee River and the eastern border of Lake Okeechobee. He is said to have had seventeen warriors and a large number of women and children in his band. He was then about seventy-eight years old. Associated with Sam Jones there was a Creek chief who was known as The Prophet, though one of his Indian names, Otulke-Thloko, is a corruption of hotàlgi làko, and signifies “Big Wind Clan” (chief). Another name that the Prophet bore was Hilis Hadjo, “Crazy Medicine,” from Creek hilis, “medicine,” and hajo, “crazy.” The name Aripeka is possibly corrupted from Creek Abihka, “pile at the base,” “heap at the root,” an ancient Creek town near the upper Coosa River. The name was conferred on the town because “in the contest for supremacy its warriors heaped up a pile of scalps, covering the base of the war-pole.” The United States Post-Office Guide for 1904, p. 366, spells the name of this town Arbeka. According to another view, the Abihka were an ancient Muskhogean tribe residing in the Talladega Valley of Alabama, who received their name because of the singular manner in which they expressed assent or approbation. Still another etymology would connect Abihka with Choctaw aiabika, “unhealthful place.” Sam Jones died in 1866. His name is spelled Arpeik in a poem published in 1859. A 1908 map spells the town Aripeka. The Exiles of Florida by Joshua R. Giddings (1858) has “Sam Jones, sometimes called Aripeka.” BAILLIE. This settlement was located near what became Elfers and was named for the Baillie family who lived there. For an 1889 election the local precinct was called Bailey and school board minutes of July 7, 1892, refer to the area as “the Baillie settlement.” An 1897 survey of the Anclote River refers to Bailey Point about one mile north of the river. An 1897 newspaper article refers to “Bailey’s point.” BAYONET POINT. According to Ash, “A big rock covered with Spanish bayonets (called yucca or yaka), inspired the name when State Road 52 was built to connect U. S. 19 to Dade City, about 1926.” However, the name Bayonet Point appears as a geographic feature on a 1900 map produced by the Florida State Geological Survey. BLANTON was named for Jesse Blanton, an early settler from Scevren County, Georgia. He and his wife, Martha Howell, built a log cabin east of what is now Blanton Lake. BUDDY’s LAKE SETTLEMENT. According to a 1996 Tampa Tribune article, a 1923 newspaper article recounted several tales by Rev. H. D. Ryals, including this one: It’s funny how some of the places around here got their names. Lake Buddy . . . was named for an old bull. There was a family named Barber moving to Hillsborough driving a herd of cattle with them. When they reached the lake . . . Buddy went way out till the water covered his back and . . . refused to come out. After awhile, they gave up and went on without him. When Buddy got ready, he came out of the water, took up the trail and joined the herd after it had camped for the night. The lake was known as 'Buddy’s lake' after that. The History of Zephyrhills 1821-1921 has: It was during this period of settlement following the Fort Dade Treaty that a covered wagon came south along the Fort King Road. The owner drove a considerable herd of cattle led by a pet bull named Buddy. They stopped at the lake for water. The settlers gathered, as was the custom, to exchange news and become acquainted. The cattle drank their fill of water and then stood in the welcome shade of nearby trees chewing their cuds and switching flies. Buddy, being thoroughly heated up and dried out, went out into the lake drinking as he went until his back was covered with the cool water. He was so comfortable that when his owner was ready to move on Buddy refused to come out. No amount or kind of coaxing availed and the procession went on without him. Buddy came out when he was quite ready and took up the trail following after his herd. The residents who had observed the bull’s behavior began referring to the big lake as Buddy’s Lake, then Buddy Lake and finally Lake Buddy. It so appeared on early charts and maps. The origin of the name went unquestioned by the busy later settlers but remained among the settlers of early 1837. An article in the spring 1984 Florida Genealogist says: A family named Barber were moving to Hillsborough County and they came through that area driving a herd of cattle. They had an old pet bull named Buddy. When they reached the lake, all the cattle ran out in the water to drink. Buddy went way out till the water covered his back. When they tried to drive him out, he refused to come and offered to fight. They decided to go on without him. Later, when Buddy got ready, he came out, took up the trail of the cattle and joined the herd when it was camped for the night. The lake was known as Buddy’s Lake after that. Today it is Pasadena Lake. The lake is called Lake Buddy in a survey dated April 4, 1846. Buddy Lake is a place name in the 1850 census. In the 1880s, the name was changed to Lake Pasadena, although some maps show a small Lake Buddy next to a large Lake Pasadena. CARMEL. According to The Historic Places of Pasco County,: In this area, the village of Carmel was established and had its own post office from November 4, 1885, to July 25, 1886. It was one of the communities (along with Villa Maria, San Felipe, and Saint Thomas) which Judge Edmund F. Dunne planned as part of the “Catholic Colony of San Antonio,” which included a ring of satellites around the hub of San Antonio proper. In his 1883 promotional brochure, Dunne said this about the village: “Carmel is a Hebrew word meaning a finely cultivated field or orchard. It is taken as the name of a new settlement, five miles south of San Antonio, not because of its inherent meaning but because the settlement is placed under the special patronage of our Lady of Mount Carmel.” CHIPCO was apparently named for Echo Emathla Chopco, whose name also variously appeared as Echo Emathla Chopka or Emathla Hadjo Chupco, but was generally known as Chipco, of the Tallahassee tribe of the Red Stick Upper Creeks. He was born between 1800 and 1805 in Alabama and died on Oct. 16, 1881. CLINTON AVENUE in Dade City was named for Capt. Clinton Edward Spencer (1838-1924), according to Lucy Spencer Lock. DADE CITY and the earlier FORT DADE were named for Maj. Francis Langhorne Dade, a U.S. Army officer killed by Seminoles at the start of the Second Seminole War. DARBY was apparently named for John W. Darby, an early settler. He married Olinda Bradley. Darby was also called St. Thomas and Amelia. DENHAM was named for a black fireman who worked on the same train as William P. Lutz, an engineer for the Tampa Northern Railroad whose family was one of the namesakes for the town of Lutz [information from MacManus]. DREXEL. Edward J. Herrmann believes this town was named by Edward T. Stotesbury in honor of Anthony Joseph Drexel (1826-1893), a financier and philanthropist for whom Drexel University is named. When the Orange Belt Railway failed, the financial interests that had backed the company, the international banking firm of Drexel, Morgan, & Co., formed a syndicate with Stotesbury as its president. [Information from MacManus] EARNESTVILLE was named for Elijah Embree Earnest (1840-1908), who opened a store on Lake Buddy about 1875. EHREN. A historical marker has: “Ehren Community - Named by sawmill owners Frederick and Louis Müller. Ehren means 'place of honor' in their native German language.” According to MacManus, Frederick Ernest Müller named it for his hometown in Germany. ELFERS. The name Elfers was chosen by Frieda Marie (Bolling) Eiland (1884-1981), the wife of the first postmaster. Frieda’s mother’s maiden name was Maria Elfers and, according to Frieda’s son, Frieda named the post office for her maternal grandfather. For more information, see the entry for Levi Daniel Eiland on the early residents page of this website. ELLERSLIE was founded as a health resort by James Goodwin Wallace, a confederate surgeon. Wallace claimed to be a descendant of Gen. William Wallace, a Scottish patriot; the town may have been named for Ellerslie (or Elderslie), Scotland. FIVAY. A large saw mill about 5 miles northeast of New Port Richey was owned by five men whose names began with the letter A. The town was known as “Five A’s,” or Fivay for short. The men were:
Fivay appears on the 1904 application for a post office. FORT BROOME was named for Florida Governor James E. Broome, who served from 1853 to 1857, according to Hendley. GALL BOULEVARD is named for Walter R. Gall, who was able to influence the state to run the highway through Zephyrhills, according to a 2008 article in the Laker. Gall’s son Owen, was a prominent resident of Zephyrhills who died in 2008 at age 96. GODWIN. According to a WPHS article on ghost towns in Florida, the post office was established in 1888 in the home of Jacob Godwin. GOWERS CORNER. According to MacManus, “W. A. Gower once owed all four corners of the intersection of U. S. 41 and S. R. 52 and referred to it as Gower’s Corners.” MacManus also has: “Gowers Corner, located at the intersection of U. S. 41 and S. R. 52, emerged in the mid-1920s. The name was originally spelled Gower’s Corners (note the apostrophe in Gower’s and the plural Corners) for the owner, W. A. Gower. He had been superintendent at the Aripeka Sawmills at Fivay for many years. When timber ran out and the mills closed, he helped dispose of the assets, including the land. Gower bought 80 acres for himself, which included all four corners of the intersection. He also owned a portable sawmill that he moved from place to place, removing whatever timber was still left and marketable. On the southeast corner of the intersection, Gower built a grocery store which he eventually turned over to his son, Ralph. In later years, the store became a filling station run by the Joseph W. Chapman family. The station was demolished in the summer of 1984. Today a shopping area known as Chapman Square stands in its place.” A 1994 Tampa Tribune article about some of the newspaper’s long-time readers reported that Ralph Gower, then age 90, moved with his family to Ballast Point in 1911. The article also has: “Gower’s father, a lumberman, had moved the family to Fivay, Fla. in the early 1900s to work at a sawmill. When they moved to Ballast Point a year later, however, they quickly realized Tampa was not another sawmill town.” GREEN KEY. According to Wilfred T. Neill, J. G. “Gib” Brown, who had homesteaded Deer Island, changed the name of the island to Green Key. He connected it to the mainland by a causeway and tried to promote it as a subdivision. Nothing came of this plan, but Green Key became New Port Richey’s only public beach. However, a 1929 reproduction of an 1886 map has “Deer Island or Green Key”; the label appears to be from the 1886 map. GREENFIELD. MacManus has: “Most likely it was named for the grassy, wide-open space around it.” GREER was named for James L. Greer, who owned thousands of acres of timber in the area and established a sawmill. HICKORY HAMMOCK. An earlier name for New Port Richey may have been Hickory Hammock or Hickory Hammocks. In a 1951 newspaper article, Gerben DeVries wrote, “Present location of New Port Richey was first known as ‘Hickory Hammocks.’” In a letter to the New Port Richey Press published on Jan. 12, 1922, Mrs. J. O. T. Brown of Jacksonville, a daughter of Aaron Richey, wrote, “There was, of course, no town of New Port Richey, but this locality was known as Hickory Hammock.” However, this name has not been found on any maps or on any old documents. Frances Clark Mallett believes the term Hickory Hammock may have referred to a large region and is not an earlier name for New Port Richey. HIDDEN LAKE ESTATES. According to Ash, the name is derived from Whidden Lake, originally named for Tillet Thomas Whidden (1857-1914) and his wife Sarah (Sallie) Nancy Charlotte Luffman (1864-1940), who lived there. The name was changed in April 1971. HOLIDAY. At a board meeting of First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Tarpon Springs on Oct. 13, 1966, members discussed naming the new branch of the bank as the Holiday branch, since the post office had a substation on Holiday Drive nearby. In November 1967, board members suggested to local builders and newspaper reporters that future events in the area be referred to as occurring in Holiday. The bank gave away 1000 license plates for the front of automobiles reading “Holiday Florida.” [Information from an article by Gloria Focht in West Pasco’s Heritage] A 1968 newspaper article reported, “W. W. Boyd, president of First Federal of Tarpon Springs, helped to promote the name of Holiday for this area. According to Eddie Earle, Tarpon Springs postmaster, the name Holiday was first given to the branch post office of the Tarpon Springs office, which was set up in 1961.” HOPEVILLE, a small community located near the mouth of the Pithlachascotee River, was named after the pioneer Hope family. Frances Clark Mallett believes the name “Hopeville” may go back to about 1850, although the name Hopeville does not appear on maps until the Hopeville post office was established in 1878. According to Jeff Cannon, AME Church records refer to a Hopesville Mission in Florida in 1871-72. It is not known where it was located. HORSE ISLAND. On May 25, 1978, the New Port Richey Press reported: “Kenneth Knowles recently recounted the story of how Horse Island got its name. He reported that after a bad hurricane, a white horse bearing a government brand was found on the island. It was believed that the horse had fallen off of a troop vessel during the storm, and had somehow made its way to the island.” HUDSON was named for Isaac Washington Hudson. J. B. or J. W. Hudson wrote the following, as quoted in Hendley: B. L. Blackburn taught our first school, a three month term. The Post Office Department established a Star Route from Brooksville to the mouth of the Anclote River, and there was an office established out east of Port Richey at old man Worley’s place, the name of which was Hopeville. While Blackburn was teaching the school he got a Post Office established at Hudson. When the department asked for a name for the office, Brother Bill and Father suggested that we call it Hudson’s Landing, but I disagreed with them, and suggested the name of Gulf View, but Hudson’s Landing was sent up. And in a few days we were advised that the Department had cut off Landing and named the office Hudson, so this is how the town got its name, in the year of 1881. J. W. Hudson was made postmaster and J. B. Hudson was made assistant. JESSAMINE. An article by Wilma Ellsworth in East Pasco’s Heritage has: In 1887 the new Pasco County received two idealistic young business men, Walter N. Pike and William J. Ellsworth, who were intent on starting a seed and plant business in the land of flowers. They set up housekeeping with their brides in an old cabin on the edge of a small lake, about five miles southwest of Trilby. With strong backs hired from the settlement near the county line, they began the clearing of the pine and hammock acres—a slow process done with ax, mattock, saw, and much sweat of the brow. During this deforesting period, young Pike and Ellsworth were so impressed with the beauty and delicate fragrance of a certain wild flowering vine that they named their firm “Jessamine Gardens,” and their community “Jessamine.” Years later, in the wake of severe freezes, mail thefts, and financial panic widespread, they developed citrus under the name “Jessamine Groves,” thus continuing to emphasize the community name. LACOOCHEE is a shortened form of Withlacoochee, the river which runs past the town. LAKE IOLA was named for Iola, Kansas, by Luther C. Reed and his wife Nancy A. Reed. The 1910 census shows them living in Iola, Kansas. [Norman Carey] LAKE JOVITA. On Feb. 15, 1882, Judge Edmund F. Dunne and Captain Hugh Dunne, his cousin, are said to have come upon this lake and named it Lake Jovita because the feast of Sts. Faustinus and Jovita is celebrated on Feb. 15, the traditional date of their martyrdom. This information appears to come from Un Français Dans la Floride (1889) by Edmond Johanet. In an article in the Dade City Banner in 1935, J. A. Hendley wrote, “After the Catholics took hold of this part of the country, the name of Clear Lake was changed to Lake Jovita.” On Nov. 1, 1926, San Antonio was renamed Lake Jovita, but the name reverted back to San Antonio on Aug. 1, 1931. The lake is called Clear Lake on maps. LAND O’ LAKES. The following is from MacManus: The story of how it was named and who named it varies widely. According to a printed program from a 1949 Lutz Fourth of July celebration, the town was named in that year by popular vote at a June 13 meeting of the Denham-Drexel Civic Association. Virtually everyone who attended the meeting claimed credit for the naming. Judy Lynn Prince recalls her mother, Madeline Prince, long-time Land O’ Lakes real estate agent and community activist, saying she named it. Madeline, who moved to the area around 1945, told her daughter she stood up at a civic association meeting and urged others to choose “Land O’ Lakes” because it had “about 2,000 people and about 2,000 lakes.” According to another account that circulated for years, the name resulted from a 1949 name-the-place contest. Alvah “Sis” Hahs Kern, M. H. Sears, Helen Northrup, and a man from Wisconsin entered in hopes of winning the $25 prize. Some old-timers believe that all won; others that the Wisconsin man won. Actually, there were two winners, each of whom received a $25 check. One was the Wisconsin man, who simply borrowed the name from a popular brand of butter. The other was Edna Blair, who had just moved to the area from Indiana with her husband. A week or so after getting the check, she returned it to the fledgling civic association, claiming it needed the money worse than she. One thing is certain. The town name was actually adopted by its residents in 1949—not 1950, as stated on the historical marker at the community center. However, the Pasco County Historical Preservation Committee decided to use the 1950 date on the marker because that was the year the Ehren Post Office was closed and the Land O’ Lakes Post Office was opened. The 1950 date was also when the State of Florida Department of Transportation formally recognized the name and began putting it on maps. Local residents Walter and Betty Franzell took the request to Tallahassee on behalf of the Land O’ Lakes Civic Association. According to The Historic Places of Pasco County, “The town took the name Land O’ Lakes from a popular brand of butter. At a 1950 community meeting to discuss prospective names, local real estate broker M. H. Sears brought one of the brightly colored packages and convinced the assembly to select the name. The Land O’ Lakes butter company now supplies its product for the town’s annual flapjack festival.” [Although the Land O’ Lakes historical marker and the St. Petersburg Times use the spelling Land O’Lakes, the correct official spelling seems to be Land O’ Lakes (with a space after the apostrophe). This spelling (with the space) is used by the U. S. Bureau of the Census, the U. S. Postal Service, the Pasco County School District, U. S. Geological Survey maps, the U. S. Board on Geographic Names, and this web site. It is also the spelling used by Land O’ Lakes, Wisconsin.] LEHEUP HILL. According to information provided by Loren Fry, this hill was named for William A. LeHeup (the elder), who was born in Kingston, Ontario. He came to Florida from Wisconsin in 1911. A son, William A. (Bill) LeHeup, died on April 13, 2003, at age 98. According to his obituary, the son was born in Wisconsin “and came here 93 years ago.” According to a local researcher, census records show the LeHeup family lived in the town of True, Rusk County, Wisconsin, in 1910 before moving to Pasco County with their 8 children. LENARD may have been named for D. W. Leneard, an early settler. LEO KIDD AVENUE was named for Leo Kidd, a former Port Richey constable. He was also a welder, and he owned property where the street is now located. The name was adopted in 1987 to replace the name Madison Street as part of a program to eliminate duplicate street names. LITTLE ROAD was named for Desmond (Des) Little, who operated a paving company, according to several sources. He is one of the eight children of Samuel M. Little. According to a 1967 newspaper article based on an interview with him, Des Little he came to Florida with his parents in 1917, settling in Sarasota, and moved to Tarpon Springs in 1924 and to New Port Richey in 1927. He married Mickey DeCubellis, a daughter of Peter DeCubellis. According to Pauline Stevenson Ash, the road was named for Walter and Eva Little. Walter Little supervised the construction of U. S. 19 south from Hudson. LOYCE. Ruth Connor, formerly a resident of the town, believes it may have been named for a Mr. Loyce, perhaps associated with the railroad industry. Census records from the period seem not to show anyone with that last name in Florida. McLEOD. According to an article by J. A. Hendley, this area was settled in 1879 by William McLeod and his sons Daniel, Eligah, William Jr., and Freeman. [The town was later renamed Macon and then Trilby.] MERIDIAN AVENUE. According to Carol Jeffares Hedman, the surveyor platting the streets of Dade City named the avenue after his hometown of Meridian, Miss. MILLER’s BAYOU was named for Samuel Edward Miller (see the early residents page) [WPH]. The term Miller’s Bayou is found in a 1925 newspaper. MOOG ROAD was apparently named for Fred Moog, born 1887. However, a Herman Moog, who died in 1951 at age 75, wintered in Florida in the 1930s and 1940s and owned a home and grove on Moog Road. Joe Knight, who was born in Elfers, recalls that the road was originally called Swartzel’s Lane. MYRTLE was named for the myrtle trees that grew there, according to Elizabeth MacManus. NEW PORT RICHEY. According to an article on the history of the New Port Richey Post Office by Gerben M. DeVries, it was U. S. Rep. Stephen Milancthon Sparkman (1849-1929), who served in Congress from 1895 to 1917, who suggested the name “New Port Richey”: Six or seven years ago there was no post office here—there was no New Port Richey, in fact. Those of us who lived in this part got our mail from Port Richey. No direct road connected what is now New Port Richey and Port Richey. There was an old wagon trail by way of the Casson house and the old Clark grove, and there was a shorter woods path along what is now Madison street, thence on through the Casson place, and coming out at the point where the Herms floral gardens are now located. The other route was by row boat down the river. We generally took the latter, and caught our supper and breakfast by trauling as we went. I remember one day I caught 36 trout and jack fish trauling to Port Richey after the mail. Generally the one who went got the mail for the rest of the bunch. He was also expected to bring back two fish for each letter. If there were a dozen letters it was up to him to catch 24 fish. As we increased in population we tired of this. It was reasoned that the Star Route carrier might just as well return to Tarpon Springs on this side of the river, and leave our mail in boxes instead of going back on the other side over the Old Post Road. So we set apart a day and cleared a road through the Hill place (now the Casson farm) and down part of what is now Madison street; and along this route we put up our mail boxes. But the carrier, Driver by name, had a will of his own which we had not reckoned with, and he would not accept this as his routing, hence all our work went for nothing. This disappointment, however, did not peeve us. We said, “If we cannot be served by carrier from Port Richey we will get a postoffice of our own.” It was suggested by the Port Richey Company, by Mr. Holzscheiter and others that I circulate two petitions, one for a postoffice here, the other for my being appointed postmaster. I really did not consider the job worth having, but the Port Richey Company, by whom I was then employed, said I could put the postoffice in their office building, which was then standing in the middle of Main street, surrounded by saw-palmetto, and they would not deduct anything from my wages for the time consumed in taking care of the mail. Under these conditions, then, I set about getting everybody south of the Herms property to sign the petitions. They were presented with about 80 names, as I remember, the one seeking appointment as postmaster being the duplicate of the other so far as signatures were concerned. In due time the petitions were acted upon, and I was examined for the important position of postmaster. But a delay occurred in establishing the office on account of our not choosing a suitable name. The department contended that since there was already a Newport Florida and a Port Richey, Florida Newport-Richey would lead to errors and confusion. Quite a number then favored calling the place Chascotee, after the latter part of our river’s name. This, too was considered unsuitable by the land company and many of us settlers, who had done so much advertising under the name of Port Richey. We got in touch with our congressman—Hon. Mr. Sparkman, and on his suggestion, got up another petition, asking that the place be named New Port Richey, dividing “Newport” into two words. After some correspondence the department accepted this naming. A copy of this petition is now on file in the Avery Library and Historical Society’s rooms, with the original signatures copied. I received my commission as postmaster dated July 21st, 1915, but, as I did not at once receive my supplies and regulations, the office was not established until August 30th, 1915. The quotation above is excerpted from an article in the New Port Richey Press of Jan. 27, 1921. The name New Port Richey appears in the minutes of the Pasco County school board meeting of May 3-4, 1915. OAKDALE. The History of Zephyrhills 1821-1921 by Rosemary W. Trottman has: “John Spivey filed for homestead land between Pretty Pond and what is now Lake Zephyr. He built a home and called the place Oakdale.” OLD POST ROAD. According to a newspaper column by Ralph Bellwood, after Aaron M. Richey moved to Tarpon Springs, the post office was taken over by J. W. Clark, who moved the facilities to his home on the north bank of the Pithlachascotee River. “Then the mail was brought on horseback from Brooksville, over what was known as the old Post Road, remnants of which are still seen going north from the city and one of its streets still bears the name of Post Road. Later, mail was delivered to the Port Richey Post Office via horse and buggy from Tarpon Springs.” According to Bellwood, when Aaron Richey was postmaster, he brought the mail on his schooner from Anclote. OLD SALT ROAD was so named “because it was used during the Civil War by people who came to the beach to obtain salt from the sea water” [Stanaback]. PASADENA. A letter published in the Springfield Republican in 1897 has: “Pasadena was settled only a few years ago, and was named from Pasadena, Cal.” PASCO was named for Samuel Pasco (1834-1917). Information on him is here. PERRINE RANCH ROAD was named for Lester Perrine, owner of the Perrine Dairy Ranch southeast of Elfers. He was a native of Kingston, N. Y. He died Sept. 6, 1965. PITHLACHASCOTEE. Florida Place-Names of Indian Origin and Seminole Personal Names by William A. Read, Ph. D., has: The source of this name is Seminole-Creek pilo, “canoe,” and chàskita, “to chop,” “to cut”—that is to say, “the river where canoes are made.” In 1925, Dr. John R. Stanton, an ethnologist with the Smithsonian Institute, in response to a query stated that “pithlo” meant “canoe” and the whole word appears to have some meaning like “place where canoes are cut out” or “where a canoe was cut out,” and that the language was Seminole. Washington Hood’s map of the Seat of War in Florida (1838) has the spelling Pithlochascotee. An 1846 map has “Pithlo-Chascotee River or Boat Building River.” Other nineteenth-century maps have Eschaskotee River and Echashotee River. (However an 1839 map has the Anclote River labeled both as the Anclote River and Ets-has-hotee.) The 1854 Gazetteer of the United States of America by John Hayward has: “Tagabona Bay, Fa., lies off the coast of Benton co., and receives several rivers, the principal of which are the Weekiwachee, the Pithlochastotoc, and the Anclote.” An 1855 map has “Boatbuilding River.” Some maps show Haley’s or Heley’s River; these seem to be names for the Pithlachascotee River. In 1879, S. T. Walker of Clearwater studied Indian burial mounds near the Pithlachascotee River. In the Smithsonian Report, he wrote, “This little stream is known by various names. The older maps designate it as the Achaskotie, others as the Pith-le-ches-kotie, but it is commonly known among the people as the Kootie.” Camping and Cruising in Florida (1884) has: “From Anclote we proceeded ten miles northward, to Pithlachesticootie River, called ‘Cootie’ for short, a small stream, with its mouth completely blocked by oyster reefs.” A Handbook of Florida by Charles Ledyard Norton (1891) has: “The Indian name in full is Ach-as-koo-tee, or Pith-lo-ches-koo-tee, but custom has adopted 'Kootee' as sufficiently distinctive.” An 1883 map has Cootie River. An 1891 book, Catalogue of Prehistoric Works East of the Rocky Mountains, by Cyrus Thomas, has Kootie River. An 1897 list of Pasco County schools includes a Cootie School. In a 1905 letter, David Clark referred to the Cootie. A 1912 Port Richey Co. brochure has Pithlachascotee and Cotee. In 1913, the Tarpon Springs Leader called the river the Cootie River. In 1916, the New Port Richey Post called it the Cotee River. In 1917 Arthur Guy Empey used the word cooties for body lice in a popular book, Over the Top. [The Oxford English Dictionary shows his use of the word in a different publication in 1917 as the earliest known use of the word.] In the 1920s the New Port Richey Press recommended Cotee over Cootie. PLATHE ROAD was named for Louis B. Plathe (1891-1978), who lived on the road for about 60 years, until his death in 1977 at age 86, according to Glen Dill. He was born in Norway. PLEASANT PLAINS. MacManus has: “Sometimes stagecoach stops took the names of families that lived nearby. The Pleasant Plains stop, just south of Brooksville, probably got its name from all the people with the first name of Pleasant who lived nearby, like Pleasant Gold.” PORT RICHEY was named for Aaron McLaughlin Richey. See the early settlers page of this website for information on him. PROSPECT. According to Marvin Gaskin (1897-1977), the community took its name from Prospect Branch Arbor Church. His father recalled that Holiness, Methodist, and other Christians joined in community worship under a branch arbor near a large spring. [Information from East Pasco’s Heritage] RICHLAND. The Tuckertown post office was renamed Richland on July 17, 1886. The school property was deeded to the school board in 1887 by Thomas H. Evans of Pasco County and Albert T. Evans of Richland Parish, Louisiana. Perhaps Richland was named for the Louisiana parish. ST. LEO. According to James J. Horgan: Saint Leo College and Abbey are named for three “Leos.” In the most technical sense, the school and monastery are named for Pope Saint Leo I the Great (440-461), the only saint in the bunch. He was the pope who fended off Attila the Hun at the gates of Rome in 452, and his statue stands in front of the Library. Secondly, the reigning pontiff at the time the college opened was Pope Leo XIII. He sent a set of Mass vestments for the dedication. Most of all, however, Leo Haid is the real namesake of this place. He accepted responsibility for the Florida mission in 1889 from Saint Vincent Archabbey in Latrobe, Pa., which had sent the first Benedictine (the Rev. Gerard Pilz) to San Antonio in 1886, but which was too far away to supervise the operation. Leo Haid (1849-1924), who was not only Abbot of Maryhelp but Bishop of North Carolina, made the decision to found the college and bargained with Judge Edmund Dunne for the 36 acres on which it was built. He obtained a charter for it from the state of Florida, saw to its construction and development, and served as its first president from 1890 to 1894, at.which point the Rev. Charles Mohr succeeded him when the Saint Leo Benedictines gained their autonomy from Haid’s abbey. SAPLING WOODS. A July 8, 1893, newspaper refers to “Sapling Woods village.” Ella Mae Hay Patterson recalled that Sapling Woods was a settlement at East Elfers Cemetery. The cemetery is located just southeast of New Port Richey. The Sapling Woods Methodist Church was located here. In a letter to the New Port Richey Presspublished on Jan. 12, 1922, Mrs. J. O. T. Brown of Jacksonville, a daughter of Aaron Richey, wrote that earlier names for Elfers were the Neck, and Sapling Woods. SEVEN SPRINGS. An 1848 survey shows “Sulpher Spring” and maps from 1880 to 1905 show “Sulphur Springs” in this location. A few maps also have Sulphur Creek, apparently another name for the Anclote River. The name may have been changed from Sulphur Springs to Seven Springs to distinguish it from the Sulphur Springs in Tampa. A plat map of Seven Springs appears to be filed Jan. 15, 1913. In an article about Elfers, the Tarpon Springs Leader of May 9, 1913, has: “The famous ’seven Springs' are near here.” School board minutes from June 1913 refer to the Seven Springs School. SHINGLETON got its name from a large shingle-producing mill, according to MacManus. SLAUGHTER was named for Harrison H. Slaughter, a pioneer settler who came to Florida from Virginia. TEN CENT ROAD. MacManus has: “During the Depression, WPA workers built a road about five miles long from Ehren near the well field to Pasco Station near I-75. The men were paid 10 cents an hour, according to Daisy Kersey whose husband Warren worked on the road. This explains how it became known as 'Ten Cent Road'—a name it still retains.” THYS ROAD was named for either Leo Thys (age 50 in the 1930 census, born in Belgium) or Louis T. Thys (1892-1972). My Pioneer Days in West Pasco by Julie J. Obenreder has: Leo Thys lived in a rambling house on the old Gunn Highway (S. R. 54). He had quite a large grove on his property. He was a devout Catholic and went to Mass in New Port Richey almost every day, driving past our house on the way. He had a 1932 Model A Ford which he kept in perfect condition. He would stop and visit with Roy. He made grapefruit wine from his own recipe and invited us to come to his home and sample his wine. We went over one day and had a friendly chat, sipping on a glass of his specialty. After a couple of sips you could really feel it. It was strong stuff. Thys Road, just off East Trouble Creek Road, was named in memory of Leo Thys. He was a good man and a good neighbor. TOADCHUDKA, which was an Indian village apparently located 2 to 3 miles northwest of what is now Blanton, means “muddy waters,” according to the My Blanton web site. The village name is also spelled Toachatka, Toachadka, Toacadka, Toachudka, Toachudor, Toachadco, and Toachadoo in various documents. Toadthodka Drive is a street near Blanton. TOMMYTOWN. Tim Barfield writes, “Tommytown was named after my father, Tommy Barfield, who owned much of the area in the period following World War 2. He, along with Dorothy Lock, purchased much of the property adjacent to what was then known as Pasco Packing Association, later to become Lykes Pasco...and the street to be eventually named Lock Street.” According to a 2003 St. Petersburg Times article, “It was named for Tommy Barfield, the plant employee who helped build many of the block duplex apartments.” TRILACOOCHEE or TRILCOOCHEE is apparently so named because it is located midway between Trilby and Lacoochee. The name is spelled Trilcoochee on published maps and lists of town names, but it is now usually spelled Trilacoochee locally. In 1932 the Dade City Banner used Trilcoochee. In the Dade City Banner of Sept. 13, 1940, it is spelled Trillacoochee. TRILBY was named for George du Maurier’s Trilby, which was published serially in Harper’s Monthly in 1894. Its platted streets and square were named for characters in the novel. Upon publication, the novel caused a sensation in Britain and America. In its first year of publication, the book sold 200,000 copies in the U. S. According to a Tampa Tribune article, Henry Plant named the town after his wife’s favorite book. TRINITY. Trinity Communities derives its name from the relocation of Trinity College of Florida to the first occupied site in the communities developed by Dr. James Gills. TROUBLE CREEK “got its name from the fact that at low tide difficulty was encountered in getting in and out of the cove,” according to Bellwood. According to WPH, “Trouble Creek Road got its name from the fact that it was so difficult to get the boats in and out of the Anclote River, which was used so much for commercial purposes. And also, the bridge which was the main route to Tarpon crossed the Anclote out around the spot where the river bridge is today that goes into the Anclote subdivision. The edge of the river was boggy in wet weather or when the tide was high, and it was too dry and low when the tide was low, so the boats had to be put in and out at the right tide. It was such a lot of trouble that the settlers called it Trouble Creek.” The information was taken from an interview with Mrs. Will Baillie. The name Trouble Creek appears in an 1879 report on excavation of Indian burial mounds by S. T. Walker of Clearwater. TUCKER. MacManus has: “Descendants of Thomas and Sarah Tucker moved to the mid-section of the county around 1842 and gave the area its name.” TUCKERTOWN. The historical marker at the Tucker Cemetery reads, “Thomas and Sarah Tucker settled in the area about 1842 and in 1845 planted the county’s first orange grove. Family history records an earlier generation of Tuckers lived in the vicinity about 1790. The surrounding community was called Tuckertown until the railroad came through and the name was changed to Richland.” VEREEN. This town near Hudson was named by Abraham and Susanna Bellamy for her parents, Joseph and Susanna Vereen. WESLEY CHAPEL. A historical marker has: “Originally called Double Branch for the twin creeks that flowed across the Boyette land, the community was named for the Methodist chapel that stood on the northwest corner of SR 54 and Boyette Road.” The church itself was named for John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement. The name “Wesley Chapel” appears in school board minutes from 1887. A post office operated here from 1897 to 1902. The post office was apparently called “Wesley,” as maps from that era show "Wesley" and school board minutes used “Wesley” at that time. WIRE ROAD. According to J. A. Hendley, “The first telegraph office in this section was located at Tuckertown. The federal government built a line from Ocala to Tampa via Tuckertown along the public highway which is known to this day as the Wire road.” This is the widely accepted origin of the name, although maps from the period when Hendley wrote this show that Wire Road did not run to Richland (Tuckertown) but instead took the route of today’s Fifth St. through Dade City from approximately its intersection north of town with River Road of today. Exiting Dade City to the south, Wire Road took the route of today’s U. S. 301 from Dade City to Greer, with an eastward jog at Greer (off from 301 of today), then south into Zephyrhills. The latter part of this route is still today named Wire Road. The name Wire Road is found in County Commission minutes of Oct. 10, 1887, when commissioners approved a new road stretching from the Lanier Bridge to Wire Road. “Petition No. 2. Presented by J. R. Sumner for road from bridge on Withlacoochee River in Sec. 32, Tp 24, R22 to the Wire Road.” In 1887 telegraph lines apparently did not exist along Wire Road. ZEPHYRHILLS. The History of Zephyrhills 1821-1921 has: Capt. H. B. Jeffries, retired soldier and journalist, and his associates were enthusiastic. Standing on the highest hill north of Abbott station, enjoying the view and mild west wind, it is little wonder that they named their planned city Zephyrhills and took to themselves the title of the Zephyrhills Colony Company. Requests were promptly sent to the Railroad Commission and the Post Office Department for an official change of name from Abbott to Zephyrhills. The History of Zephyrhills 1821-1921 also has: Mr. Hill, under surveyor Lacey, had been engaged to place corner stakes on the lots and tracts. One day when Mr. Jeffries was with him, the matter of the name for the colony came up and Mr. Jeffries said, “Maybe we should name it for you and me and call it Jeffries Hills.” And so it was for a time. Just before Mr. Smith’s account, a descendant of Mr. Hill told me that it had been called Jeffries Hills for a time and then the Colony Company settled upon the permanent name of Zephyrhills. An article in the Zephyrhills News on April 21, 1933, reported on Jeffries' 90th birthday and apparently interviewed him. The newspaper reported, “In naming the town, Zephyrhills, Captain Jeffries felt it would describe the town’s desirable location and would tell the world in one word of its constant and gentle breezes and everlasting hills.” [The article also appeared in the Dade City Banner.] Another source has: “While showing the countryside to prospective residents from the top of LeHeup Hill on historic Fort King road, he [Capt. Howard B. Jeffries] overheard a chance remark about the rolling hills and zephyr-like breezes. Impressed by the melodic combination, he coined a new name for this colony company.” Some early residents believe the colony was originally called Jeffries Hills and that the name evolved from that to Zephyrhills. |