Jacksonville Architecture

Jacksonville's Architectural Heritage - Book Info



	Index of Brooklyn Sites References During the late 1700's Francis Richard settled on the land south of McCoy's Creek (then called Richard's Creek), in what would later become Brooklyn and Riverside. But he soon abandoned this property and established his permanent residence down the river at Pottsburg Creek. The first recorded development in this area was a plantation built by Philip Dell, who received 800 acres from the Spanish government in 1801. Stretching nearly two miles southwest from McCoy's Creek, the shoreline of this tract formed a bluff as high as sixteen feet overlooking the river. The area became known as "Dell's Bluff." In 1805 Dell sold the property to John H. McIntosh, who owned other large plantations at Fort George Island and Ortega. Over the next forty years Dell's Bluff passed through several different owners until it was purchased by James B. Winter, who operated a substantial corn and cotton plantation there. ¹ When Winter died in 1857, the entire estate was put up for sale and was described in a newspaper advertisement as follows: This tract of land is valuable not only for planting purposes but, owing to its immediate vicinity to the flourishing and growing Town of Jacksonville, is well adapted for private residences — its position being on the River — the Bluff high and commanding an extensive view of the River St. Johns. That portion adjacent to the Town of Jacksonville and lying on McCoy's Creek will at once find ready purchasers at good prices, if lots are laid out and offered for sale. ² Most of the tract was purchased by Miles Price, who heeded the advertisement's advice and began to sell off the plantation land. In 1865 he sold the southernmost five-hundred acres to John Murray Forbes who developed it as "Riverside." Price kept about a hundred acres bounded by McCoy's Creek and the river, which he platted as "Brooklyn." Since no earlier reference to "Brooklyn" has been found, it is presumed that Miles Price gave it that name. But Price was a die-hard Confederate veteran, and why he would choose such a Yankee-sounding name is still a mystery. He did, however, commemorate his Rebel leanings by naming two of his newly platted streets "Stonewall" and "Jackson" after the famous Southern general. ³ By 1886, when Brooklyn was annexed to the City of Jacksonville, it had grown to a population of nearly 1,000. Over 250 structures, mostly small frame houses, had been built there by 1893. Between Riverside Avenue (formerly Commercial Street) and the riverfront, though, a handful of prominent citizens built towering wooden mansions. These included the residences of Secretary of the Treasury Francis Elias Spinner, industrial manufacturer Frederick M. Robinson (see RA-82), lumberman J. K. Russell, and publisher Horace Drew. ⁴ The most spectacular house was that of Mayor J. C. Greeley, father of architect Mellen C. Greeley. This six-story gingerbread house was a popular spot with weekend visitors. Its tower provided an excellent view of the city, the harbor, and Henry Flagler's recently completed railroad bridge nearby. This and the other stately riverfront houses stood in mocking contrast to the cowboys and their herds of cattle that frequently thundered down Riverside Avenue on their way to the slaughterhouse on Lackawanna (now Edison) Avenue. ⁵ Now these elegant mansions are gone. Commercial and industrial development in the area has pushed out many of the former residential dwellings. But the neighborhood has come full cycle. Present redevelopment plans call for the construction of luxury housing units in Brooklyn, which will renew the residential character of one of the city's oldest suburbs. ENDNOTES ¹ Davis p.42; Hallam,+++ Riverside Remembered p.6; Werndli, Historical and Architectural pp.4-5; Ward p.249. ² The News, Dec.16, 1858. ³ Davis p.42; Hallam pp.7-8; Deed records at Title & Trust Co. ⁴ Craig p.42; LeBaron Map 1885; Koch Map 1893; Hallam pp.100-101; Maps of Brooklyn 1890-1900 drawn by Mellen C. Greeley, August 1971. ⁵ Esgate p.181; Hallam pp.11-19. For key to references, see Bibliography.



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