This engine (BL2 601) pulls cars of gravel along the tracks of the Florida East Coast rails north of Jupiter in 1957. This photo is from ‘Speedway to Sunshine’ by FEC historian Seth Bramson. This is a must-get book to[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…
“Sanford with riverboat and railroad connections soon became the transportation hub for South Florida. Sanford’s growth as an agricultural center in the early 20th century brought more trains and expanded highways for trucks. Sanford was the largest shipping point for[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…
This is a promotional shot of 3 E9 A locomotives of the Florida East Coast Railway fleet in Downtown Miami in 1955. The E9 A were considered by their crews to be the “Cadillac” of engines due to the power[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…
As the description states, this is the Overseas Express of Henry Flagler’s Florida East Coast Railway coming to the terminus of the line in Key West to exchange passengers and goods with the P.&O. steamer that will move on to[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…
According to Taplines, a terrific resource for train history, this locomotive is one of the first brought into Gainesville in the late 1800s by the Florida Southern line.You can learn more here: http://www.taplines.net/fs/fs.html
This is the Jacksonville, Tampa & Key West engine no. 5 built in 1884. This photo is from ‘The Locomotives Baldwin Built’ by Fred Westing. You can purchase a copy by clicking here or below.
A lot of national and international businesses got their start in Florida. Chico’s is one of those. Back in 1983 the first store, above, opened on Sanibel Island selling gifts and island clothing. That original store is still open amongst[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…
This is the Florida Midland Railroad depot in Ocoee, in west Orange County. The photo is from here and you can read a bit more about the depot there.
Here is an image of Jacksonville, Tampa, Key West Railway sometime in the 1800s. The railroad was incorporated in 1878 as the Tampa, Peace Creek and St. Johns Railway with the intent of providing rail service to areas on the[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…
Notice the cut trees loaded on the flats. This is a train owned by the Crummer Cypress Company bringing the dead wood into Lacoochee, in Pasco County, to be sliced and diced for shipment. It seems this is a load[…]↓ Read the rest of this entry…