Markham

The pine flat woods that dominated the landscape provided economic activity for residents of the Markham area. After William Markham purchased the land in 1875, a vibrant African-American community developed lumber, turpentine, and agricultural activity here in the 1880s and early 1900s following construction of the Sanford and Lake Eustis Railway. Over the years, lumber operations in the area included the Overstreet Turpentine Company, the Spencer Sawmill, the Zachary Lumber Company, and Wilson Cypress Company. The planks and timbers used to build the first bridge over the Wekiva River were milled at Markham, and the Wekiva's basswood trees were cut to make cigar boxes in the 1920s and 1930s. Oak Grove Missionary Baptist Church stood at the center of this African-American community as the hub of religious, educational, political, and community life, providing a safe place to assemble freely to worship, discuss, learn, and socialize, and also serving as the school where members educated their children with ideals and values. Next to the church was Pinnie Ridge (Grove) Cemetery, commonly called the Piney Woods Cemetery, where the wooden grave markers have disappeared. The people of Markham built railroads, produced lumber and turpentine, grew citrus, worked the land, and attracted not only a labor pool but also permanent settlers who bought their own land, built homes, farmed, educated their children, and endured many hardships with dignity.

Florida · United States