High Bid Wins. No Reserve

Current Price: $420.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

This is a great 20 Acre parcel in the Terlingua Ranch Subdivision. In the vast Big Bend country of far west Texas there is a land of canyons, high mountains, deep ravines and panoramic views. You can expect to see wild life such as deer, javelina, quail and dove, as well as many others. There's a tremendous variety of desert plants. The air is clean and clear. This is home to Big Bend National Park, one of the nation's largest, and Big Bend Ranch State Park, the largest state park in Texas. Mexico is just across the river (Rio Grande).

Legal Description/Address

Terlingua Ranch Block 15, LOT 15 TRACT: 2835 E/2-NE/4-NW/4 Brewster County, Texas

Prop ID# 24407

Residential/Agricultural.

20 Acres

Road

Dirt Roads/Easements---

http://maps.google.ca/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=29+28.754n+103+40.578w&sll=49.891235,-97.15369&sspn=25.669235,86.220703&ie=UTF8&ll=29.50894,-103.676605&spn=0.540205,1.347198&z=10&iwloc=A

There is no electrical service or water on this land; cell phones work in some areas.

Taxes are $81.00 per annum + $155 per year property owner association fees.. http://www.poatri.org 

Time Limit to Build

No time limit

$250.00 Closing fee will be added to the total winning bid. This covers all Lawyer fees, mailings, and recording the deed with the county.

 Payment is to be made via Paypal or by Cashiers Check and must be paid within 3 Days of close of auction. Once your final payment is received your deed will be prepared and mailed into the county to be recorded. You will receive a copy in the mail and the original recorded deed will then be sent to you by the county.
Buyer must do own DUE DILIGENCE before bidding. Seller may close auction at anytime.
Any non-paying bidder will be reported to EBAY as such, left negative feedback
Serious bidders ONLY!

Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $420.00 | Bid $425.00 Now! | # of Bids: 13
End Time: 2010-09-30T17:12:41.000Z

Great Campsites, Fishing & Big Gold!! #1 Trusted Seller

Current Price: $980.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

Eureka Placer #334

item description

Please Be Advised All Maintenance Fees Are Paid Until Next September 1st, 2011.

Thanks!!

Please Scroll To The Right Margin To See More Bigger Pictures, Thanks!!

Sorry we no longer take Pay-Pal Or Credit Cards. Acceptable Forms Of Payment Are Money Order, Cashier's Check, Personal Check, Wire Transfer and Direct Bank Deposit.

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Please take note this is a mining claim not private property. Mining claims are mineral rights to Government Land and the right to extract precious metals. Mining claims are considered real property and can be bought, sold, leased, willed, transferred, etc. You may stay on your claim in a travel trailer or motorhome while mining your claim. Fixed or attached buildings are not permitted on federal mining claims.

General Claim Description

Eureka Mining Inc is once again extremely proud to offer you another sensational, rich unpatented placer gold mining claim totaling 160 acres on the Middle Fork Of The Consumnes River in El Dorado County, California 20 miles east of the historic little mining town of Jackson in a nice secluded but very accessible location. This unique claim is located just a few miles east of the Historic Mining District of Indian Diggins directly in the Mother Lode Gold Belt. This area is well known for having extremely rich placer deposits and nice gold quartz specimens. This claim has approx. 3/4 of a mile of river frontage and a couple of nice year round streams that drain into the river on the claim as well. With massive amounts of gravel bars and exsposed bedrock, gold will be abundant on this claim. Most of the gold in this region is derived from many numerous high grade quartz veins and several patches of auriferous tertiary gravel deposits of the Ancient Mokelumne River that have been eroding and weathering into The North Fork Of The Consumnes River for millions of years. While sampling the claim we found some great gold in several locations on bedrock and along the gravel bars. Also found on this claim is a wonderfull clean well kept campground, offering bathrooms, garbage disposal, picnic tables and barbeque's directly along side of The Middle Fork Of The Consumnes River. Access is easily achieved off Cat Creek Road off Highway 88. There are numerous lovely campsites right along the river's edge in nice secluded locations. This claim is accessible by two and four wheel drive vehicles, even cars and multiple large rv's & travel trailers. Claim attributes include a rich gold bearing year round river and other streams, 8 inch dredges when allowed, great paved & dirt road access, seclusion & privacy, unbelievable gold, exposed bedrock, tons of gold bearing quartz float, great fishing, tailing piles and beautiful scenary. The Middle Fork Of The Consumnes River provides ample year round water to support 3 inch highbankers or bigger and 8 inch dredges when legally allowed. The name of this claim is Eureka Placer #334. The terrain on this claim is semi flat to rolling with a sparsely wooded forest. If your looking for an unbelievable producing claim with great access, look no further !!

Please take note this is not a down payment, percentage, or share auction, high bidder or high offer takes this wonderfull claim. Please feel free to go and sample this amazing claim, Thanks!!

Claim Specifics

Eureka Placer #334

Section 34 , Township 9N, Range 15E, Mount Diablo Meridian

SW 1/4 Of Section 34

160 Acres

El Dorado County Recording #2010-0010616-00

CAMC # 296567

Approx. 3/4 A Mile Of Stream Frontage On Beautiful Gold Rich Middle Fork Of The Consumnes River!!

Please See Map Below For Precise GPS Coordinates !!

GPS Coodinates

1. 38 Degrees 35.241N By 120 Degrees 18.808W Elevation 5280

2. 38 Degrees 34.804N By 120 Degrees 18.841W Elevation 5538

3. 38 Degrees 34.798N By 120 Degrees 18.296W Elevation 5324

4. 38 Degrees 35.241N By 120 Degrees 18.292W Elevation 5354

Driving Directions

From Jackson, California take Highway 88 east towards South Lake Tahoe. Stay on Highway 88 for approx. 32 and turn left on Cat Creek Road or Forest Service Road 8N 80. Continue on Cat Creek Road for approx. 8 miles and turn left into the campground. Go through the campground on Forest Service Road 8N 44 for approx. 2 tenths of a mile or until reaching the creek crossing. The claim starts 100 yards downstream from the creek crossing along 8N 44 and continues downstream along the river for 3/4 of a mile. Along 8N 44 you will find numerous campsites equipped with picnic tables and barbeques right along the edge of the river. Eureka Placer #334 encompasses some of the prettiest scenary and nicest gold that the Motherlode has to offer. Feel free to sample this awesome claim, you'll find color, we gaurantee it!! Please call if you have any problems finding this claim.

Thanks !!

Feel Free To Sample This Spectacular Claim Before Listings End !! Thanks

Access

Accessible of Forest Service Road 8N 44 off Cat Creek Road. These roads are accessible by two & four wheel drive vehicles, even cars, large motorhomes and travel trailers. There is wonderfull campsites along the streams edge plenty large enough for large rv's and travel trailers to fulfill your recreation and mining needs. Please call or email if you have any questions or problems finding the claim.

Good Luck & Enjoy !!

Gold Districts of California

HISTORY 

El Dorado County, California

LOCAL HISTORY.

GRIZZLY FLAT

Sometime in the summer or fall of 1850 Lyc. L. Ramsey, (died in February 1876,) better known then and since as "Buck Ramsey," with a company of prospectors was searching for gold on the mountains between the North and Middle Forks of the Cosumnes river, in the eastern portion of the county. The party were enjoying their evening meal near one of those noble springs, that abound in the vicinity, relishing after a hard day's toil the usual miner's feast of those times--bread, bacon and coffee. The repast was not ended before an unexpected visitor, parting the brush and cracking the dried limbs and leaves under his tread presented himself. He was a magnificent specimen of Sierra's noblest beast--a grizzly bear. His intrusion lasted but a moment. Rapidly, but perfectly self possessed, "Buck" grasped his rifle, and with a ringing shot sent his majesty tearing through the underbrush, over the flat and down a steep declivity where he was subsequently found, a trophy of the skill and coolness of the lamented pioneer. This incident furnished the appropriate name which the village bears. The flat, or undulating ground where this scene occured*, and where the town was soon after located, proved to be rich in gold. Ramsey and his party did not, however, remain, but others soon followed and in the Spring of 1851 placer diggings, rich and extensive, were found for miles around, and though distant and somewhat difficult of access, the camp grew in number.

Among the first settlers of the place was Wm. Knox, who located near the Flat in the fall of 1851. Hiram and Eben Odlin about the same time pitched their tent near Steely's Fork, then not named, and after an absence of more than twenty years have returned to the scene of their early labors, and have engaged in their old advocation*--mining.

Grizzly Flt is situated about 23 miles a little south of east of Placerville, between the two Middle Forks of the Cosumnes river. The North Fork of the Cosumnes, heading well in the Sierra Nevada, lies three miles north-west of the village; Steely's Fork of the same river, but one half mile distant to the southeast. "String Canyon" was one of the richest that has been in the district, and probably in the county, heads directly in town and flows 3 miles westerly to join the Cosumnes. In 1852, the ridge leading down from Leak Springs and between the Forks of the Cosumnes was adopted as one of the principal roads by the emigrants of that year; nothing but a dim trace of this old thoroughfare can be discovered, and its solitude is broken only by the annual prilgrimage* of the dairymen or sheepherders. The usual red soil predominates, yielding liberally, as often proved, to miner and farmer both. Grand forests of spruce and sugar pine extend up to the summit.

It was soon found that our golden treasures were not confined to the beds of our rivers and canyons, or to the surface of our flats and the deep breast of our gravel hills. Our quartz veins, like lines of longitude on the school-maps, traverse the earth throughout the whole region, and many of the most extensive and costly enterprises have been in this branch of mining; that they were not successful or only partially so in the early days, affords no proof, as we can well understand, against their value to-day.

Among the earliest and most extensive operators in quartz was Victor J. W. Steely. In March, 1852, he discovered and located one of the many ledges in the district, and in the progress of his work erected two mills at different points upon that branch of the Cosumnes that bears his name; from these he built a wooden railroad nearly a mile in length to his mines which lies about three-fourths of a mile south-west of the village. In these improvements he spent large sums of money; he was a man of great energy of character, preserving, and full of hope. All of his own capital, and the means of many of his friends and of the employees were cheerfully and confidently loaned to help the enterprise. But years of trial and industry, which in those days meant experiment, finally ended in failure, and the ruin of the old mills on Steely's Fork, the vestiges of the railroads up the mountain side, open cut at the Mt. Pleasant, the well known handwriting in the book of laws and regulations of Mt. Pleasant mining district, -- of which he was Secretary for many years, and a few notes of hand, sere and yellow of age, are the remaining souvenirs that remind us of Dr. Steely the quartz miner, not only of Grizzly Flat, but El Dorado County and perhaps of the State. --Col. Knox also engaged during Steely's time quite extensively in quartz mining, but with the imperfect knowledge of those days with no better success.

From that day to this quartz mining, with varied results, has been the principal industries of the district. The Eagle Quartz Mine, located the same year as the Steely, was famous in its day for the wealth it poured into the hands of its lucky owners. Much of the reputation which this camp enjoys followed the working of this mine. Among its original owners were Dr. Clark, its discoverer ; his nephew, Robert Clark ; Elijah Kink, Benjamin Joiner, -------- Tuomey and John Cable. Clark, King, Tuomey and Cable are no longer living, and Joiner--known as Dr. Joiner--still lives in String canyon, near the locality of his old property.

Like the balance of the ledges, work on the Eagle was done principally on the surface. No considerable depth has been attained in that or any of the neighbors. The Mount Pleasant has a depth of three hundred feet. Want of faith or want of money--the latter probably--has kept these quartz miners in the upper levels ; but it is to be hoped that a better day is dawning. Persistent going down will hereafter be in order until they pay. These mines and dozens of other are crying aloud for justice, which means that they are tired of mere surface scratching ; that their real worth lies deep, and are awaiting the dalliance of the miner's pick to yield bountifully their golden affection.

From 1853 to '57 the fever of quartz mining prevailed, but not to the exclusion of placer or river mining, which held their own in the contest for supremacy. Among other notable mines was the Roberts' lead, struck in 1855 by that man, which proved rich for a season, and work, when it involved cost, was continued. At present it is owned by A. B. Driesbach, of Carson City. Also, the Valle del Oro, operated in 1867 by Captain Gedge, now of the steamer New World. This is a southern neighbor of the Mount Pleasant, and had a forty stamp mill, hoisting works, etc., erected on the ledge, when work ceased, the mill and other property sold, carried off and rebuilt twenty miles below, upon a worse mine. So also with the Mount Pleasant (originally Steely). This mine, after several years of abandonment, resumed work in 1867, spending three-fourths of their capital in the wrong place--on the top instead of under the ground--with only partial success. In March, 1872, it ceased operations. Its extensive improvements--a twenty stamp mill, boiler, engine, steam hoisting works, buildings, stores of every kind -- were sold, torn down and moved away. These costly but imperfect and superficial attempts did, perhaps, as much or more harm than good, as the results, if not properly studied, looked like a condemnation of this leading industry of the county; but there are men enough with an abiding faith in the value of all these mines and the future will vindicate their confidence.

The Eagle mine, after a five years' sleep, got awakened, and under the management of the intelligent and energetic superintendent, John Treglook, promises to revive its former reputation. Other valuable mines have from time to time been discovered and opened. The indefatigable and lucky E. R. Morey, one of Grizzly's oldest and most valued citizens, is still operating in the fascinating gamble of quartz mining. His late developments on his lead formerly known as the "Charles," promises what he is entitled to--a golden harvest. Gabe Wentz, another of the old and respected citizens, and Dave Brandover, his partner, have for years been hammering away at a rocky rib at Henry's diggings, three miles south of town. Their perseverance is about to be rewarded, as a permanent ledge, rich in gold, already proved, awaits only the future industry. But perhaps the most important discovery in this camp of later years is that made in June, 1874, by that embodiment of every industry and good humor, F. W. Earl. Having prospected for five months in the winter of 1873, frequently uncovering snow ten feet in depth to reach the earth, and sinking as much deeper after he found it, only to meet with a failure (for the whole of the time his means and his patience were alike exhausted), he packet his blankets and made for Grizzly Flat. He did not remain idle for a day. Prospecting as suppossed, almost against hope, in n abandoned locality near the old Mount Pleasant and Irish lodes he struck a quartz ledge that has since proved itself to be worth anywhere from a hundred thousand to half a million dollars. 

Early in 1853 while working the rich surface of Spring Flat, half a mile north of Grizzly, the rivers of the adjacent hills were touched, which paying well led to explorations in the hills themselves. These old riverbeds, which have strangely enough turned to mountains, are known to be the true storehouses of our vast mineral wealth, and yet they have not been fairly tested. The central channels, by tunnel or drift, have never yet been cut, and they still award the proper attack of industry and capital before they will surrender the rich tribute concealed within their deep bosoms. 

The first store established in the place was in 1852 by Chris. Nelson, a German. He kept but a short time, and whether living or dead is not known. Others soon followed ; for awhile Col. Knox was in the business, then A. J. Grahm, Hurlburd, Deal and Weatherwax and others. Since 1858 we have had Hulburd Milleken Bros., Riehl and S. F. Davis, who kept until 1867. That year D. T. Loofbourrow bought out Dvis, the next year Smith and Courson, and in 1869 sold to Alexander, bought back again in 1870 and sold in 1875 to S. P. Haskin, besides which a second store is kept by Nic. Aversine ; two hotels are kept in the town, one by A. C. White, and the other by McClellan, there are also two blacksmith shops. The principal mines in the district are : Mt. Pleasant, Driesbach, Eagle, Spencer & Morey, Eagle King, Bullard, Melton Bros., Ohio extreme of the Mt. Pleasant, and the Arctic, most of which are connected with stamp mills ; the Mt. Pleasant is working a 20-stamp mill. There are several small ranches and orchards in this vicinity; viz: those of M. Martin, S. Springer, Fred. Zollers, Stephen Leoni, Samuel Finley, Wm. Cole, John O'Lean, Slook & Smith, A. H. McAfee, August Niebur, S. Webster, A. Myers, Jacob Behrens, George Haas and Bernard Plunker. About 3 miles from tow there are two large saw-mills not the property of S. P. Haskin, merchant of Grizzly Flat.

In 1866 the village met with its first calamity, being nearly destroyed by fire, but few houses remained. Little suffering followed, however, as the mines were on the height of their productiveness, and everybody soon recovered their losses. In 1869 the village was again destroyed by fire, and this time the loss was most disastrous, as the place was larger, the houses more costly and a greater amount of personal property contained in them. This fire originated in an outbuilding where a drunken Indian was sleeping,  and it is supposed his attempts to light some matches during the night and carelessness in extinguishing them, was the immediate cause; his body badly burnt and life extinct, was discovered next morning. The town has never been build to the same extent since. Two stone fire-proof buildings only withstood this conflagration.

In 1855 the Catholics were sufficiently numerous to erect a neat and commodious place of worship. Its site was on the side of the hill just east of Grizzly Flat and near the residence of A. H. McAffee, and was the first building to meet the view of the traveler as he entered the village. In 1857 the Methodist church, a handsome edifice, was erected on a lot just at the edge of town. This lot has been used as the village burying ground, but owing to the wonderful healthy locality it contains but few graves. The church itself was converted years ago into  school house, which it still remains. In 1855 the Masons built their commodious hall, and a lodge organized by the appointment of Wm. McKean as Master. Strange as it may seem an Iron Foundry was built in 1855, and for some years did  paying business. The old brewery that furnished beer equal to the best Boca, gladdened the lips of the thirsty about 1854. For many years this town was the residence of Hank Hazard, whose varied attainments a professor of Spanish, German and Chinese, and master of many musical instruments was well as unparalled teller of strange but true stories most everybody had occasion to admire and appreciate. 

In 1856 Kine's and Hereford's saw-mills were in full blast. They made but little sunshine, however, in the surrounding dense and magnificent forest. The remains of Kine's mill are yet to be seen in String canyon. The first water ditch brought into the camp was dug by the Eagle Mining Company in 1852 ; Bartlett & Co.'s ditch one year later. Both ditches still supply the mills and mines in the vicinity, and run water eight or nine months a year. The zenith of prosperity was reached in 1856. At the election in the fall of that year over six hundred votes were polled, and the population probably exceeded twelve hundred. 

The first judicial officer was  Mr. Clegget, who was elected Justice of the Peace in 1853. He died in Grizzly Flat. Never of citizen of this place was elected to occupy a county office. James H. Watson was elected to the Assembly in 1858. Colonel Knox, for one term, occupied a seat in the Board of Supervisors from this district. From 1855 to 1857 two semi-weekly stage lines were maintained.

Grizzly Flat, like other mining towns, has had its share of vicissitudes. It has always been a pleasant place to live in, and its citizens possess the usual characteristics of Californians--hospitable, generous and obliging. For a border town, but little outlawry and but few reckless and desperate characters have flourished at any time in its history. But one murder was ever committed in the place : Hiram Palmer, while drunk, killed an Indian in 1873. A few of the old pioneer citizens are still in town. Colonel Knox, who grows old slowly, can be seen most of the time reading on his cozy front porch. A. H. McAffee, formerly Justice of the Peace, who knows not what an idle day is, must be sought at his claim. He has been living there since 1852. Jim Marshal, Samuel Stare, Uncle Amon Melton and many others have been residing here more than twenty years, with the intention never to leave except for a lot on that schollhouse ground. Of other residents of Grizzly Flat unmentioned yet are : Pink Fowler, who would not part with his bachelor's homestead for a kingdom ; Shippey, Dave Hannah, Antione and Dominic Myers, Frenchmen ; Sime Springer, a miracle of good nature ; Dennis Gallagher, Jim Bartlett, Uncle Tommy Garland and others. 

The patriotism of the young men of Grizzly Flat became electrified before those of any other place, when, in the fall of 1857, the Mormons became troublesome. They organized a volunteer company to operate against them, on January 11th, 1858, and elected E. C. Springer captain. A resolution was also adopted at the meeting, requiring the captain to report the company ready for service and for marching to Utah at the shortest notice. The members of this company were called the "Grizzlies."

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Eureka Mining Inc does not offer any financing at this time, however we urge you to submit your best offers on any of our mining properties and equipment and we will take a serious look at them and try to work with you around your budget. Accepatable forms of payment include personal checks, money orders, cashier's checks, direct bank deposits and wire transfers.

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About Eureka Mining Inc

Eureka Mining Inc is a full service mining company based in Nevada City, California. We specialize in mining and selling quality mining properties, both patented and unpatented and can provide mining equipment for both recreational and commercial prospectors. We have over 20 years of combined experience in California's colorfull Placer Mining Industry and are currently setting up commercial operations in Nevada County in the Red Dog Mining District. The material is derived from the Tertiary Yuba Channel and is also known as the Blue Lead Channel that extends into Sierra County. We will be mining and estimated 3 million yards of bulk material from the Ancient Channel using chemical free gravity seperation to extract precious mineral values. The scope of the project is 50 years with reclamation running concurrent to the mining activities. We are an enviromentally safe mining company practicing enviromentally friendly mining strategies. During our mining activities we will be ridding the land of harmfull waste left behind by earlier miners, such as Mercury, Lead, Iron, and other contaminents from the ground and groundwaters of California.

Eureka Mining Inc also have dredging operations in nearby Greenhorn Creek in Nevada County, California during the dredge season. So remember from dredges to trommels we can help you obtain the right equipment for your property needs, at affordable prices. So feel free to call us today at 530-816-0451 with any questions about our claims or equipment being offered for sale on ebay, or schedule a site visit at mine. Thanks For Your Time !!

Our Payment Policy

Once payment has cleared you will receive a copy of the notarized warranty mining claim deed, original location notices with both the county and blm, gps coordinates and a welcome letter within 10 days of cleared payment. We do not charge any ownership transfer fee, we provide this service free of charge !! You will also receive detailed instructions and forms on how to maintain your new claim from year to year with our Welcome Packet, once again We Thank You For Your Buisness !!

Our Refund Policy

At Eureka Mining Inc We strive for customer satifaction and approval. This is why we are the only sellers that give a 15 day money back gaurantee or we will trade you another claim of equal value that suits you. This is just another reason you should purchase your new claim or equipment from Eureka Mining Inc !!

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Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $980.00 | Bid $990.00 Now! | # of Bids: 15
End Time: 2010-09-09T04:00:21.000Z

HUGE NV ACREAGE RESERVOIR VIEWS GREAT ROAD 4500' ELEV

Current Price: $510.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

41 ACRE INVESTMENT PROPERTY

SURVEYED, STAKED, LAKE VIEW!

This acreage is located in Pershing County, Nevada, 410 ac +/-.

THIS IS A RARE OPPORTUNITY TO OWN A 41 AC PIECE OF NEVADA PROPERTY THAT HAS RYE PATCH RESERVOIR VIEWS, FANTASTIC ELEVATION, IS SURVEYED AND STAKED WITH COUNTY ROAD FRONTAGE, IN A SECTION SURROUNDED BY BLM LAND AND STATE PARK LAND. THE RYE PATCH RESERVOIR IS VERY CLOSE BY!

YOU CANNOT ASK FOR BETTER VIEWS OR BETTER ACCESS THAN THIS PARK-LIKE SETTING! (You DO NOT need 4WD to get to this property!)
IF THIS INTERESTS YOU, PLEASE READ ON…

There is private property that is a little closer to the lake than this ranch, but they do not have lake views, as they are too even with the elevation of the reservoir banks. The reason this property has the fantastic views of the reservoir that it does is that the reservoir sits at 4144 feet. The East side of this property is 4490 feet elevation. It gently slopes upward toward the West to an elevation of about 4600 feet. That is a difference of 460 feet from the lake to the highest point on the property. Perfect elevation. It is still level to slightly rolling and all usable.

I have set this as a buy it now or make offer sale opportunity for you. Your offer is the total purchase price for this INCREDIBLE investment property! Access is by direct county dirt road frontage, directly off of Old Emigrant Road which is the main County Road in the area and runs the entire length of the reservoir! These are the only county roads in this area and you are on one! This is NOT a down payment, or a price per acre. This is a straight cash sale. This 41 acre property with great views is at the foot of Mountains in Pershing County, only 127 miles up I-80 from Reno, NV. This is an excellent location, with great amenities, being road frontage, views of the reservoir, just 26 miles up I-80 to Lovelock, NV and just 44 miles from Winnemucca on I-80! Both of these are very nice towns with all of the amenities that you would need, including hospitals, schools, grocery stores, parks, banks; nice settings. I personally visited Lovelock on the way to the property and really enjoyed it.

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This 41 acre parcel has over 580 feet of country road frontage on the East side. This property has it all – Access, Location and Views. With the pictures here, you will see exactly what I mean. This property has an excellent elevation at the road front of about 4490 feet, opening onto the meadow. Then going back about 1300 feet it is very level to slightly rolling. The back of the property goes up to 4600 feet, lying at the foot of Mountains, topping out at 5984 feet. Also within view of the property is the Star Peak range, just on the other side of I-80, topping out at 9790 feet! THE VIEWS FROM HERE ARE INCREDIBLE!

All pictures in this auction were taken by myself in July of this year. They are of, or from the property, except the one of Old Emigrant Road, which is East of the property as you come in to it from the Rye Patch Reservoir dam. This lot is in Sec 17, T31N, R32E, Pershing County, NV

There are no restrictions on this property. Power is not to the property now but is nearby on Lake Rd. There is no limit to what you can do with the property. This is great investment property. The reason I call this investment property is because, first of all, its exact location, accessibility and views. Also the proximity to Interstate 80, Lovelock, Winnemucca and Reno. Another great reason to consider this investment property is the fact that this has been surveyed and pinned and as I have mentioned, power is close on Lake Rd. That saves you thousands! Also, some of the BEST SKIING IN THE UNITED STATES is within an hour or two of the property at Lake Tahoe.

Most land auctions are set up for what is around the property. Of course I want to tell you what is around the property as far as towns and amenities, but this auction is truly based on the property itself and its location, access and views, NOT just what is 100 miles away. This auction is to sell you this property.

County Road to property:

There are no liens on this nice investment property. Title is clear. Survey is already completed. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to purchase a rare, one of a kind, unbelievably sized lake view property with great views in beautiful western NV right next to the Rye Patch Reservoir. Remember, this section is surrounded by BLM land, so no one can build to block your views of the Reservoir or the Mountain!

Nevada has become very popular for businesses and for relocating, because in NV there are no personal or corporate income taxes, no estate tax, no inheritance tax and no gift tax. There are extremely low property taxes, too.

Another point of interest is the Rye Patch Reservoir Recreation Area. This reservoir is a sportsman’s lake that hosts all water sports. The rec area has many amenities and points of interest, including:

boating, skiing, jet skiing, fishing, swimming, some of the best fishing around
21 site Campground
Bathrooms with showers
Picnic area
Swim beach
2 boat ramps
Excellent Fishing

Overview:
Possibilities for this piece of property are limited only by your imagination! Again, this is a 41 acre ranch, with good access, just off of Old Emigrant Road and County Road, where the beautiful Mountains meet the Meadows with astounding mountain, meadow and reservoir views, within 8 miles of the dam and within about 10 miles of I-80 (down excellent roads) and between two nice towns with all of the amenities. Less than 2 hours from some of the best skiing in the USA. This is surveyed and staked according to Nevada state laws, and has lots of local wildlife and some of the prettiest star filled night skies you have ever seen!

This is for people who like gorgeous views, great access and property within a few miles of a major Interstate, but also like privacy:

Terms:

High bid is the purchase price for 100% ownership of this property.
Do your due diligence - Ask all questions before bidding. Property is sold as is where is. All information is believed to be true and accurate and from reputable sources.
Taxes are currently paid. 2010 will be billed to the new owner. (Approximately $130) This property is free and clear of liens or encumbrances.
By bidding on this auction you are entering into a binding contract with the seller with the terms listed here. Bid only if you are serious about purchasing this fantastic ranch/investment property.
If you win this auction and do not complete the transaction according to these terms, you will be held responsible for any and all listing fees regarding this property.
Make sure you have the funds secure before bidding.
Winning bidder is required to e-mail the seller within 24 hours with the name and address for the Deed.
Payment is to be received by the seller within 5 days of the end of the auction by cashiers check, money order, eCheck through PayPal. (High bid amount plus document fee)
This property will be conveyed to the new owner by a Grant, Bargain and Sale Deed. (NV equivalence of a Warranty Deed)
There is a single $299 document prep fee to be added to the high bid amount. I will prepare the paperwork for you. I will send you all of the maps and the notarized Deed for your new property with easy instructions for filing with the County.

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Auctions change daily.

Thank you and good luck!

Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $510.00 | Bid $520.00 Now! | # of Bids: 11
End Time: 2010-09-09T02:30:26.000Z

Long Range Views River Access North Georgia Mountains

Current Price: $1525.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

For Sale,3 Beautiful Mountain View Lots in the Buckhorn Estates Subdivision in Ellijay, GA. Each lot has spectacular views, two have 360 degree mountain views.  The three lots combined total 2.75 acres.A concrete drive was added in 2006 to allow access to the building sites for all 3 lots.  The lots are located on a Cul-de-sac, which provides a great amount of seclusion.The community is Buckhorn Estates, which is a well established community, with paved roads, power and phone service.  (Power and phone is available at the curb).  The lots were surveyed in 2005, and a soils engineering study was completed in 2006.   The community has common areas with Community Green space and Access to the Ellijay River.White Path (Gilmer County) Golf Course was built in 1983 with 750 lots surrounding the 18 fairways. The course, which is mountainous, was designed by Rocky Roquemore and Joe Lee, who have built courses world-wide.Ellijay, GA is a great mountain community, with major shopping, hospitals and activities nearby.  It is close to Blueridge, GA and Atlanta.These lots can be combined to be a  mini mountain estate.A $1000.00 deposit must be made within 72 hours of the auction closing, and a standard real estate contract will be signed, to protect both the buyer and sellers interests.  This sale must be completed within 4 weeks after auction concludes.    Buyer and seller pay normal closing costs.The reserve is set an 1/2 of the tax appraisal!   

Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $1525.00 | Bid $1550.00 Now! | # of Bids: 8
End Time: 2010-09-06T15:32:04.000Z

1/2 AC TIMBERON NEW MEXICO

Current Price: $500.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

HERE IS YOUR CHANCE TO OWN A 1/2 ACRE CORNER LOT NEAR TIMBERON GOLF COURSE.

POWER AND WATER AVAILABLE.

NO RESERVE FRONTAGE ON 2 ROADS.

1/2 AC LOT IN TIMBERON GOLF COURSE UNIT 3 BLK12 LOT 1 WITH FRONTAGE ON ELDORADO ROAD AND LA CASTA ROAD.

HAS WATER, AND POWER AVAILABLE. WATER IS 1000 FT FROM LOT.

NICE PINE TREES ON LOT. LOCATED IN THE MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY OF TIMBERON NEW MEXICO. 7000' ELEVATION. SUBDIVISION HAS A GOLF COURSE. AIR STRIP, AND TROUT LAKE. NICE SUMMER VACATION SITE.

LOT IS BUILDABLE. HIGH BID GETS THE LOT.PLUS THE DOC FEE.

TAXES $41 PER YEAR. ALL TAXES ARE CURRENT. NO LIENS. NO HOA FEES.

THERE IS A $ 299. DOC FEE TO BE ADDED TO HIGH BID.

WHEN AUCTION IS OVER THE HIGH BIDDER MUST PAY WITHIN 5 DAYS BY PAY-PAL OR CHECK.

SELLER WILL SEND DEED OUT PRIORITY MAIL AFTER PAYMENT CLEARS.

Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $500.00 | Bid $510.00 Now! | # of Bids: 11
End Time: 2010-09-08T01:00:06.000Z

NO RESERVE - NO MINIMUM - HIGH BID OWNS BOTH LOTS

Current Price: $510.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

                    Welcome to the

               " SUNSHINE STATE "

            DISNEY and UNIVERSAL

               are at your door step

                    NO  RESERVE 

                    NO  MINIMUM

          High Bid Owns Both Lots

St. Cloud, located in Osceola County, is closely associated with the adjacent city of Kissimmee and its proximity to Orlando and the theme parks of Disney, Universal and Seaworld.

St. Cloud is a small, family oriented town with a highly rated school system and a wonderful historic downtown area that is full of character and life. Although the town relishes its history, it is also very progressive being the first city in the nation to offer free wireless internet service to all city residents via the CyberSpot.

Another outstanding feature is the 2.5 miles of beautiful lakefront on East Lake Toho and dozens of other lakes which provides recreation and natural vistas which are readily enjoyed by residents and visitor alike. East Lake Toho which is over 12,000 acres is an exceptionally clear lake that produces many trophy bass annually.

The lots for auction are located just east of downtown St. Cloud only a few blocks off Nova Road( Highway 532) on 16th Avenue between 13th Street(also known as Fort Hill) and 12th Street in the New Eden Subdivision. The lots are surrounded by lakes with Lake Joel to the north, Trout Lake to the south, and lake Center and Coon Lake to the west.

Each lot is 25' x 120' or 50' x 120' combined. Electricity and telephone are in the  subdivision but not to the lot. Water would be by well, gas by propane tank and sewer by a septic system. Taxes are approximately $25.00 per year and are paid current.  There are no home owner fees or association fees and no time frame in which you have to build.  

The lots are part of PARCEL NUMBER: 25-25-31-4350-0001-1210 ( Lots 168& 169 )

These lots offers the best of both worlds.  A quaint small town atmosphere, yet the excitement of a major city within a short drive.

Bid with confidence.  I have been a Ebay member for ten years and have a one hundred  percent Ebay feedback rating. But also, as should be done in all real estate transactions, please do your due diligence before bidding. 

                                       Terms:

High bid is for 100% ownership of the property

A $195.00 document fee will be added to the high Bid

Payment due in four days by Bank Check, Wire Transfer or Paypal

Please Bid only if you intend to purchase. By bidding you are entering into a legal contract to purchase the property

Thank you and good luck

Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $510.00 | Bid $520.00 Now! | # of Bids: 12
End Time: 2010-09-07T02:00:31.000Z

WOW... GULF ACCESS AREA, BEACHES, GOLF COURSE AREA

Current Price: $3000.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

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® ALL OUR AUCTION AD PICTURES & PHRASES ARE COPYRIGHT PROTECTED VIA EBAY'S VERO PROGRAM and ANY copying of LIKE INFORMATION is prohibited and may result in your EBAY account being terminated upon VERO review.

TIRED OF MEAGER & RISKY INVESTMENT RETURNS ?

( 401K'S, IRA'S, STOCK, BONDS, MONEY MARKET FUNDS, BANK SAVINGS INTEREST)

REAL-ESTATE: Control if you buy, the price you pay, the price you sell and when to sell.

THE RICHEST AMERICANS HAVE LITTLE TO NO SAVINGS IN ACTUAL CASH !

TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR FINANCIAL FUTURE BY INVESTING IN THE LOWEST PRICE REAL-ESTATE IN BEAUTIFUL CHARLOTTE COUNTY, FLORIDA.

UNLIKE THE NUMEROUS PORT CHARLOTTE HARBOR WATERFRONT AREA TAX DEED LOTS BEING DECEPTIVELY & INCREASINGLY PROMOTED ON EBAY WITH NO TITLE INSURANCE PROVIDED & PAID FOR BY THE SELLER, OUR LOTS, AS THEY HAVE BEEN FOR OVER 10 YEARS,  ARE NEXT TO GULF ACCESS & ACTUALLY IN ACTIVE PRIME NEIGHBORHOODS FOR THE VERY BEST

“RETURN ON YOUR INVESTMENT”

BANKS WILL NOT LOAN TO BUILD ON THESE TAX DEED ACQUIRED PARCELS & ALSO 99% OF THE TAX DEED LOTS ON EBAY ARE OUTSIDE OF THE CITY EITHER ON DIRT OR DILAPIDATED  OLDER PAVED ROADS, SURROUNDED BY NO HOMES OR WORSE 1950’S STYLE DISTRESSED & EMPTY FORECLOSED HOMES WHICH IS WHY THE PRIOR OWNERS LET THEM GO BACK TO THE COUNTY TO BEGIN WITH,SUCH AS:

TGA (TROPICAL GULF ACRES), HARBOR HEIGHTS, DISTRESSED LEHIGH ACRES, THE VACANT ROTUNDA, PLACIDA RD. AREA OFF GASPARILLA RD. & THE FORMER FAILED TERN BAY GOLF RESORT WHICH ARE ALL TAX DEED ACQUIRED PARCELS WHICH CANNOT LEGALLY BE ISSUED TRUE TITLE INSURANCE WITHOUT LEGAL ASSISTANCE REGARDLESS OF WHAT THE SELLER'S TITLE COMPANY SAYS AS THEY ARE JUST PUTTING EXCEPTIONS IN TO THE POLICY YOU ARE GETTING AFTER THE SALE TO BASICALLY MAKE YOUR POLICY NULL AND VOID WITH REGARDS TO FUTURE OWNERSHIP ISSUES.

THE OLD SAYING THAT “YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR” HAS NEVER BEEN MORE TRUE J

This is from the Charlotte County Clerks office on Tax Deeds:

Do I get a clear title with a Tax Deed?

All properties sold at a Tax Deed Sale qualify under

“buyer beware”. The purchase of a Tax Deed Sale

does not warrant or guarantee clear and marketable

title. Note: Most title companies require the

property to go through a quiet title lawsuit for the

property to be able to have title insurance issued on

property bought by Tax Deed Sale.

What liens or encumbrances survive against a

property after it is sold at a Tax Deed Sale?

Governmental liens and judgments survive the

issuance of a tax deed and are satisfied to the

fullest extent possible with any overbid monies

from the sale. Governmental liens, not satisfied

in full, survive the issuance of a tax deed and

will remain against the property.

"Beware of those on Ebay selling lots that were purchased by the sellers inexpensively via public Tax Deed sales as they require thousands of dollars in legal fees to clear with a Suit to Quiet Title process and up to a year to clear the title if at all ""You will know, as they will only offer you a Special Warranty Deed or a Quit Claim for this reason and no title insurance to protect your investment."

ALSO JUST VERY RECENTLY, Often these SAME TAX DEED sellers will FALSELY offer Title Insurance but will have Exceptions to Coverage in your Title Insurance Policy! There are standard exceptions in every policy, BUT exceptions entered for tax deed sales are UNIQUE AND PARTICULAR, NOT STANDARD.  Carefully review exceptions in Schedule B2 of the title policy to ensure you know which items are exempted and therefore NOT COVERED by the Title Policy.  

ASK BOTH THE SELLER & THE CLOSING TITLE COMPANY prior to bidding or buying IF IT WAS PREVIOUSLY ACQUIRED VIA A TAX DEED AUCTION AS WELL & WHAT EXCEPTIONS THERE ARE THAT LIMITS THE TITLE POLICY VALUE

WITH THESE TITLE INSURANCE POLICY EXCEPTIONS, THE TITLE INSURANCE IS MEANINGLESS & BANKS WILL NOT LOAN TO BUILD ON A

TAX DEED ACQUIRED PROPERTY !

DO NOT agree to BUY or PAY for ANY REAL ESTATE without THE SELLER FIRST PROVIDING LEGITIMATE Title Insurance, BEFORE FINAL Settlement Payment at CLOSING! Ensure that your closing agent or attorney explain any "TAX DEED exceptions" noted in Schedule B2.

Before paying or closing such a parcel, do YOURSELF A FAVOR - CALL your TITLE COMPANY, local LAWYER or REAL ESTATE ATTORNEY and ask for PROFESSIONAL ADVICE before Acquiring any FLORIDA LOT when the SELLER DOES NOT Offer TITLE INSURANCE or OFFERS TITLE INSURANCE WITH NON-STANDARD EXCEPTIONS NOTED IN SCHEDULE B2 - PRIOR TO CLOSING on the Land!

Be informed to help you make the right decision for your situation.

ALSO, INSURE THAT THE LOT IS NOT LOCATED WITHIN AN ENVIRONMENTALLY PROTECTED SCRUB JAY “BIRD” AREA WHICH REQUIRES SPECIAL STATE PERMITTING TO BUILD WHICH IS A VERY TIME CONSUMING & COSTLY PROCESS AND STILL NO GUARANTEE. RECENTLY mOST PERMITS ACCORDING TO cHARLOTTE cOUNTY RECORDS ARE BEING DENIED VS. APPROVED.

As these Ebay real estate type listings cost hundreds of dollars to advertise, please DO NOT BID if you are not bidding to buy. Bidders are responsible for  ( DUE DILIGENCE ) to look at any parcel & ask all questions PRIOR to bidding even though based on our superb feedback rating, we have never had a single dissatisfied investor. You are not bidding for the right to look, winning bid buys this lot. Also, all parcels are for sale locally, so we reserve the right to end auction early. New Ebayers or bidders with feedback of 5 or less, please call our offices before bidding at 

941-240-2155

Image Link to Available Inventory

Click on the ebay image for more Information. Link to "Available Inventory." Questions? Email us at Kessel Holdings LLC
 
SALES@KESSELHOLDINGS.COM

Warren Buffett

"I will tell you how to become rich.

Be fearful when others are greedy.Be greedy when others are fearful."

- Warren Buffett The current economic situation is in the buyers favor.  Now is the time to "Be greedy when others are fearful."Buy now and save! Sit back and watch the valueof your land increase exponentially!

Saltwater Fishing at its Best!

PLEASE BE ADVISED:  HAVE ALL YOUR FINANCES READY BEFORE YOU BID & DUE DILIGENCE IS REQUIRED PRIOR TO PLACING A BID.

 MONEY MAGAZINE :  CLICK ON THE UNDERLINED LINK BELOW

Charlotte County, Florida : County Named 2nd Best Place to Live

BE SURE TO VIEW THE NEW CHARLOTTE COUNTY INTRODUCTION

VIDEO AT THE BOTTOM OF THE AUCTION AD BY CLICKING ON PLAY.

STILL HAVE DOUBTS ABOUT INVESTING IN

FLORIDA REAL-ESTATE

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO READ THIS RECENT ARTICLE

CLICK ON THIS UNDER-LINED LINK TO READ

The fall, 2007 mortgage/credit crisis is creating many opportunities to buy well located land & lots at bargain prices. Rarely do buyers have the chance to buy at absolute market bottoms and land is the best way to participate when the Florida real estate market has it's price recovery. After the real estate boom that topped out in mid-2005 we are seeing the bottom  of a price collapse that has reduced land prices 60 to 80 percent.  Based on Florida's long term high growth rate from immigration, retiring baby-boomers, and others attracted to Florida's climate, beaches, and high employment growth, this chance to buy land at dramatically low prices will be the best  we will see in our lifetimes. The need for well-located land is growing, Florida's population grew by 314,000 in 2007 and has grown by more than 2,000,000 since the year 2000. Florida created the most jobs of any state in 2006,  with 211,400 new jobs. The October, 2007 unemployment rate was only 4.0 percent.

Price cycles are more extreme in land than other real estate.  We are passing the low point of this cycle, which is down 60 to 80% from the summer, 2005 high point of the last cycle. Buyers  at this point in the cycle can possibly make 100 to 150% or more when prices get back to the levels of the summer of 2005. Since prices at each cycle high usually exceed the previous highs, potential gains are excellent compared to  most other investments.

Building lot values grow consistently over long periods of time because the population of Florida is growing by 300,000+  people/year and the amount of desirable, buildable land is shrinking. Land in South Florida and within a 30 minute drive of the coast is the most likely to increase in value because that's where 90 percent of the people want to live.

Lots don't give you management and maintenance headaches like rental properties and you can realize great deals in this buyer's market.

In our website you can find what you need to buy a great investment parcel or parcels while prices are at this temporary all-time low.

With the current Euro to U.S. dollar devaluation, Europeans buying Florida real estate is at an all-time high.

VERY RECENT INFORMATION IN CNN / MONEY MAGAZINE REGARDING

PORT CHARLOTTE

Click on Spinning Banner Below for Local Area Slideshow

"BEAUTIFULLY LEVEL PORT CHARLOTTE RESIDENTIAL LOT # 12"

RARE PREMIUM LOT

NEXT TO COMO WATERWAY GULF ACCESS

PRIME LOT & SELLING FOR $55K+ IN 2006

PARCELS SEVERAL STREETS OVER ARE CURRENTLY ON THE MLS FOR

$20,000 & $49,900

SEE BOTTOM OF THIS AD FOR MLS #'S

"ALL NEWER PAVED ROADS"

GREAT LOT FOR A SIMILAR KEY WEST STYLE HOME AS SHOWN BELOW

FIFTEEN MINUTES FROM ENGLEWOOD BEACH & THE GULF OF MEXICO & SOME OF THE BEST SALTWATER FISHING / BOATING IN ALL OF FLORIDA

ESTABLISHED NEIGHBORHOOD NEXT TO MILLION DOLLAR REAL-ESTATE IN THE PORT CHARLOTTE HARBOR AREA

DESIRABLE GULF ACCESS CANALS EVERY WHERE

MANY LOTS IN THIS AREA WELL OVER $150K

LARGEST & FASTEST GROWING SALES AREA IN CHARLOTTE COUNTY IN 2008

BE SURE TO STUDY THE MLS COMPS BELOW AS TO HOW UNDER-PRICED THIS LOT IS FOR $10K INSTANT EQUITY

NO OTHERS LIKE IT ON EBAY

PLEASE DO NOT BID UNLESS YOU ALREADY HAVE FINANCING APPROVED OR AVAILABLE CASH FUNDS

YOU ARE BIDDING ON THE FULL PURCHASE PRICE OF THIS LOT!

 EXTREMELY NICE LOT

WITHIN MINUTES OF FISHERMAN’S VILLAGE, BEACHES AND CHARLOTTE HARBOR AREA.

The Port Charlotte / Punta Gorda area has been designated by

Sail Magazine

as the 10th best in the world for sailing as well as

Ranked 3rd "Best in America" to Live and Golf  by  Golf Digest

IT IS A WELL KNOWN FACT THAT PARCEL PRICES IN THIS AREA WILL MEET OR EXCEED CAPE CORAL & NAPLES PRICES IN THE NEXT 2 YEAR PERIOD!

WATER EVERYWHERE IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD

NON-SCRUB JAY PARCEL

 STRATEGICALLY LOCATED RIGHT BETWEEN BOTH MAJOR INTERSTATE SYSTEMS.

AS YOU HAVE SEEN IN THE LAST YEAR... MOST OF THE PARCELS SELL TO A HIGH BIDDER PRIOR TO THE AUCTION'S CLOSE.

DON'T MISS-OUT AGAIN.

YOU ARE BIDDING ON THE FULL PURCHASE PRICE OF THIS PARCEL!

CLOSE PROXIMITY TO MAJOR INTERSTATE SYSTEM, I-75 & I-41

* LAST PREMIUM DEVELOPING AREA OF PORT CHARLOTTE COUNTY*

MANY HOMES STILL TO BE BUILT IN THIS PORT CHARLOTTE COMMUNITY

 LOTS IN THE SAME AREA CURRENTLY LISTED FOR $55,000.00 TO $250,000.00 ON THE MLS!

SEE BOTTOM OF THIS LISTING FOR MLS DETAILS !

NICE HOMES ALREADY UNDER CONSTRUCTION OR COMPLETED IN THIS IMMEDIATE AREA.

PREMIUM LOT IN VERY DESIRABLE NEIGHBORHOOD AREA & JUST A FEW BLOCKS FROM THE MAJOR INTERSTATE SYSTEM.

***TERRIFIC INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITY***

GET THIS LOT AT A FRACTION OF THESE PRICES!

PLEASE SEE THE OTHER PICTURES OF THE LOT & SURROUNDING AREA AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE!

"CLOSE TO IT ALL" GOLF, HARBOR, BEACHES, SHOPPING & MOST IMPORTANTLY, GREAT WEATHER YEAR ROUND!

VERY CLOSE ACCESS TO U.S. HIGHWAY 41 (TAMIAMI TRAIL) & I-75. WOW !

This is a very nice and highly desirable area of Charlotte County, Florida in a well established residential community.

Charlotte county is one of the fastest growing areas in the United States presently & highly recommended in

"Money Magazine".

Property (land) value has increased 500% in the last 10 years and will continue to rise as a great investment years to come.

This excellent parcel is available

NOW !!!

PUNTA GORDA AREA, FLORIDA NEAR GULF, BEACHES

Great Location, Septic required with Clear Title with Title Insurance.

Physical address is: 2216 Redmond Street, Zip Code: 33948

THE LOT IS LOCATED NEAR SHOPPING CENTERS, BEACHES, GOLF CENTERS WITHIN A SHORT DISTANCE DRIVE. THIS AREA IS OFFERING THE BEST AND STILL INEXPENSIVE WAY LIVING IN PORT CHARLOTTE . GOOD RESIDENTIAL LOTS ARE GETTING HARDER TO FIND. MANY SINGLE HOMES ARE BEING BUILT IN THIS AREA EVERYDAY.

Do not be fooled by those large companies OR individuals on Ebay selling speculative lots with no utilities available, paved roads or any homes in the vicinity of the lot they are offering.

RECREATION

CHARLOTTE COUNTY HAS A TOTAL OF 48 PARKS AND RECREATION AREAS. 34 COUNTY PARKS, 4 STATE FACILITIES, 1 FEDERAL WILDLIFE REFUGEE.THE COUNTY HAS ABOUT 12.5 MILES OF GULF COAST BEACHES. THERE ARE 15 PUBLIC ACCESS SITES. THERE ARE 28 MARINAS & 13 BOAT RAMPS LOCATED ALONG THE PEACE RIVER, CAPE HAZE PENINSULA, LEMON BAY AND PLACID HARBOR AREAS.

BEACHES

CLOSEST BEACH IS PORT CHARLOTTE BEACH ABOUT TEN MINUTES AWAY AND CLOSEST GULF BEACH IS ENGLEWOOD. SARASOTA, TAMPA & FORT MEYERS ARE ALSO VERY CLOSE FOR WEEKEND TRIPS.

SPORTS

CHARLOTTE COUNTY STADIUM AT CHARLOTTE SPORTS PARK.WITH 5332 SEATS,CLUB HOUSE,BASEBALL AND SOFTBALL FIELDS AND OPEN GROUND AVAILABLE FOR FESTIVALS,CONCERTS,LARGE SHOWSEXPOSITIONS AND SPORTING EVENTS.SUNSHINE CLEAN AIR 129 SQUARE MILES OF SPARKLING WATERS,FISHING AT ITS GREATEST.LOW CRIME AND INEXPENSIVE LIVING KEEP THEM HERE IN THE HEART OF SOUTHWEST COAST OF FLORIDA.

UTILITIES

 SEPTIC REQUIRED WITH POWER READY AT THE TIME OF CONSTRUCTION.

PROPERTY LEGAL

LOT  12

BLOCK  635

APPROX. SIZES:   LOT SIZE – 10,000 SQ. FT.

APPROX. : 80’ x 125’

TITLE:    SEARCHED  & INSURED

ANNUAL TAXES : Approx. $347.23

"ONLY LEGITIMATE BUYERS & WE’LL ENTERTAIN ALL REASONABLE OFFERS"

IN ADDITION: AS THIS PROPERTY MAY ALSO BE LISTED LOCALLY VIA THE REALTOR’S MLS SYSTEM WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO END THIS AUCTION AT ANY TIME AS LONG AS THE “RESERVE PRICE” HAS NOT BEEN MET.

A DOWN PAYMENT OF $1000.00 IS DUE WITHIN 3 DAYS OF A WINNING BID WITH THE REMAINING BALANCE BEING DUE BASED ON THE CONTRACT AGREEMENT.

(7-14 DAYS)

THE DOWN PAYMENT WILL BE SENT TO THE CLOSING TITLE COMPANY WITH THE BALANCE DUE ACCORDING TO THE CLOSING TITLE COMPANY REQUIREMENTS. ONCE THE DOWN PAYMENT HAS BEEN MADE WE'LL SEND OUT OR EMAIL A CONTRACT FOR PURCHASE. THE CLOSING WILL BE AT A LOCAL FLORIDA TITLE COMPANY THAT WE HAVE ALREADY CONTRACTED. WE PAY ALL CLOSING FEES . WE ACCEPT  MONEY ORDERS AND U.S. BANK DRAWN CASHIER CHECKS. THIS IS A CASH DEAL ONLY. PLEASE HAVE ALL YOUR FINANCES READY BEFORE YOU BID & PRIOR DUE DILIGENCE IS REQUIRED.

We have provided many INFORMATIONAL FACTS about the local area AS WELL AS AERIAL SHOTS OF PARCEL # 12 AS WELL AS HOMES IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA so that you can become very comfortable with the fact that the Port Charlotte, Punta Gorda area is all we say it is.

Charlotte County tops all the national BEST PLACES TO LIVE LISTS!

129 square miles of waters and aquatic preserves, 12 miles of beaches with white sand. Thousands of plant species, hundreds of hiking trails, a tremendous amount of marine life, a Federal wildlife refuge, clean air, and YEAR ROUND warm sunshine.

Charlotte County, an important ecological breeding ground for numerous fish, bird and animal species because of two freshwater rivers, the Peace River and Myakka River, which flow into the saltwater of Charlotte Harbor and Lemon Bay and then the Gulf of Mexico.

Recreational activity choices are numerous

Sarasota and Tampa an easy trip to the North, and Fort Myers and Naples to the South.

Charlotte Harbor, Englewood Beach and the Gulf Islands are only minutes away from any location in Charlotte County. Dolphins can be seen in the harbor close up.

The white gulf beaches are clean. Zoning prohibits high-rises.

Charlotte County's beaches are one of Florida's Best; close, yet quiet and abundant with bird life, dolphins, sea turtles and other wildlife. No crowds here, just plenty of white sand with colorful shells. Don Pedro Island State Recreation Area, which is only accessible by boat, is another location with white beaches stretching for about a mile on the Gulf of Mexico. There are picnic pavilion, tables, grills, outdoor showers and restrooms. Port Charlotte Beach Park is located on Harbor Boulevard in Port Charlotte. There is a swimming pool, boat ramps, fishing pier and extensive recreation and sports facilities.

There are so many courses nearby that the fees are very reasonable it is easy to get tee times! You could run into the pros such as Chi Chi Rodriguez, Ken Venturi, Nolan Henke, and Nancy Lopezare and many others enjoying a relaxing quite day on the courses.

Charlotte Town Center Shopping Mall is a beautiful mall with national and local stores and restaurants.

So many restaurants in Port Charlotte!

Points Of Interest & getting to know the area!

CLICK ON EACH LINK BELOW !

Charlotte HarborCharlotte County BeachesPort Charlotte InformationLocal AttractionsEnglewood Florida GuideFishermans VillageExploring Punta Gorda

SUPERB AREA close to beach activities, salt water fishing as well as “TOO” many GOLF courses !

Here is your opportunity to acquire a great property at up to a 50% lower price than you will see on the realtor’s MLS... don't procrastinate!

CHARLOTTE HARBOR & THE GULF ISLANDSCHARLOTTE COUNTY, FLORIDA

Click here for a printable version of Charlotte County information.

Location: Nestled along Florida's Southwest Gulf Coast, between Sarasota and Naples, about 100 miles south of Tampa.

Geography: Charlotte County provides some of the most beautiful natural settings Florida has to offer, with numerous upland and aquatic preserve areas to explore. Charlotte Harbor includes one of the world's largest protected marine estuaries encompassing 270 square miles with 219 miles of natural shoreline. Charlotte Harbor/Gasparilla Sound Aquatic Preserve comprises nearly 80,000 acres of some of the most pristine and productive coastal areas in the state and a unique network of barrier islands and mangrove forests.

Regions: Vacation destinations include the barrier island community of Boca Grande; the historic city of Punta Gorda; Englewood; Port Charlotte; Little Gasparilla Island; Don Pedro Island; Manasota Key; Cape Haze; the picturesque fishing and arts village of Placida; and Palm Island, with its serene beaches accessible by ferry.

Climate: At 5 to 25 feet above sea level, Charlotte County enjoys a climate characterized as sub-tropic where extremes of temperature in both summer and winter are checked by the tempering influence of the Gulf of Mexico. Prevailing winds are an easterly average of 12-18 mph.

Seasons: Winter: January-March. At certain peaks, winter residents increase the population by 30%. April-December is considered low season. During this time, Floridians increase their visits to the area.

Lodging: A wide range of accommodations is available, designed to suit all price and style requirements. Options include hotels, motels, B&B's, resort properties, RV recreation areas, and condo and home rentals.

History: In 1513 Ponce de Leon set out to explore the east and west coasts of Florida. During this exploration, he returned to the Charlotte Harbor area to establish a colony. During the colonization period, the Calusa Indians attacked Ponce de Leon’s settlement. Ponce de Leon was wounded in the thigh by an arrow, resulting in a bout with gangrene that would eventually claim his life in Havana. Several years later, the American mainland was opened for European settlement by the Hernando DeSoto expedition of 1539-42. According to various historical documents, Pedro Menendez D'Aviles built a mission-fort named San Antonio somewhere in the Charlotte Harbor region following his establishment of the first American colony at St. Augustine, Florida, in 1565. After two intense years of struggle between the Spaniards and the Calusa, Menendez abandoned his project and attempted to restrain the unpredictable Indians of southern Florida.

Restaurants: Fresh seafood is abundant and the area boasts a wide selection of ethnic foods including French, Italian, Japanese, Thai, and Mexican. All-American cuisine is also in plentiful supply.

Beaches: Over twelve miles of sandy Gulf beaches share the coastline with the mangrove forests of Charlotte Harbor.

Golf: Choose from over sixteen magnificent courses throughout Charlotte County. Courses range from executive to championship level, each with scenic vistas and spectacular landscapes.Attractions: Charlotte County features over 70 parks and recreational areas. Take a unique wildlife buggy tour through the silent beauty of an untouched cypress swamp. Set sail on a small boat cruise. Camp out under the stars. Snorkel right off your canoe in the Peace River. Ride a bicycle alongside real Bison at Babcock's Wilderness Adventure, or come face-to-face with a gopher tortoise on an exhilarating hike through Cedar Point.

Shopping: From waterfront boutiques and malls, to antique fairs and flea markets, there are shopping opportunities for everyone. Historic Fishermen's Village is a waterfront shopping and dining complex that is an attraction in itself.

Cultural: Local art agencies serve the community by promoting visual arts, theater, dance, music, arts & humanities, and the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra.

Airports: The area boasts four airports strategically located in well-populated areas for travel convenience: The Charlotte County Airport, Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport (SRQ), Southwest Florida International Airport, Ft. Myers, (RSW), and Tampa International Airport (TIA).

Major Access: The Seminole Gulf Railroad has excursion passenger and freight service; Major bus line has a station in Port Charlotte; the Charlotte County Airport has a 6,500 foot lighted runway plus two 5,000 foot runways; and AMTRAK includes bus service to and from Port Charlotte-Tampa train station.

Roads: INTERSTATE-75 through Charlotte County has 22-miles running north/south with five exits (#27 to #31). U.S. 17 ends in Punta Gorda and U.S. 41, the Tamiami Trail, is the main highway running north/south.

Transportation: A variety of services including: auto rentals, taxi & limo service, bus and bicycle rentals.

Mileage from Florida Cities:Daytona: 183 miles Jacksonville: 238 milesMiami: 214 milesOrlando: 129 miles Tampa: 100 miles

Charlotte Harbor & The Gulf Islands is located halfway between Sarasota and Naples on the Southwest Florida Gulf coast. Southwest Florida International Airport, 30 minutes to the south in Ft. Myers, provides convenient flight service. For more information on how you can enjoy Florida’s Best-Kept Secrets throughout Charlotte Harbor & The Gulf Islands, visit the Charlotte County Visitor's Bureau Web site or call 1-888-4PUR-FLA.

ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FEEL FREE TO EMAIL OR CALL US AT:  571-330-3531

NOTE:  THESE PARCELS WILL REMAIN AVAILABLE UNTIL WHICH TIME THE HIGH BIDDER'S CONTRACT & DEPOSIT HAS BEEN RECEIVED!

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CHARLOTTE COUNTY INTRODUCTION VIDEO

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT US AND OUR OTHER EBAY LOT LISTINGS CONTACT US BY CLICKING THE EMAIL LINK BELOW:

SALES@KESSELHOLDINGS.COM

General Parcel Information for 402113181011

Parcel ID:
402113181011  
Property Address:
2216 REDMOND ST

Old Parcel ID Number:
00468380000001 
Property Zip Code:
33948 

Business Name:
 
Section-Township-Range:
13-40-21  

Map Number:
3A13N 
Zoning Code:
RSF3.5  

Current Use:
VACANT RESIDENTIAL  
Roads:
PAVED  

Future Land Use (Comp. Plan):
LOW DENSITY RESIDENTIAL 
Taxing District:
104  

Utilities:
AT TME OF CONSTRUCTION
Market Area / Neighborhood:
01 /07  

Waterfront:
NO 
SOH Base Year:
 

FEMA Flood Zone (Effective 5/5/2003)

Firm Panel
Floodway
SFHA
Flood Zone
FIPS
COBRA
Community
Base Flood Elevation (ft.)

0206F 

OUT 

X 

12015C 

COBRA_OUT 

120061 

Legal Description

Short Legal
Legal Description

PCH 041 0635 0012
PORT CHARLOTTE SEC41 BLK635 LT 12 237/169 UNREC DC-CHL SR DC859/1335 2632/1931 CD2746/859 2746/861

THERE ARE CURRENTLY  SEVERAL LOTS LISTED ON THE REALTOR'S MLS SYSTEM IN THIS AREA ON ADJACENT STREETS.

COMPARE   

On Aug-31-10 at 18:32:13 PDT, seller added the following information:

Use the FREE Counters 1 million sellers do - Vendio!

On Aug-31-10 at 19:00:18 PDT, seller added the following information:

Terms of Sale  I Expect All Winning Bids to be HonoredRESPONSIBILITY: Unless stated otherwise, full payment, including all shipping and insurance charges, is due via a payment method disclosed in this auction within 10 days of auction close. If not received, payment is considered delinquent 10 days after auction close.COMMITMENT:  I am committed to completing the transaction. I hold the winning bidder accountable for his/her winning bid. Placing a bid on this auction is a legally binding obligation.ACCOUNTABILITY:  Should the winning bidder become delinquent in settling the transaction, I reserve the right to pursue payment through the use of collection services.COMPENSATION:  Should the winning bidder default on completing the transaction, I reserve the alternative to assess and collect a restocking fee as compensation for fees and holding costs related to the incomplete transaction. The restocking fee will amount to $10 + 20 percent of the sale price.Do Not Bid If You Do Not Intend to Pay 

On Aug-31-10 at 19:05:09 PDT, seller added the following information:

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Click Here. Double your traffic. Get Vendio Gallery - Now FREE!

Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $3000.00 | Bid $3050.00 Now! | # of Bids: 9
End Time: 2010-09-11T01:31:33.000Z

Clear Title, Easy Access, Ready to Build! HIGH BID WINS

Current Price: $510.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

lucie267 Store

NO RESERVE AUCTION - HIGH BID WINS!

Property For Sale: 3.72 Acres of Vacant Land in Escambia County Florida

In Cantonment FL Just Outside Beautiful Pensacola in the Florida Panhandle!

This Property is Zoned Residential V-3- Buildable!

With Frontage on County Rd 186! It was Previously Sold for $297,000 in 1997!

This Property is 10x Larger than all the Privately Owned Lots in the Vicinity! Single Lots are Selling in this Area for $5000 and Up!    We Have the Deed In Hand and This Property Will Sell to the Highest Bidder! All You Need To Do is Bid and We Do the Rest For You!   This Property Can Be Yours, Free and Clear! Good Luck Bidding To Everyone!

Escambia County Florida Property Appraiser Parcel Information:

Reference: 27-1N-31-1200-000-001

Account: 11-4321-000

Section Map: 27-1N-31

Situs: 700 W KINGSFIELD RD BLK

Subdivision: FIELD NINE PB 4 P 61Last Sale: 4/1997, $290,000

Property Use: VACANT RESIDENTIAL

Approx. Acreage: 3.7200

Building Count: 0

Total Heated Area: 0

Zoned: V-3

 Thanks and Please Take a Look At My Other Auctions! Transaction Fees, Including Expedited Document Processing Fees For This Auction Are $295.

This Listing is for 3.72 Acres of Real Property in Escambia County Florida.

This Property being Sold by Auction to the Highest Bidder By the Owner of the Parcel.

Upon receipt of Full Payment Buyer will be Deeded 100% Ownership of the Property.

Buyer is advised to inspect property and must do any and all due diligence before bidding.

Payment Procedure:

Payment will total the final bid amount plus transaction fees ($295).

Confirmation of Payment is due within 5 days After An Agreement is in Place to Purchase Property.

Confirmation includes a tracking number or written contact stating when payment will be sent within a specified time.

The payment can be made by Check (personal OK), PayPal, or Bank Wire.

If funds are not certified than payment will have to clear before processing can begin.

Transfer of Deed may take up to 4 weeks after payment clears.

Bid Early! The Seller Reserves the Right to Close This Listing at any Time.

Best Selling Deluxe Land!

Current Price: $510.00 | Bid $520.00 Now! | # of Bids: 16
End Time: 2010-09-08T00:48:43.000Z

Current Price: $49.00

More Info on this Deluxe Land For Sale!

 
Thank You, for viewing our land for sale on ebaY

 
NO HOMEOWNERS, OR ASSOCIATION FEES
 
THIS PROPERTY HAS BEAUTIFUL LAND, AND HIGH TREES
 
SELLING ISLAND REGARDLESS OF PRICE BIDDING STARTS @ $1 HIGH BID GET THE REAL ESTATE!!!!!
 
LOCATED IN THE ST.JOHNS RIVER THE LARGEST RIVER IN FLORIDA
 
HOMES WERE SELLING FOR $700,000+ IN 2006 ACROSS THE RIVER IN THE SEMINOLE COUNTY 
 
WE WILL ISSUE A GENERAL WARRANTY DEED, FREE OF ALL LIENS & ENCUMBRANCES
 
BUYER CAN GET TITLE INSURANCE AT THERE EXPENSE
 
GET THE BEST DEED AVAILABLE, NO LIENS ENCUMBRANCES, TO THE ISLAND
 
LOCATED IN THE ST.JOHNS RIVER ACROSS FROM SANFORD, VOLUSIA COUNTY PARCEL
+GREAT DEMOGRAPHICS
+ISLANDS ARE 95% OWNED BY THE GOVERNMENT
+MANY NEW HOMES NEARBY
+$500,000+ HOMES SUBDIVISION DIRECTLY ADJACENT TO THE ISLAND
 
RIVERFRONT ISLAND BEING SOLD, REGARDLESS OF PRICE
HIGH BID OWNS THE ISLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
PROPERTY LEGAL DESCRIPTION:

31-19--33 IRREG PARCEL IN NW 1/4 OF NW 1/4 E OF RIVER MEAS 4

10.9 FT ON SE/L & 100 FT ON RIVER PER OR 2873 PG 1828 PER O

R 5569 PG 4807
 
Parcel ID# 9331-00-00-0075Yearly Taxes: $112Utilities: NONE AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME, Septic & Well required
 
ST. JOHNS RIVERFRONT ISLAND, ACROSS FROM SANFORD - VOLUSIA COUNTY PARCEL

LOT SIZE: 100X411=.9365 OF AN ACRE

Terms and Conditions

HIGH BID WILL GET THE PROPERTY WITHOUT ANY MORTGAGES OR ENCUMBRANCES

Upon Winning auction, Buyer must pay Downpayment 20% of Final Bid Price with 48 HOURS, BALANCE DUE WITHIN 7 DAYS 

DOCUMENT & PREPARATION COSTS: THERE IS A $100 DOCUMENT PREPARATION CHARGE WHICH COVERS, RECORDING, DOC STAMPS, DOCUMENT PREPARATION, AND TOTAL CLOSING COSTS - IF BUYER CLOSES THROUGH TITLE COMPANY THE BUYER WILL PAY ALL CLOSING COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE TRANSFER.  THE $100 FEE IS IN ADDITION TO THE HIGH BID AMOUNT

PAYMENT OF FUNDS: We Accept Cash, Money Order, Certified Funds, AS Per Pay Pal regulations, Pay Pal cannot be use for real estate transactions

UPON RECEIPT OF PAYMENT:

WE WILL PREPARE A GENERAL WARRANTY  DEED, IN THE NAME & ADDRESS REQUESTED BY HIGH BIDDER. THE SELLER CAN SEND A COPY OF THE EXECUTED DEED VIA FAX OR E-MAIL TO BUYER PRIOR TO RECORDING IN THE VOLUSIA COUNTY PUBLIC RECORDS FOR BUYERS REVIEW.  UPON BUYERS APPROVAL SELLER WILL RECORD IN THE PUBLIC RECORDS OF VOLUSIA COUNTY.  THE COUNTY WILL MAIL THE ORIGINAL TO BUYER AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. BUYER WILL RECIEVE THE ORIGINAL DEED, AND AREA INFORMATION WITHIN 14 DAYS OR SOONER DEPENDING ON SPEED OF THE MAIL, THE ENTIRE TRANSACTION TYPICALLY TAKES 7 TO 10 DAYS UPON RECEIPT OF FUNDS

SELLER:     Agrees to Provide a General warranty deed when property is paid in full. Seller agrees to provide Clear title free of all Encumbrances, Clouds on Title, or any Liens in any manner, including all governmental, State, City, and Local Code Enforcement, except property taxes.

DISCLOSURE:

BY BIDDING ON OUR AUCTION, BIDDER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THEY HAVE DONE THEIR OWN RESEARCH, DUE DILIGENCE, INSPECTION PERIOD, THOROUGHLY HAVE INSPECTED THE PROPERTY, INCLUDING VISITING THE PROPERTY, CONTACTING LOCAL MUNICIPAL AND COUNTY GOVERNMENTS, SELLER MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES IN ANY MANNER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, AND BUYER AGREES TO THE TERMS LISTED IN THIS AUCTION, AND INDEMNIFY SELLER TO ANY CLAIMS AS TO BUILDABILITY, SETBACKS, ELEVATIONS, OR SIZE OF THE PROPERTY.   HIGH BID WILL GET THE PROPERTY WITH ANY DELINQUENT TAXES DUE. SELLER WILL SELL THE PROPERTY IN AN AS-IS CONDITION REGARDLESS OF THE PRICE BUYER STRONGLY ADVISED TO DO THERE HOMEWORK PRIOR TO BIDDING.

REFUNDS AND RETURNS: ....Property is sold "as is, where is"....All sales are final...

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
For rivers with similar names, see Saint John River (disambiguation).
Coordinates: 30°24?05?N 81°24?3?W? / ?30.40139°N 81.40083°W? / 30.40139; -81.40083

St. Johns River

St. Johns River near Astor

Name origin: Spanish: San Juan del Puerto

Country
United States

State
Florida

Tributaries

 - left
Mills Creek River, Econlockhatchee River, Wekiva River, Black Water Creek (Lake County), Alexander Springs, Salt Springs Run, Ocklawaha River, Cross Florida Barge Canal, Rice Creek/Simms Creek, Black Creek (Clay County), Ortega River

 - right
Murphy Creek/Dunn's Creek, Julington Creek, Pottsburg Creek, Intracoastal Waterway/Sisters Creek

Cities
Sanford, Deltona, Deland, Palatka, Green Cove Springs, Orange Park, Jacksonville

Landmarks
Blue Cypress Lake, Lake Hell 'n Blazes, Sawgrass Lake, Lake Washington, Lake Winder, Lake Poinsett, Lake Harney, Lake Jesup, Lake Monroe, Lake Beresford, Lake Woodruff, Lake George, Doctors Lake

Source
St. Johns Marsh

 - location
near Vero Beach, Indian River County, Florida

 - elevation
30 ft (9 m)

 - coordinates
27°57?18?N 80°47?3?W? / ?27.955°N 80.78417°W? / 27.955; -80.78417 [1]

Mouth
Atlantic Ocean

 - location
Mayport, Duval County, Florida

 - elevation
0 ft (0 m) [1]

 - coordinates
30°24?05?N 81°24?3?W? / ?30.40139°N 81.40083°W? / 30.40139; -81.40083 [1]

Length
310 mi (499 km)

Basin
8,840 sq mi (22,895 km2)

Discharge
for Mayport, Florida

 - average
15,000 cu ft/s (424.75 m3/s)

 - max
150,000 cu ft/s (4,247.53 m3/s)

 - min
50,000 cu ft/s (1,415.84 m3/s)

St. Johns River surrounding with corresponding watersheds designated by the St. Johns River Water Management District: 1. Upper basin, 2. Middle basin, 3. Lake George basin, 4. Lower basin, 5. Ocklawaha River basin

Wikimedia Commons: St. Johns River

The St. Johns River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant for commercial and recreational use. At 310 miles (500 km) long, it winds through or borders twelve counties, three of which are the state's largest. The drop in elevation from the headwaters to the mouth is less than 30 feet (9.1 m); like most Florida waterways, the St. Johns has a very slow flow rate at a third of a mile an hour (0.2 km/h), and is often described as "lazy".[2] It is one of a small number of rivers in the United States to run north. Numerous lakes are formed by the river or flow into it, but as a river its widest point is 3 miles (4.8 km) across, spanning several miles between Palatka and Jacksonville, the latter being the largest urban area on the river. The narrowest point is in the headwaters, an unnavigable marsh in Indian River County. In all, 3.5 million people live within the various watersheds that feed into the St. Johns River.[3]

With a drainage basin of 8,840 square miles (22,900 km2), the St. Johns is one of the major interior wetlands of Florida.[4][5] It is separated into three major basins and two associated watersheds for Lake George and the Ocklawaha River, all managed by the St. Johns River Water Management District. Like all waterways in Florida, the St. Johns is fed primarily by rainfall, most of which is immediately deposited into the river and its tributaries as stormwater runoff. Much of the water flowing into the St. Johns also comes from the Floridan Aquifer, a natural underground reservoir that serves as the fresh water source for populations living north of St. Petersburg. The St. Johns itself is being considered as a potential fresh water source for 2020 as populations continue to grow, taxing the Floridan Aquifer.

A vast variety of people have lived on or near the St. Johns, including Archaic people, Timucua, Mocama, French and Spanish settlers, Seminoles, slaves and freemen, Florida crackers, land developers, tourists, and retirees. It has been the subject of William Bartram's journals, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings' books, and Harriet Beecher Stowe's letters home. Although Florida was the location of the first permanent European colony in what would become the United States, it was the last U.S. territory on the east coast to be developed, and it remained an undeveloped frontier into the 20th century. When attention was turned to the state, however, much of the land was rapidly overdeveloped in a national zeal for progress.

The St. Johns, like many Florida rivers, was altered to make way for agricultural and residential centers. It suffered severe pollution and human interference that has diminished the natural order of life in and around the river. It was named one of 14 American Heritage Rivers in 1998 but was included on a list of America's Ten Most Endangered Rivers in 2008.[6] Restoration efforts are underway for the basins around the St. Johns as Florida continues to deal with population increases in the river's vicinity.

Contents[hide]

1 Geography and ecology

1.1 Upper basin
1.2 Middle basin
1.3 Lake George
1.4 Ocklawaha River
1.5 Lower basin
2 Formation and hydrology

2.1 Geologic history
2.2 Springs and aquifers
2.3 Rainfall and climate
2.4 Flow rates and water quality
3 Human history

3.1 Pre-Columbian people
3.2 Colonial era
3.3 Territorial Florida and statehood
3.4 Land boom
4 Restoration
5 See also
6 Notes
7 Citations
8 Bibliography
9 External links

Geography and ecology

Starting in Indian River County and meeting the Atlantic Ocean at Duval County, the St. Johns is Florida's primary commercial and recreational waterway. It flows north from its headwaters from the direction of the Lake Wales Ridge, which is only slightly elevated at 30 feet (9.1 m) above sea level. Because of this low elevation drop, the river has a long backwater. It ebbs and flows with tides that pass through the barrier islands and up the channel.[7] Uniquely, it shares the same regional terrain as the parallel Kissimmee River, although the Kissimmee flows south.[2]

The St. Johns River is separated into three basins and two associated watersheds managed by the St. Johns River Water Management District. Because the river flows in a northerly direction, the upper basin is located in the headwaters of the river at its southernmost point.[8] The river is frequently cited as being a rare north-flowing river in North America,[9][10] though in fact most of Canada and parts of the United States also drain north.[11][12] Indian River County is where the river begins as a network of marshes, at a point west of Vero Beach aptly named the St. Johns Marsh in central Florida. The St. Johns River is a blackwater stream, meaning it is fed primarily by swamps and marshes lying beneath it; water seeps through the sandy soil and collects in a slight valley.[13] The upper basin measures approximately 2,000 square miles (5,200 km2); the St. Johns transforms into a navigable waterway one county north of Indian River in Brevard County. The river touches on the borders of Osceola and Orange Counties, and flows through the southeast tip of Seminole County, transitioning into the middle basin a dozen miles (19 km) or so north of Titusville.[8] The length of the river through the upper basin measures about 75 miles (121 km).

The river is at its narrowest and most unpredictable in this basin. Channel flows are not apparent and usually unmarked. The most efficient way to travel on this part of the river is by airboat. Approximately 3,500 lakes lie within the overall St. Johns watershed and all of them are shallow, with maximum depths between 3 and 10 feet (0.91 and 3.0 m).[9][14] The river flows into many of them that further confuse navigation. Eight larger lakes and five smaller ones lie in the upper basin; one of the first is named Lake Hell 'n Blazes (sometimes polished to read as Lake Helen or Hellen Blazes)[15] referencing the oaths boatmen and fishermen at the beginning of the 19th century yelled, frustrated when trying to navigate through floating islands of macrophytes, or muck and weeds, as the islands moved with the creeping flow.[16] Lakes Washington, Winder, and Poinsett—named for Joel Roberts Poinsett, a diplomat who brought the poinsettia to the United States—are also located further along this stretch of the river. The northernmost points of the upper basin contain the Tosohatchee Wildlife Management Area, created in 1977 to assist with filtration of waters flowing into the larger St. Johns.[17]

Cypress trees in the Tosohatchee Wildlife Management Area showing dark water marks on the flared trunks, evidence of water level flux

Wetlands in the upper and middle basin are fed by rainwater, trapped by the structure of the surrounding land. It is an oxygen and nutrient-poor environment; what grows usually does so in peat which is created by centuries of decaying plant material.[18] Water levels fluctuate with the subtropical wet and dry seasons. Rain in central and north Florida occurs in seasons during the summer and winter, but farther south rain in winter is rare.[19] All plants that live in these basins must be tolerant of water fluctuations, both flooding and drought. Sweetbay (Magnolia virginiana), cypress (Taxodium), and swamp tupelo (Nyssa biflora) trees often find the greatest success in this region on raised land called hammocks.[18] Trees that live in water for long periods usually have buttressed trunks, tangled, braided roots, or protrusions like cypress knees to obtain oxygen when underwater, but the majority of plant life is aquatic. Wetland staples include the American white waterlily (Nymphaea odorata), pitcher plants, and Virginia iris (Iris virginica). In the southernmost points of the river, Cladium, or sawgrass, grows in vast swaths of wet prairies that at one time extended into the Everglades.[20] These wetland flora are remarkably successful in filtering pollutants that may otherwise find their way into the river.[21]

The St. Johns immediately south of Sanford shows a narrow channel with large areas of aquatic plants and wetlands.

For 37 miles (60 km) the river passes through a 1,200-square-mile (3,100 km2) basin fed primarily by springs and stormwater runoff. This basin, spreading throughout Orange, Lake, Volusia, and Seminole Counties, is home to the greater Orlando metropolitan area, where 2 million people live and major tourist attractions are located.[22] The topography of the middle basin varies between clearly distinguishable banks along the river and broad, shallow lakes. Two of the largest lakes in the middle basin are created by the river: Lake Harney and Lake Monroe. The shallow 9-square-mile (23 km2) Lake Harney is fed by the long narrow Puzzle Lake; immediately north is the Econlockhatchee River, which joins to increase the volume of the St. Johns where larger boat traffic navigation becomes easier. The river veers west, touching on Lake Jesup before it empties into Lake Monroe, passing the town of Sanford. Lake Monroe is a large lake at 15 square miles (39 km2), with an average depth of 8 feet (2.4 m), draining a surrounding watershed of 2,420 square miles (6,300 km2).[23] Sanford has adapted to the lake by building some of its downtown area on the waterfront; citizens are able to use boat transportation and Sanford's public dock to commute into town.[24]

Broadening more into an 8-foot (2.4 m) deep channel about 100 yards (91 m) wide, after leaving Lake Monroe, the St. Johns meets its most significant tributary in the middle basin, the spring-fed Wekiva River, discharging approximately 42,000,000 US gallons (160,000,000 L) a day into the St. Johns.[25] Near this confluence are the towns of DeBary and Deltona. The forests surrounding the Wekiva River are home to the largest black bear (Ursus americanus floridanus) population in Florida, and several troops of Rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) have adapted to the live near the river as well. The monkeys' introduction to Florida is unclear; they were reportedly brought to Florida either to serve in backdrop scenes of Tarzan movies filmed around the Silver River in the 1930s, or to lend an air of authenticity to "jungle cruises", provided by an enterprising boat operator around the same time.[26][27][28]

St. Johns River near Blue Spring State Park showing more distinct banks and trees instead of marshes

Of the most vital importance to marshes are invertebrate animals, which are the foundation of food webs. Amphibious invertebrates such as apple snails (Pomacea paludosa), crayfish, and grass shrimp consume plant material, hastening its decomposition and acting as a food source for fish and birds. Insect larvae use water for breeding, feeding upon smaller copepods and amphipods that live in microscopic algae and periphyton formations.[29] Mosquitos are born in water; they are in turn the favorite food of 112 species of dragonflies and 44 species of damselflies in Florida. These animals are water hardy and adaptable to dry conditions when water levels fluctuate from one season to the next, or through drought and flood cycles.[30]

Of vertebrates, numerous species of frogs, salamanders, snakes, and turtles, and alligators (Alligator mississippiensis) proliferate in marsh waters. Most of these animals are active at night. Choruses of frogs are overwhelming; during alligator mating season the grunts of bulls join in.[30] The marshes around the St. Johns River upper basin are teeming with birds. A recent study counted 60,000 birds in one month nesting or feeding in the upper basin.[31] Wading and water birds like the white ibis (Eudocimus albus), wood stork (Mycteria americana), and purple gallinule (Porphyrio martinica) depend on the water for raising their young: they prey upon small fish and tadpoles in shallow water and puddles in the dry season. In successful seasons, their colonies can number in the thousands, creating a cacophony of calls and fertilizing trees with their droppings.[32]

Birds found in the middle and upper St. Johns River basins

American white ibis (Eudocimus albus) 

Barred owl (Strix varia) 

Wood stork (Mycteria americana) 

Limpkin (Aramus guarauna) 

American black vulture (Coragyps atratus) 

Yellow-crowned night heron (N. violacea) 

Red-shouldered hawk (Buteo lineatus) 

Anhinga (Anhinga anhinga) 
Lake George
Main article: Lake George (Florida)

Manatees spend the winter months in Blue Spring and are protected by the state park.

The river turns north again as it rolls through a 46,000-acre (190 km2) basin spreading across Putnam, Lake, and Marion Counties, and the western part of Volusia County. Slightly north of the Wekiva River is Blue Spring, the largest spring on the St. Johns, producing over 64,000,000 US gallons (240,000,000 L) a day.[33] Florida springs stay at an even temperature of 72 °F (22 °C) throughout the year. Because of this, Blue Spring is the winter home for West Indian manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris), and they are protected within Blue Spring State Park. Manatees are large, slow-moving herbivorous aquatic mammals whose primary threats are human development and collisions with swiftly moving watercraft. Many parts of the St. Johns and its tributaries are no-wake zones to protect manatees from being critically or fatally injured by boat propellers.[34] Human interaction with manatees in Blue Spring State Park is forbidden.[35]

Bordering to the north of Blue Spring State Park is Hontoon Island State Park, accessible only by boat. In 1955 an extremely rare Timucua totem representing an owl was found buried and preserved in the St. Johns muck off of Hontoon Island.[36] The figure may signify that its creators were part of the owl clan. Two more totems, perhaps also designating clans — in all, the only totems in North America to have been found outside of the Pacific Northwest — shaped like a pelican and otter were found in 1978 after being snagged by a barge at the bottom of the river. River otters (Lutra canadensis) can be found through the length of the St. Johns and its tributaries, living in burrows or in the roots of trees bordering waterways. They eat crayfish, turtles, and small fish, and are active usually at night, playful but shy of human contact.[37][38]

Lake George is the second largest lake in Florida and the largest created by the St. Johns.

The St. Johns creeps into the southern tip of Lake George, the second largest lake in Florida at 72 square miles (190 km2), 6 miles (9.7 km) wide and 12 miles (19 km) long.[39] The watershed surrounding Lake George expands through 3,590 square miles (9,300 km2), lying within Ocala National Forest and Lake George State Forest, that protect an ecosystem dominated by pine and scrub more than 380,000 acres (1,500 km2) and 21,000 acres (85 km2) in size, respectively.[40][41][42] Flatwoods forests dominate the Lake George watershed, with slash pines (Pinus elliottii), saw palmetto (Serenoa repens), and over 100 species of groundcover or herbal plants that grow in poor, sandy soil. Flatwoods pine forests stay relatively dry, but can withstand short periods of flooding. Larger land animals such as wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo), sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis), and the largest population of southern bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus leucocephalus) in the contiguous U.S, find it easier to live in the flatwoods.[43] Typical mammals that live in these ecosystems, such as raccoons (Procyon lotor), opossums (Didelphis virginiana), bobcats (Lynx rufus), and white tailed-deer (Odocoileus virginianus), are ones that prefer dry, flat areas with good ground cover and available nesting sites.[44]

The Ocklawaha River joins the St. Johns as the largest tributary, and one of significant historical importance. The Ocklawaha (also printed as Oklawaha) drainage basin expands through Orange, Lake, Marion, and Alachua Counties, comprising a total of 2,769 square miles (7,170 km2). Ocala, Gainesville, and the northern suburbs of the Orlando metropolitan area are included in this basin. There are two headwaters for the Ocklawaha: a chain of lakes, the largest of which is Lake Apopka in Lake County, and the Green Swamp near Haines City in Polk County. The Silver River, fed by one of Florida's most productive springs expelling 54,000,000 US gallons (200,000,000 L) daily, is located about midway along the 96-mile (154 km) Ocklawaha.[45] Like the St. Johns, the Ocklawaha also flows north.

Paddlewheel boats made the journey from the mouth of the river at Jacksonville to Silver Springs—the source of the Silver River—at the turn of the 20th century, popularizing the Ocklawaha. Georgia-born poet Sidney Lanier called it "the sweetest waterlane in the world" in a travel guide he published in 1876.[46][47] The river gave Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings access to the St. Johns from her homestead at Orange Lake. The region served as a major fishing attraction until a decline in water quality occurred in the 1940s, and since then further degradation of the river and its sources have occurred. In particular, Lake Apopka earned the designation of Florida's most polluted lake following a chemical spill in 1980 that dumped DDT in it.[48] It has experienced chronic algal blooms caused by citrus farm fertilizer and wastewater runoff from nearby farms.[49]

The proliferation of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides), black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus), and bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) in central Florida is a major attraction for fishermen from all over the country. The St. Johns is home to 183 species of fish, 55 of which appear in the main stem of the river. One, the southern tessellated darter (Ethestoma omstedi) is found only in the Ocklawaha.[50] Some are marine species that either migrate upriver to spawn or have found spring-fed habitats that are high in salinity, such as a colony of Atlantic stingrays (Dasyatis sabina) that live in Lake Washington in the upper basin. Ocean worms, snails, and white-fingered mud crabs (Rhithropanopeu harrisii) have also been found far upriver where tidal influences are rare.[51] In contrast, American eels (Anguilla rostrata) live in the St. Johns and Ocklawaha and spawn in the Sargasso Sea in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. After a year living in the ocean, many of them find their way back to the St. Johns to live, then, prompted by the phases of the moon, make the return journey to spawn and die.[52]

From the intersection of the Ocklawaha River, 101 miles (163 km) to the Atlantic Ocean, the St. Johns lies within the lower basin, draining a total area of 2,600 square miles (6,700 km2) in Putnam, St. Johns, Clay, and Duval Counties. Twelve tributaries empty into the river in the lower basin. The St. Johns River widens considerably on the north end of Lake George; between Lake George and Palatka the river ranges between 600 and 2,640 feet (180 and 800 m) wide. Between Palatka and Jacksonville, that widens further to between 1 and 3 miles (1.6 and 4.8 km). This portion of the river is the most navigable and shipping is its primary use. The Army Corps of Engineers maintains shipping channels at least 12 feet (3.7 m) deep and 100 feet (30 m) wide. North of Palatka, the channels are expanded to 40 feet (12 m) deep and between 400 and 900 feet (120 and 270 m) wide.[53]

Cypress trees frame a sunset over the St. Johns near Picolata and Tocoi, former ferry landings in St. Johns County.

The towns and cities along the lower basin of the river are some of the oldest in Florida, and their histories have centered on the river. Both Palatka and Green Cove Springs have been popular tourist destinations in the past. Several smaller locations along the river sprang up around ferry landings, but when rail lines and then Interstate highways were constructed closer to the Atlantic Coast, many of the towns experienced significant economic decline, and ferry landings were forgotten.[54]

The final 35 miles (56 km) of the river's course runs through Jacksonville, the largest city by area in the state of Florida, with a population of more than a million. Much of the economic base of Jacksonville depends on the river: 18,000,000 short tons (16,000,000 t) of goods are shipped in and out of Jacksonville annually. Exports include paper, phosphate, fertilizers, and citrus, while major imports include oil, coffee, limestone, cars, and lumber.[55] The Port of Jacksonville produces $1.38 billion in the local economy and supports 10,000 jobs.[31] The U.S. Navy has two bases in the Jacksonville area: Naval Station Mayport, at the mouth of the river, serves as the second largest Atlantic fleet operation in the country. Naval Air Station Jacksonville is primarily a Naval airport.[31]

If I could have, to hold forever, one brief place and time of beauty, I think I might choose the night on that high lonely bank above the St. Johns River —Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings in Cross Creek

Using an unofficial nickname of "The River City", Jacksonville has a culture centered on the St. Johns. An annual footrace named the Gate River Run accepts 18,000 participants who travel a course along and over the river twice.[56] The largest kingfishing tournament in the U.S. is held on a St. Johns tributary.[57] The home stadium for the Jacksonville Jaguars faces the river, as does most of the commercial center of downtown. Eight bridges span the St. Johns at Jacksonville; all of them allow tall ships to pass, although some restrict passing times when train or automobile traffic is heavy.[58]

Tides cause seawater to enter the mouth of the St. Johns River and can affect the river's level into the middle basin. As a result, much of the river in Jacksonville is part seawater, making it an estuarine ecosystem. The animals and plants in these systems can tolerate both fresh and salt water, and the fluctuations in saline content and temperatures associated with tidal surges and heavy rainfall discharge.[59] Marine animals such as dolphins and sharks can be spotted at times in the St. Johns at Jacksonville as can manatees. Fish such as mullet (Mullidae), flounder (Paralichthys lethostigma), shad (Alosa sapidissima), and blue crabs (Callinectes sapidus) migrate from the ocean to freshwater springs upriver to spawn.[60]

Although freshwater invertebrates inhabiting and comprising algae and periphyton make the foundation of food webs in the middle and lower basin, zooplankton and phytoplankton take that role in the estuarine habitat. Mollusks gather at the St. Johns estuary in large numbers, feeding on the bottom of the river and ocean floors.[61] The abundance and importance of oysters (Crassostrea virginica) is apparent in the many middens left by the Timucua in mounds many feet high. Oysters and other mollusks serve as the primary food source of shorebirds. The large trees that line the river from its source to south of Jacksonville begin to transition into salt marshes east of the city. Mayport is home to approximately 20 shrimping vessels that use the mouth of the St. Johns to access the Atlantic Ocean.[62]

Downtown Jacksonville's commercial district on the St. Johns River
Formation and hydrology

Florida platform (outer boundary) as it appeared the first time humans inhabited the peninsula
Geologic history

Florida was once part of the supercontinent Gondwana. During and after this time, in the Paleozoic era (542–251 million years ago), the geologic basement of igneous intrusive granites and extrusive (volcanic) rock, was covered by layers of sedimentary rock. During the Cretaceous period (145 to 65 million years ago), the basement and its sedimentary overlay were further covered by calcium carbonate and formations left by the evaporation of water called evaporites.[63]

Lying within a coastal plain, the St. Johns River passes through an area that was at one time barrier islands, coastal dunes, and estuary marshes. North-south axis rivers near coastal Florida, such as the St. Johns, have been steered into place by past beach ridges which were often divided by swales. As ocean water retreated, lagoons formed in the swales, which were further eroded by acidic water.[64]

From its origins to approximately the area of Sanford, the St. Johns flows north.[10] It takes a sharp turn west near Sanford for a few miles, but shortly changes direction to flow north again. This is referred to as the St. Johns River offset. Geologists hypothesize that the west-flowing offset may have formed earlier than the north flowing portions.[10] Although seismic activity in Florida is mostly insignificant, several minor earthquakes have occurred near the St. Johns River, caused by the trough created by Pangaean rifting.[65]

The hydrologic cycle in Florida, showing the Floridan aquifer and formation of springs and sinkholes

All of Florida's abundant fresh water is the result of precipitation that returns to the atmosphere in a process called evapotranspiration that involves evaporation and transpiration of moisture from plants. As rains fall, most of the water is directed to lakes, streams, and rivers.[66] However, a significant amount of fresh water is held underground but close to the surface in aquifers. A surficial aquifer comprised mostly of clay, shells, and sand is over a confining layer of denser materials. Wells are drilled in the surficial aquifer, which supplies better quality water in areas where the deepest aquifer has a high mineral content.[53] Occasionally the confining layer is fractured to allow breaches of water to percolate down to recharge the layer below. The Floridan Aquifer, underneath the confining layer, underlies the entire state and portions of Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina. It is particularly accessible in the northern part of Florida, serving as the fresh water source of metropolitan areas from St. Petersburg north to Jacksonville and Tallahassee.[67]

Acidic rainwater erodes the limestone and can form underground caverns. When the overlay of these caverns is particularly thin—less than 100 feet (30 m)—sinkholes can form. Where the limestone or sand/clay overlay dissolves over the aquifer and the pressure of the water pushes out, springs form. The upper and middle basins of the St. Johns River are located in a portion of the peninsula where the aquifer system is thinly confined, meaning springs and sinkholes are abundant. Springs are measured in magnitude of how much water is discharged, which is dependent upon season and rainfall. The greatest discharge is from first magnitude springs that emit at least 100 cubic feet (2.8 m3) of water per second. There are four first magnitude springs that feed the St. Johns River: Silver Springs in Marion County, emitting between 250 and 1,290 cubic feet (7.1 and 37 m3)/second;[68] Silver Glen Spring straddling Marion and Lake Counties, emitting between 38 and 245 cubic feet (1.1 and 6.9 m3)/second;[69] Alexander Springs in Lake County, emitting between 56 and 202 cubic feet (1.6 and 5.7 m3)/second;[70] and Blue Spring in Volusia County, emitting between 87 and 218 cubic feet (2.5 and 6.2 m3)/second.[71][72]

Tropical Storm Fay caused record flooding in Geneva in 2008.

The St. Johns River lies within a humid subtropical zone. In summer months, the temperature ranges from 74 and 92 °F (23 and 33 °C), and between 50 and 72 °F (10 and 22 °C) in the winter, although drops may occur in winter months to below freezing approximately a dozen times. Water temperatures in the river correlate to the air temperatures. The average range of water temperatures is between 50 and 95 °F (10 and 35 °C), rising in the summer months.[73] Where the river widens between Palatka and Jacksonville, wind becomes a significant factor in navigation, and both whitecap waves and calm surface waters are common.[74]

Rain occurs more frequently in late summer and early fall.[55] Tropical storms and nor'easters are common occurrences along the Atlantic coast of Florida; the St. Johns River lies between 10 and 30 miles (16 and 48 km) inland, so any storm striking the counties of Indian River north to Duval produces rain that is drained by the St. Johns River. Tropical Storm Fay in 2008 deposited 16 inches (41 cm) of rain in a 5-day period, most of it located near Melbourne. The St. Johns near Geneva in Seminole County rose 7 feet (2.1 m) in four days, setting a record. The river near Sanford rose 3 feet (0.91 m) in 36 hours. Fay caused severe flooding in the middle basin due not only to the deluge but the flat slopes of the river.[75] Typically, however, the St. Johns basin receives between 50 and 54 inches (130 and 140 cm) of rain annually, half of it in summer months.[76] The rate of evapotranspiration corresponds to rainfall, ranging between 27 and 57 inches (69 and 140 cm) a year, most of it occurring in the summer.[73]

Average monthly rainfall for three cities on the St. Johns[76]
Flow rates and water quality

Fog on a calm St. Johns River at the Shands Bridge near Green Cove Springs

The entire river lies within the nearly flat Pamlico terrace, giving it an overall gradient of 0.8 inches (2.0 cm) per mile (km); it is one of the flattest major rivers on the continent.[9] Its proximity to the ocean in the lower basin affects its rise and fall with tides and salinity. Tides regularly affect water levels as far south as Lake George; when combined with extreme winds, the river's tidal effects can extend to Lake Monroe 161 miles (259 km) away and have on occasion reached Lake Harney.[55] Tides typically raise the river level about 1.2 feet (0.37 m) at Jacksonville, decreasing some to 0.7 feet (0.21 m) at Orange Park where the river widens, and increasing back to 1.2 feet (0.37 m) at Palatka as it narrows. As a result of tidal effects, discharge measurements in the lower basin are often inaccurate. However, the estimated rate of discharge between the Ocklawaha River and the center of Jacksonville ranges from 4,000 to 8,300 cubic feet (110 to 240 m3) per second.[53] The nontidal discharge at the mouth at Mayport averages 15,000 cubic feet (420 m3) per second, but with tides it exceeds 50,000 cubic feet (1,400 m3) per second, and following heavy rains combined with tides can top 150,000 cubic feet (4,200 m3) per second.[55] Farther upriver, the discharge rate ranges from 1,030 cubic feet (29 m3) per second near Lake Poinsett to 2,850 cubic feet (81 m3) per second near DeLand. The confluence of numerous springs, the Econlockhatchee River, and the Wekiva River causes the average discharge to increase by 940 cubic feet (27 m3) per second between Lake Harney and DeLand, representing the greatest annual average increase of streamflow along the St. Johns.[73]

As distance between the mouth of the St. Johns and the middle and upper basins increases, the salinity in the river gradually decreases. Marine water measures at 35 parts per thousand (ppt) or more while fresh water measures below 2 ppt. What ranges in between is characterized as brackish water. Near the center of Jacksonville, average measures have been collected at 11.40 ppt. Farther south at the Buckman Bridge, joining the south side of Jacksonville to Orange Park, it decreases to 2.9 ppt and falls again to 0.81 ppt at the Shands Bridge near Green Cove Springs.[77][78]

Dissolved oxygen in fresh water is measured to indicate the health of plant and animal life. It enters water through the atmosphere and from aquatic plant photosynthesis, and is affected by water pressure and temperature. Rapid decomposition of organic materials will decrease the amount of dissolved oxygen in the river, as will nutrients added to the water artificially by wastewater treatment runoff or drainage from fertilized agricultural fields. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the State of Florida recommend no less than 5 mg of oxygen per liter. Several locations on the St. Johns or its tributaries reported at or below these minimums in the 1990s, including the mouth of the Wekiva River, the St. Johns at the town of Christmas, and in the early 2000s at Blue Spring and Blackwater Creek.[73] Sustained low levels of dissolved oxygen may create algal blooms, which may also cause a further decrease in dissolved oxygen.[78]

Like all blackwater streams in Florida, the color of most of the St. Johns is black, owing to the tannins in leaf litter and decaying aquatic plants. Spring fed streams, on the other hand, are remarkably clear and visibility is very high, even when the river bottom is dozens of feet below.[79]

Humans arrived on the Florida Peninsula about 12,000 years ago when the ocean was about 350 feet (110 m) lower than today, and the peninsula was double its current size.[80] These earliest people are called Paleo-Indians. They were primarily hunter–gatherers who followed large game, such as mastodons, horses, camels, and bison. Much of the land was far from water—most fresh water was contained in glaciers and polar ice caps. As a result, Florida was an arid landscape with few trees, dominated by grasslands and scrub vegetation.[81] Around 9,000 years ago, the climate warmed, melting many of the polar ice caps and glaciers, creating a wetter environment and submerging half the peninsular shelf. As Paleo-Indians did not have to travel as far to find water, their camps became more permanent, turning into villages. With evidence of a wide variety of tools constructed around this time, archeologists note the transition into Archaic people.

An extremely rare Timucua owl totem, found buried in muck near Hontoon Island, on display at Fort Caroline National Monument

The Archaic people made tools from bone, animal teeth, and antlers. They wove fibers from plants such as cabbage palms and saw palmettos. A few burial sites have been excavated—including the Windover Archaeological Site in Brevard County near Titusville—that provide evidence of burial rituals. Archaic peoples interred their dead in shallow peat marshes, which preserved much of the human tissue.[82] Further climate change between 5,000 and 3,000 years ago led to the Middle Archaic period; evidence suggests that human habitation near the St. Johns River first occurred during this era. Populations of indigenous people increased significantly at this time, and numerous settlements near the St. Johns have been recorded from this era; the banks of the St. Johns and its arteries are dotted with middens filled with thousands of shells, primarily those of Viviparus georgianus—a freshwater snail—and oysters.[83][84]

The advent of regional types of pottery and stone tools made of flint or limestone marked further advancements around 500 BCE. The Archaic people transitioned into settled groups around Florida. From the central part of the state north, along the Atlantic Coast lived people in the St. Johns culture, named for the most significant nearby natural formation. Around 750 CE, the St. Johns culture learned to cultivate corn, adding to their diet of fish, game, and gourds. Archeologists and anthropologists date this agricultural advancement to coincide with a spread of archeological sites, suggesting that a population increase followed.[85] When European explorers arrived in north Florida, they met a tribe speaking Timucuan, numbering about 14,000, the largest group of indigenous people in the region.[86] The Timucua people called the river Welaka (or Ylacco), meaning "chain of lakes", referring not only the numerous lakes that border or are formed by the river, but the slow discharge and tidal effects on it.[87]

Replica of the French monument at Fort Caroline overlooking the St. Johns River

Though the first European contact in Florida came in 1513 when Juan Ponce de León arrived near Cape Canaveral, not until 1562 was the north Atlantic coast of the peninsula settled. Early Spanish explorers named the river Rio de Corientes (River of Currents).[31] The St. Johns River became the first place colonized and the first battleground: when French explorer Jean Ribault erected a monument south of the river's mouth to make French presence known, it alarmed the Spanish who had been exploring the southern and western coast of the peninsula for decades.[88][89] Ribault was detained after he returned to Europe; in 1564 René Goulaine de Laudonnière arrived to build Fort Caroline at the mouth of the St. Johns River; they called the river Rivière de Mai because they settled it on May 1.[90] An artist named Jacques LeMoyne documented what he saw among the Timucuan people in 1564, portraying them as physically powerful and not lacking for provisions.[86] Fort Caroline did not last long; though relations with the local Timucua and Mocamas were friendly, the colony was unable to support itself. Some of the French deserted. Those who remained were killed by the Spanish in 1565.[88][89]

The French and Spanish continued to spar over who would control the natural resources and native peoples of the colony, foreshadowing a history during which eight different countries would control the river. The Timucua, who had initially befriended the French, were not encouraged to make the Spanish allies because of colonial governor Pedro Menéndez de Avilés' distaste of French Protestantism and his view that the Timucuan beliefs were "Satanic".[91] By 1573, the Timucua were in outright rebellion, testing the governor's patience and forcing Spanish settlers to abandon farms and garrisons in more interior parts of Florida; the Spanish could not persuade the Timucua to keep from attacking them.[92] Over a hundred years later, missionaries had more success, setting up posts along the river. Spanish Franciscan missionaries gave the river its current name based on San Juan del Puerto (St. John of the door or harbor), the mission established at the river's mouth following the demise of the French fort. The name first appeared on a Spanish map created between 1680 and 1700.[93]

The Timucua, as other groups of indigenous people in Florida, began to lose cohesion and numbers by the 18th century.[note 1] A tribe located in modern-day Georgia and Alabama called the Creeks assisted with this; in 1702, they joined with the Yamasee and attacked some of the Timucua, forcing them to seek protection from the Spanish who forced them into slavery.[94] The Creeks began assimilating other people and spread farther south until they were known by 1765 as Seminoles by the British, a term adapted from cimarrones that meant "runaways" or "wild ones".[95] The Seminoles employed a variety of languages from the peoples the Creeks had assimilated: Hitchiti, Muskogee, as well as Timucua. Between 1716 and 1767, the Seminoles gradually moved into Florida and began to break ties with the Creeks to become a cohesive tribe of their own.[96] The St. Johns provided a natural boundary to separate European colonies on the east bank and indigenous lands west of the river.[97]

William Bartram's sketch of alligators on the St. Johns, created either in 1773 or 1774

After Florida came under the United Kingdom's jurisdiction in 1763, Quaker father and son naturalists John and William Bartram explored the length of the river while visiting the southeastern United States from 1765 to 1766. They published journals describing their experiences and the plants and animals they observed. They were charged by King George III to find the source of the river they called the Picolata or San Juan, and measured its widths and depths, taking soil samples as they traveled southward.[98] William returned to Florida from 1773 to 1777 and wrote another journal about his travels, while he collected plants and befriended the Seminoles who called him "Puc Puggy" (flower hunter).[99] William's visit took him as far south as Blue Spring, where he remarked on the crystal clear views offered by the spring water: "The water is perfectly diaphanous, and here are continually a prodigious number and variety of fish; they appear as plain as though lying on a table before your eyes, although many feet deep in the water."[100] Bartram's journals attracted the attention of such prominent Americans as James Madison and Alexander Hamilton.[101] The success of these journals inspired other naturalists such as Andre Michaux to further explore the St. Johns, as he did in 1788, sailing from Palatka south to Lake Monroe, and gave names to some of the plants described by the Bartrams' journals. Michaux was followed by William Baldwin between 1811 and 1817. Subsequent explorers, including John James Audubon, have carried William's Travels Through North & South Carolina, Georgia, East & West Florida with them as a guide.[98][102]

In 1795, Florida was transferred back to Spain which lured Americans with cheap land. A former loyalist to Britain who left South Carolina during the American Revolutionary War, a planter and slave trader named Zephaniah Kingsley seized the opportunity and built a plantation named Laurel Grove near what is now Doctors Lake, close to the west bank of the St. Johns River, south of where Orange Park is today.[103] Three years later, Kingsley took a trip to Cuba and purchased a 13-year-old Wolof girl named Anna Madgigine Jai. She became his common-law wife, and managed Laurel Grove while Kingsley traveled and conducted business.[104] The plantation grew citrus and sea island cotton (Gossypium barbadense). In 1814, they moved to a larger plantation on Fort George Island, where they lived for 25 years, and owned several other plantations and homesteads in what is today Jacksonville and another on Drayton Island at the north end of Lake George. Kingsley later married three other freed women in a polygamous relationship;[105] Spanish-controlled Florida allowed interracial marriages, and white landowners such as James Erwin, George Clarke, Francisco Sánchez, John Fraser, and Francis Richard, Jr.—early settlers along the river—all were married to or in extramarital relationships with African women.[106]

Map of the lower St. Johns printed in 1876

The first years following Florida's annexation to the United States in 1821 were marked with violent conflicts between white settlers and Seminoles, whose bands often included runaway African slaves. The clashes between American and Seminole forces during the establishment of the Florida territory are reflected in the towns and landmarks along the St. Johns named for those who were directly involved. Even before Florida was under U.S. jurisdiction, Major General Andrew Jackson was responsible for removing the Alachua Seminoles west of the Suwannee River, either killing them or forcing them farther south towards Lake County, in 1818. Jackson's efforts became the First Seminole War, and were rewarded by the naming of a cattle crossing across a wide portion of the St. Johns near the Georgia border—previously named Cowford—to Jacksonville. The result of Jackson's offensive was the transfer of Florida to the U.S.[107][note 2] Following the Seminole Wars, a gradual increase in commerce and population occurred on the St. Johns, made possible by steamship travel. Steamboats heralded a heyday for the river, and preceding railroads they were the only way to reach interior portions of the state. They also afforded the citizens of Jacksonville a pastime to watch competing races.[108] By the 1860s, weekly trips between Jacksonville, Charleston, and Savannah were made to transport tourists, lumber, cotton, and citrus. The soil along the St. Johns was considered especially successful for producing sweeter oranges.[109]

Florida's involvement in the U.S. Civil War was limited compared to other Confederate states because it had a fraction of the populations of states that had been developed. Florida provided materials to the Confederacy by way of steamboats on the St. Johns, although the river and the Atlantic coasts were blockaded by the U.S. Navy. One action in Florida's role in the Civil War was the sinking of the USS Columbine, a Union paddle steamer used for patrolling the St. Johns to keep materials from reaching the Confederate Army. In 1864, near Palatka, Confederate forces captured and then burned the USS Columbine and sank her, making it perhaps the only ship commandeered by the Confederacy.[110][111] The same year and farther downriver, Confederates again sunk a Union boat named the Maple Leaf, that struck a floating keg filled with explosives and settled into the muck near Julington Creek, south of Jacksonville. Part of the shipwreck was recovered in 1994, when it was discovered that many Civil War era artifacts, including daguerreotypes and wooden matches, had been preserved in the river muck.[112]

Although the Spanish had colonized Florida for two centuries, the state remained the last part of the east coast of the United States to be developed and explored.[23] Following the Civil War, the State of Florida was too far in debt to build roads and rail lines to further its progress. Florida Governor William Bloxham in 1881 appealed directly to a Pennsylvania-based industrialist named Hamilton Disston, initially to build canals to improve steamboat passage through the Caloosahatchee River, and drain lands in the central part of the state to turn into agriculturally productive tracts. Disston was furthermore persuaded to purchase 4,000,000 acres (16,000 km2) of land in central Florida for $1 million, which at the time was reported to be the largest purchase of land in human history. Disston was ultimately unsuccessful in his drainage attempts, but his investment sparked the tourist industry and made it possible for railroad magnates Henry Morrison Flagler and Henry Bradley Plant to construct rail lines down the east coast of Florida, and another connecting Sanford to Tampa. Disston was responsible for creating the towns of Kissimmee, St. Cloud, and several others on the west coast of Florida.[113][114]

Stereoscopic view of Harriet Beecher Stowe's house in Mandarin

A New York Times story reporting on Disston's progress in 1883 stated that before Disston's purchase and the subsequent development, the only places worth seeing in Florida were Jacksonville and St. Augustine, with perhaps an overnight trip on the St. Johns River to Palatka; by 1883 tourist attractions had extended 250 miles (400 km) south.[115] More attention was paid to the St. Johns with the increasing population. Florida was portrayed as an exotic wonderland able to cure failing health with its water and citrus, and the region began to be highlighted in travel writings. To relieve his bronchitis, Ralph Waldo Emerson stayed briefly in St. Augustine, calling north Florida "a grotesque region" that was being swarmed by land speculators. Emerson poignantly disliked the public sale of slaves, adding to his overall distaste.[116] Following the Civil War, however, famed author Harriet Beecher Stowe lived near Jacksonville and traveled up the St. Johns, writing about it with affection: "The entrance of the St. Johns from the ocean is one of the most singular and impressive passages of scenery that we ever passed through: in fine weather the sight is magnificent."[117] Her memoir Palmetto Leaves, published in 1873 as a series of her letters home, was very influential in luring northern residents to the state.[118]

The results of introducing water hyacinths to Florida, sparking a state-led battle against the invasive plant

One unforeseen aspect of more people coming to Florida proved to be an overwhelming problem. A woman living in a winter home near Palatka introduced water hyacinths (Eichhornia crassipes) to the St. Johns in an attempt to beautify her backyard. Ten years later, the purple-flowered hyacinths had grown to reside in 50,000,000 acres (200,000 km2) of the river and its arteries, becoming a serious invasive species. Hyacinths grow so densely that they prevent the navigation of watercraft, fishing, and sunlight from reaching the depths of the river, affecting both plant and animal life. Domestic cattle ate the plants and began wasting away; only later was it discovered the hyacinth has no nutritional value. The government of Florida found the plants to be so vexing that they spent almost $600,000 between 1890 and 1930 to rid the creeks and rivers of north Florida of them, but they were unsuccessful.[119][120]

Progress of Fellsmere Farms in 1912

An Englishman named Nelson Fell, persuaded by Disston's advertisements to make his fortunes in Florida, arrived in the 1880s. An engineer by trade, Fell purchased 12,000 acres (49 km2) near Lake Tohopekaliga to create a town named Narcoossee, which had a population of more than 200 English immigrants by 1888. A spate of poor luck and tense British-American relations followed, prompting Fell to spend some years investing in infrastructure in Siberia, but he returned in 1909 with ideas of developing wetlands in central Florida. He was further encouraged by the political promises of Governor Napoleon Bonaparte Broward to drain the Everglades during his 1904 campaign. In 1910 Fell purchased 118,000 acres (480 km2) of land for $1.35 an acre and started the Fellsmere Farms Company to drain the St. Johns Marsh in 1911 and send water into the Indian River Lagoon, promoting the engineered canals and other structures as wondrously efficient in providing land to build a massive metropolis.[121] Some progress was made initially, including the establishment of the town of Fellsmere in which land was sold for $100 an acre, but sales lagged because of a scandal regarding land sale fraud and faulty draining reports from the Everglades. The company then found itself short of funds due to mismanagement. Torrential rains ruptured the newly constructed levees and dikes and forced the company by 1916 to go into receivership. Fell left Florida for Virginia in 1917.[122][123]

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings used the St. Johns as a backdrop in her books South Moon Under and The Yearling, and several short stories. In 1933 she took a boat trip along the St. Johns with a friend. In the upper basin, she remarked on the difficulty of determining direction due to the river's ambiguous flow, and wrote in a chapter titled "Hyacinth Drift" in her memoir Cross Creek that she had the best luck in watching the way the hyacinths floated.[124] Rawlings wrote, "If I could have, to hold forever, one brief place and time of beauty, I think I might choose the night on that high lonely bank above the St. Johns River."[125][note 3]

Florida in the 20th century experienced a massive migration into the state. Undeveloped land sold well and draining to reclaim wetlands has often gone unchecked, and often encouraged by government. The St. Johns headwaters decreased in size from 30 square miles (78 km2) to one between 1900 and 1972.[126] Much of the land was reclaimed for urban use, but agricultural needs took their toll as fertilizers and runoff from cattle ranching washed into the St. Johns. Without wetlands to filter the pollutants, the chemicals stayed in the river and flushed into the Atlantic Ocean. Boaters destroyed the floating islands of muck and weeds in the upper basin with dynamite, causing the lakes to drain completely.[127]

A portion of the completed Cross Florida Barge Canal near Palatka

What could have been the most serious human impact on nature in central Florida was the Cross Florida Barge Canal, an attempt to connect the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of the state by channeling the Ocklawaha River, first authorized in 1933.[note 4] The canal was intended to be 171 miles (275 km) long, 250 feet (76 m) wide, and 30 feet (9.1 m) deep.[128] Canal construction was top among the engineering priorities in the state, and by 1964 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began construction on the Cross Florida Barge Canal. Flood control was the primary impetus behind its construction, though the broader reasoning and feasibility of the project remained unclear. The Army Corps of Engineers was also constructing hundreds of miles of canals in the Everglades at the same time and by the 1960s was being accused of wasting tax money through its unnecessary construction projects.[129] In 1969 the Environmental Defense Fund filed suit in federal court to stop construction on the canal, citing irreparable harm that would be done to Florida waterways and the Floridan Aquifer, central and north Florida's fresh water source.[130]

A separate canal, the St. Johns-Indian River Barge Canal, was planned to link the river with the Intracoastal Waterway, and was canceled soon after the Cross Florida Barge Canal was suspended.

Former headwater marshes drained for agricultural use near Brevard and Indian River Counties

When steamboats were phased out for railroads, that were in turn replaced by Interstate 95 that meets the St. Johns once in Jacksonville, the river lost much of its significance to the state. The influx of immigrants to Florida settled primarily south of Orlando, adversely affecting the natural order of wetlands there. Yet the call to save the Everglades has been celebrated much more than restoration to the St. Johns River.[131] Within the past 50 years, however, urban areas in the northern and central parts of the state have grown considerably. In the upper basin, population increased by 700 percent between 1950 and 2000, and is expected to rise another 1.5 million by 2020.[132]

Nitrates and phosphorus used as lawn and crop fertilizers wash into the St. Johns. Broken septic systems and seepage from cattle grazing lands create pollution that also finds its way into the river. Storm water washes from street drains directly to the river and its tributaries: in the 1970s, the Econlockhatchee River received 8,000,000 US gallons (30,000,000 L) of treated wastewater every day.[133] Wetlands were drained and paved, unable to filter pollutants from the water, made worse by the river's own slow discharge. Algal blooms, fish kills, and deformations and lesions on fish occur regularly in the river from Palatka to Jacksonville. Although most of the pollutants in the river are washed from the southern parts of the river, the Jacksonville area produces approximately 36 percent of them found in the lower basin.[134]

The State of Florida implemented a program named Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) in 1987 to assist with river cleanups, particularly with nonpoint source pollution, or chemicals that enter the river by soaking into the ground, as opposed to direct piped dumping.[135] SWIM assists local jurisdictions with purchasing land for wetlands restoration. The St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) is charged by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) with restoring the river. The first step in restoration, particularly in the upper basin, is the purchase of public lands bordering the river; ten different reserves and conservation areas have been implemented for such use around the St. Johns headwaters.[132] Around Lake Griffin in the Ocklawaha Chain of Lakes, the SJRWMD has purchased 6,500 acres (26 km2) of land that was previously used for muck farming.[136] More than 19,000 acres (77 km2) have been purchased along Lake Apopka to restore its wetlands, and the SJRWMD has removed nearly 15,000,000 pounds (6,800,000 kg) of gizzard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum), a fish species that stores phosphorus and adds to algae problems.[49] The SJRWMD has also set minimum levels for the lakes and tributaries in the St. Johns watersheds to monitor permitted water withdrawals and declare water shortages when necessary.[137]

To assist with river cleanup and the associated funds for improving water quality in the St. Johns, Mayor John Delaney of Jacksonville waged a campaign to get it named as an American Heritage River, beginning in 1997. The designation by the Environmental Protection Agency is intended to coordinate efforts among federal agencies to improve natural resource and environmental protection, economic revitalization, and historic and cultural preservation.[138] The campaign was controversial as the Republican mayor defended asking for federal government assistance, writing "Other rivers have relied heavily on federal help for massive environmental clean-ups. It's the St. Johns' turn now."[139] Twenty-two towns along the St. Johns and environmental, sporting, recreation, boating, and educational organizations also supported its designation,[140] but several prominent Republican politicians expressed concerns over increased federal regulations and restrictions on private property ownership along the river; the Florida House of Representatives passed a resolution asking President Bill Clinton not to include the St. Johns. Despite this, Clinton designated the St. Johns as one of only 14 American Heritage Rivers out of 126 nominated in 1998 for its ecological, historic, economic and cultural significance.[141][142]

The continuing increase of population in Florida has caused urban planners to forecast that the Floridan Aquifer will no longer be able to sustain the people living in north Florida. By 2020, 7 million people are predicted to live in the St. Johns basins, double the number living there in 2008.[143] Proposals to use 155,000,000 US gallons (590,000,000 L) a day from the St. Johns, and another 100,000,000 US gallons (380,000,000 L) from the Ocklawaha River for fresh water are controversial, prompting a private organization named St. Johns Riverkeeper to nominate it to the list of the Ten Most Endangered Rivers by an environmental watchdog group named American Rivers. In 2008, it was listed as #6,[144] which was met with approval from Jacksonville's newspaper, The Florida Times-Union, and skepticism from the SJRWMD.[6][145]

List of lakes of the St. Johns River
List of crossings of the St. Johns River
List of Florida rivers
Notes

^ In 1717, some of the groups were reorganized by the colonial governor; 248 Timucua were counted. The restructuring also included Yamasee, Mocama, Apalachee, and Guale: in total no more than 1,500 Indians remained in north Florida. Disease and violent conflicts with the Spanish and other tribes continued to decrease their numbers, and by 1763, 100 of the last remaining indigenous people of Florida chose to be relocated to Cuba with the Spanish. (Gannon, p. 94.)
^ Lake Monroe on the St. Johns was named for President James Monroe, who persuaded the U.S. government to finance the First Seminole War. As American settlers trickled in to farms and homesteads in north and central Florida, they came into increased conflict with several Seminole bands for food and sometimes to take the Seminoles as slaves. The Treaty of Moultrie Creek in 1823 placed Seminoles on a reservation near Lake Okeechobee, but further U.S. policy strongly encouraged them to leave Florida for Indian Territory in what would become Oklahoma. (Tebeau, p. 156.) By 1835, the Seminoles rebelled, inspired and led by Osceola, whose name is one of the most widely used for landmarks and structures in the state. (McCarthy, p. 17.) Lake Jesup's namesake is the American military leader in Florida, Major General Thomas Jesup, who captured Osceola in 1837. Lake Harney was named for Brigadier General William S. Harney, who led several raids against Seminoles in west and south Florida. (McCarthy, p. 12.)
^ When Rawlings and her friend stopped in Sanford to purchase gasoline, a yacht owner offered to have his crew take her to town to buy it, but he was interrupted when his wife, resplendent in a "pink spectator sports costume", demanded he take her to church instead. As Rawlings left the dock at Sanford, her friend remarked, "The poor b—. I bet he'd give his silk shirt to go down the river with us instead of Pink Petticoats". (Rawlings, p. 366.)
^ Author and University of Florida professor Kevin McCarthy characterized the Cross Florida Barge Canal as "probably the single most dangerous threat to the water resources of the state in the twentieth century". (McCarthy, p. 76.)
Citations

^ a b c Feature Detail Report for: St. Johns River, US Geological Survey (October 19, 1979). Retrieved on October 25, 2009.
^ a b Whitney, p. 215.
^ Belleville, p. xxi.
^ The St. Johns River: Nominated as an American Heritage River, Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved on July 17, 2009.
^ Whitney, p. 136.
^ a b Ball, David (April 14, 2008).St. Johns River Makes ‘Endangered’ List, Jacksonville Financial and Daily Record, Retrieved on July 17, 2009.
^ McCarthy, p. 2.
^ a b "Fact Sheet: A Story of the St. Johns River: The Big Picture", St. Johns River Water Management District (May 3, 2007).
^ a b c Benke and Cushing, p. 100.
^ a b c Randazzo and Jones, p. 12.
^ Verdin, K.L.. "A System for Topologically Coding Global Drainage Basins and Stream Networks". ESRI. http://proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc97/proc97/to350/pap311/p311.htm. Retrieved 19 March 2010. 
^ Gonzalez, M.A. (2003). "Continental Divides in North Dakota and North America". North Dakota Geological Survey Newsletter (North Dakota Geological Survey) 30 (1): 1–7. http://www.state.nd.us/ndgs/NEWSLETTER/NLS03/pdf/Divide.pdf. 
^ Whitney, p. 216.
^ Belleville, p. 14.
^ Cabell, p. 10.
^ McCarthy, p. 5–6.
^ McCarthy, p. 10–11.
^ a b Whitney, p. 128–130.
^ Whitney, p. 156.
^ Belleville, p. 11–12.
^ Whitney, p. 132–133.
^ The Middle St. Johns River Basin St. Johns River Water Management District Projects in Central Florida, St. Johns River Water Management District (February 2009).
^ a b McCarthy, p. 20.
^ McCarthy, p. 22.
^ Cabell, p. 11–12.
^ McCarthy, p. 26.
^ Hamaker, Elaine (January 6, 1989). "Silver Springs' Monkey Colony Will Remain", The Ocala Star-Banner, p. 2B.
^ Belleville, p. 71–72.
^ Whitney, p. 158.
^ a b Whitney, p. 159.
^ a b c d The St. Johns River: Nominated as an American Heritage River, Environmental Protection Agency (Part 2). Retrieved on July 17, 2009.
^ Whitney, p. 160.
^ McCarthy, p. 28.
^ Florida Manatee Management Plan Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (December 2007).
^ Blue Spring State Park, Florida Division of Recreation and Parks (2008). Retrieved on July 9, 2009.
^ Belleville, p. 89.
^ River Otter, Florida Wildlife Commission. Retrieved on July 22, 2009.
^ River Otters, St. Johns River Water Management District (March 2004). Retrieved on July 22, 2009.
^ McCarthy, p. 56.
^ Welcome to the Ocala National Forest U.S. Forest Service. Retrieved on July 9, 2009.
^ Whitney, p. 68.
^ Lake George State Forest, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Forestry (2004). Retrieved on July 9, 2009.
^ McCarthy, p. 58.
^ Whitney, p. 55–65.
^ Learn About Your Watershed: Ocklawaha River Watershed, Florida's Water: Ours to Protect, Florida Department of Environmental Protection (2009). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
^ Noll and Tegeder, p. 12.
^ Cabell, p. 15.
^ Marino, G. (August 13, 1994). "Lake Apopka Pollution Hurts Bass Population", Science News, 146 (7), p. 102.
^ a b Lake Apopka, St. Johns River Water Management District (April 2008). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
^ Whitney, p. 225.
^ Belleville, p. 36–37.
^ Belleville, p. 92–93.
^ a b c Spechler, R.M. Estimated discharge and chemical-constituent loading from the upper Floridan aquifer to the lower St. Johns River, northeastern Florida, 1990-91, U.S. Geological Survey, p. i–32.
^ McCarthy, p. 88–100.
^ a b c d Bourgerie, Richard. Currents in the St. Johns River, Florida, spring and summer of 1998, U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (1999), p. i–57.
^ "Gate River Run" Event website. Retrieved on July 17, 2009.
^ "Greater Jacksonville Kingfishing Tournament" Event website. Retrieved on July 17, 2009.
^ Young, p. 65–71.
^ Whitney, p. 303–304.
^ Whitney, p. 310.
^ Whitney, p. 313–319.
^ Van Hooser, Liz (July 31, 2009). What Makes a Shrimp a Mayport Shrimp?, The Florida Times-Union. Retrieved on August 6, 2009.
^ Randazzo and Jones, p. 13–25.
^ Randazzo and Jones, p. 4.
^ Randazzo and Jones, p. 217.
^ Randazzo and Jones, p. 69.
^ Randazzo and Jones, p. 82.
^ Marion County: Silver Springs, St. Johns River Water Management District. Retrieved on July 13, 2009.
^ Marion County: Silver Glen Spring St. Johns River Water Management District. Retrieved on July 13, 2009.
^ Lake County: Alexander Springs St. Johns River Water Management District. Retrieved on July 13, 2009.
^ Volusia County: Blue Spring St. Johns River Water Management District. Retrieved on July 13, 2009.
^ Randazzo and Jones, p. 85.
^ a b c d Kroening, Sharon (2004). Streamflow and water-quality characteristics at selected sites of the St. Johns River in central Florida, 1933 to 2002, U.S. Geological Survey, p. i–102. Retrieved on July 17, 2009.
^ Young, p. 71.
^ Quilian, Wylie, and Whitin, Bret (April 2009). "An Analysis of the Hydrologic and Hydraulic Factors During Flooding on the St. Johns River Caused by Tropical Storm Fay", National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration.
^ a b Vero Beach, Florida, Sanford, Florida, and Jacksonville, Florida, weatherbase.com. Retrieved on July 15, 2009.
^ "Environmental Protection" (Power Point Presentation, slide 8), St. Johns River Water Management District, hosted at stjohnsriveralliance.com. Retrieved on July 17, 2009. [dead link]
^ a b Water Quality Terms and Definitions City of Jacksonville website (2003). Retrieved on July 17, 2009.
^ Blue Spring, Volusia County: Minimum flow regime, St. Johns River Water Management District. Retrieved on July 22, 2009.
^ Gannon, p. 1.
^ Gannon, p. 2.
^ Gannon, p. 3–4.
^ McCarthy, p. 30–31.
^ Miller, p. 68.
^ Gannon, p. 6.
^ a b Tebeau, p. 16.
^ Cabell, p. 4.
^ a b Gannon, p. 41–46.
^ a b Tebeau, p. 29–35.
^ Gannon, p. 42.
^ Gannon, p. 49.
^ Gannon, p. 57.
^ Cabell, p. 8.
^ Gannon, p. 186.
^ Gannon, p. 183.
^ Gannon, p. 187.
^ Miller, p. 152–153.
^ a b Bartram, John and Harper, Francis (December 1942). "Diary of a Journey through the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida from July 1, 1765, to April 10, 1766", Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, New Series, 33, (1) p. i-120.
^ Belleville, p. 46.
^ McCarthy, p. 32.
^ Cabell, p. 105.
^ Belleville, p. xiv.
^ Schafer, p. 21.
^ Schafer, p. 23–27.
^ May, Philip S. (January 1945). "Zephaniah Kingsley, Nonconformist", The Florida Historical Quarterly 23 (3), p. 145–159.
^ Schafer, p. 30–31.
^ Gannon, p. 191–192.
^ Cabell, p. 237–250.
^ Cabell, p. 242.
^ McCarthy, p. 75–76.
^ Cabell, p. 213–215.
^ McCarthy, p. 111–112.
^ Lemar, L. Stephan (January 1944). "Historico-Economic Aspects of Drainage in the Florida Everglades", Southern Economic Journal, 10 (3), p. 197–211.
^ Davis, T. Frederick (January 1939). "The Disston Land Purchase". The Florida Historical Quarterly, 17 (3): p. 201–211.
^ "The Future of Florida", New York Times, (May 6, 1883), p. 3.
^ Cabell, 159–160.
^ Stowe, p. 14–15.
^ Cabell, p. 232–233.
^ McCarthy, p. 4.
^ Cabell, p. 13–14.
^ Belleville, p. 15.
^ Patterson, Gordon (Summer, 1997). "Ditches and Dreams: Nelson Fell and the Rise of Fellsmere", The Florida Historical Quarterly, 76 (1), p. 1–20.
^ Siewert, Walter A. (October 22, 1988). A History of the Fellsmere Water Drainage District", hosted by City of Fellsmere website. Retrieved on July 13, 2009.
^ Rawlings, p. 354–370.
^ Rawlings, p. 362.
^ Belleville, p. 4.
^ Belleville, p. 21.
^ Noll and Tegeder, p. 21–22.
^ Noll and Tegeder, p. 29.
^ Noll and Tegeder, p. 34–35.
^ Belleville, p. xxv–xxvi.
^ a b Upper St. Johns River Watershed. Florida Department of Environmental Protection (2009). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
^ Middle St. Johns River Watershed. Florida Department of Environmental Protection (2009). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
^ Lower St. Johns River Watershed. Florida Department of Environmental Protection (2009). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
^ Surface Water Improvement and Management Program (SWIM), Florida Department of Environmental Protection (July 9, 2008). Retrieved on July 20, 2009.
^ Lake Griffin, St. Johns River Water Management District (March 2003). Retrieved on July 19, 2009. Archived October 28, 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
^ "Minimum Flows and Levels", St. Johns River Water Management District (May 22, 2001). Retrieved on July 20, 2009.
^ Executive Order 13061: Federal Support of Community Efforts Along American Heritage Rivers, Environmental Protection Agency (September 11, 1997). Retrieved on July 20, 2009.
^ Delaney, John (March 15, 2008). "Our River: The Debate", Florida Times-Union, p. F-1.
^ "Our River: The Debate, Part II", Florida Times-Union (March 15, 2008), p. F-7.
^ American Heritage Rivers Initiative Partnership Agreement between the St. Johns River Community, State, Regional and Federal Agencies, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (October 19, 2006). Retrieved on July 16, 2009.
^ Patterson, Steve (June 17, 1998). "St. Johns River on Heritage List", Florida Times-Union, p. A-1.
^ Future of St. Johns River, One of America's Most Endangered Rivers of 2008, Still Hangs in the Balance, American Rivers (December 11, 2008). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
^ St. Johns River Joins List of Most in Peril, The Florida Times-Union (April 17, 2008). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
^ Endangered River 'Honor' is a Serious Warning Sign, The Florida Times-Union (April 18, 2008). Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
Bibliography

Belleville, Bill (2000). River of Lakes: A Journey on Florida's St. Johns River, University of Georgia Press. ISBN 0-8203-2156-7
Benke, Arthur; Cushing, Colbert (eds.) (2005). Rivers of North America, Elsevier/Academic Press. ISBN 0-12-088253-1
Cabell, Branch and Hanna, A. J. (1943). The St. Johns: A Parade of Diversities, Farrar & Rinehart, Rivers of America Series.
Gannon, Michael (ed.) (1996). A New History of Florida, University Press of Florida. ISBN 0-8130-1415-8
McCarthy, Kevin (2004). St. Johns River Guidebook, Pineapple Press. ISBN 1-56164-314-9
Miller, James (1998). An Environmental History of Northeast Florida, University Press of Florida. ISBN 0-8130-2313-0
Noll, Steven and Tegeder, M. David (August 2003). From Exploitation to Conservation: A History of the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway hosted at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection website. Retrieved on July 19, 2009.
Randazzo, Anthony and Jones, Douglas (eds.) (1997). The Geology of Florida. University Press of Florida. ISBN 0813014984
Rawlings, Marjorie (1942). Cross Creek, First Touchstone Edition 1996: Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-684-81879-5
Schafer, Daniel L. (March 2003). Anna Madgigine Jai Kingsley: African Princess, Florida Slave, Plantation Slaveowner. University Press of Florida. ISBN 0-8130-2616-4
Stowe, Harriet B. (1873). Palmetto-Leaves. J. R. Osgood and Company.
Tebeau, Charlton (1971). A History of Florida, University of Miami Press. ISBN 0-87024-149-4
Whitney, Ellie; Means, D. Bruce; Rudloe, Anne (eds.) (2004) Priceless Florida: Natural Ecosystems and Native Species. Pineapple Press, Inc. ISBN 978-1-56164-309-7
Young, Claiborne (1996). Cruising Guide to Eastern Florida, Pelican Publishing Company. ISBN 0-88289-992-9
External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: St. Johns River

Florida Department of Environmental Protection:

Lower basin
Middle basin
Upper basin

St. Johns River Water Management District
St. Johns Riverkeeper

St. Johns River

Jacksonville · Green Cove Springs · Palatka · Sanford · St. Johns River Water Management District · Wekiva River · Econlockhatchee River · Lake George · Lake Jesup · Lake Monroe · Lake Winder · Lake Washington · Lake Poinsett · Ocklawaha River · Cross Florida Barge Canal  · Ocala National Forest · Lake George State Forest · Blue Spring State Park · Hontoon Island State Park · Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve

See Also: Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings · Zephaniah Kingsley · Anna Madgigene Jai Kingsley · Kingsley Plantation · John Bartram · William Bartram · Timucuan · Fort Caroline · Jean Ribault ·

St. Johns River crossings in the Jacksonville, Florida area

Upriver from Downtown

Shands Bridge (to be replaced or supplemented) | Buckman Bridge | Timuquana Bridge (never built)

Downtown Jacksonsonville

Fuller Warren Bridge | FEC Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridge | Acosta Bridge | Main Street Bridge | Hart Bridge | Mathews Bridge | 20th Street Extension (never built)

Downriver from Downtown

Dames Point Bridge | State Road 113A (never built) | Mayport Ferry

Significant Waterways of Florida

Major Rivers

Apalachicola · Caloosahatchee · Chattahoochee · Kissimmee · Ochlockonee · Peace · St. Johns · Suwannee · Withlacoochee · Yellow

Lakes

Apopka · Blue Cypress · East Toho · George · Harney · Harris · Iamonia · Istokpoga · Jackson · Jesup · Kissimmee · Miccosukee · Monroe · Okeechobee · Rodman · Rousseau · Seminole · Talquin · Tohopekaliga · Tsala Apopka · Washington · Weir

Other Rivers

Alafia · Alapaha · Anclote · Aucilla · Blackwater · Chipola · Choctawhatchee · Econfina · Econlockhatchee · Escambia · Hillsborough · Ichetucknee · Little Manatee · Manatee · Miami · Myakka · Ocklawaha · Perdido · Pithlachascotee · Rainbow · St. Lucie · St. Marks · St. Marys · Santa Fe · Shark · Steinhatchee · Tomoka · Trout · Wacissa · Wakulla · Weeki Wachee · Wekiva

Canals

Canaveral Barge Canal · Cross Florida Barge Canal · Haulover Canal · Hillsboro Canal · Miami Canal · Tamiami Canal · Tampa Bypass Canal

See also: Everglades · Intracoastal Waterway · Okeechobee Waterway · List of Florida rivers

v • d • eAmerican Heritage Rivers

Rivers

Blackstone & Woonasquatucket • Connecticut • Cuyahoga • Detroit • Hanalei • Hudson • Lower Mississippi • Potomac • New • Rio Grande • St. Johns • Upper Mississippi • Upper Susquehanna & Lackawanna • Willamette

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Accessible of Forest Service Road 52 AKA Meiss Cabin Road by Forest Service Road 6 AKA North South Road. These roads are accessible by two & four wheel drive vehicles, even cars, large motorhomes and travel trailers. There is wonderfull campsites along the streams edge plenty large enough for large rv's and travel trailers to fulfill your recreation and mining needs. Please call or email if you have any questions or problems finding the claim.

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Gold Districts of California

HISTORY 

El Dorado County, California

LOCAL HISTORY.

GRIZZLY FLAT

Sometime in the summer or fall of 1850 Lyc. L. Ramsey, (died in February 1876,) better known then and since as "Buck Ramsey," with a company of prospectors was searching for gold on the mountains between the North and Middle Forks of the Cosumnes river, in the eastern portion of the county. The party were enjoying their evening meal near one of those noble springs, that abound in the vicinity, relishing after a hard day's toil the usual miner's feast of those times--bread, bacon and coffee. The repast was not ended before an unexpected visitor, parting the brush and cracking the dried limbs and leaves under his tread presented himself. He was a magnificent specimen of Sierra's noblest beast--a grizzly bear. His intrusion lasted but a moment. Rapidly, but perfectly self possessed, "Buck" grasped his rifle, and with a ringing shot sent his majesty tearing through the underbrush, over the flat and down a steep declivity where he was subsequently found, a trophy of the skill and coolness of the lamented pioneer. This incident furnished the appropriate name which the village bears. The flat, or undulating ground where this scene occured*, and where the town was soon after located, proved to be rich in gold. Ramsey and his party did not, however, remain, but others soon followed and in the Spring of 1851 placer diggings, rich and extensive, were found for miles around, and though distant and somewhat difficult of access, the camp grew in number.

Among the first settlers of the place was Wm. Knox, who located near the Flat in the fall of 1851. Hiram and Eben Odlin about the same time pitched their tent near Steely's Fork, then not named, and after an absence of more than twenty years have returned to the scene of their early labors, and have engaged in their old advocation*--mining.

Grizzly Flt is situated about 23 miles a little south of east of Placerville, between the two Middle Forks of the Cosumnes river. The North Fork of the Cosumnes, heading well in the Sierra Nevada, lies three miles north-west of the village; Steely's Fork of the same river, but one half mile distant to the southeast. "String Canyon" was one of the richest that has been in the district, and probably in the county, heads directly in town and flows 3 miles westerly to join the Cosumnes. In 1852, the ridge leading down from Leak Springs and between the Forks of the Cosumnes was adopted as one of the principal roads by the emigrants of that year; nothing but a dim trace of this old thoroughfare can be discovered, and its solitude is broken only by the annual prilgrimage* of the dairymen or sheepherders. The usual red soil predominates, yielding liberally, as often proved, to miner and farmer both. Grand forests of spruce and sugar pine extend up to the summit.

It was soon found that our golden treasures were not confined to the beds of our rivers and canyons, or to the surface of our flats and the deep breast of our gravel hills. Our quartz veins, like lines of longitude on the school-maps, traverse the earth throughout the whole region, and many of the most extensive and costly enterprises have been in this branch of mining; that they were not successful or only partially so in the early days, affords no proof, as we can well understand, against their value to-day.

Among the earliest and most extensive operators in quartz was Victor J. W. Steely. In March, 1852, he discovered and located one of the many ledges in the district, and in the progress of his work erected two mills at different points upon that branch of the Cosumnes that bears his name; from these he built a wooden railroad nearly a mile in length to his mines which lies about three-fourths of a mile south-west of the village. In these improvements he spent large sums of money; he was a man of great energy of character, preserving, and full of hope. All of his own capital, and the means of many of his friends and of the employees were cheerfully and confidently loaned to help the enterprise. But years of trial and industry, which in those days meant experiment, finally ended in failure, and the ruin of the old mills on Steely's Fork, the vestiges of the railroads up the mountain side, open cut at the Mt. Pleasant, the well known handwriting in the book of laws and regulations of Mt. Pleasant mining district, -- of which he was Secretary for many years, and a few notes of hand, sere and yellow of age, are the remaining souvenirs that remind us of Dr. Steely the quartz miner, not only of Grizzly Flat, but El Dorado County and perhaps of the State. --Col. Knox also engaged during Steely's time quite extensively in quartz mining, but with the imperfect knowledge of those days with no better success.

From that day to this quartz mining, with varied results, has been the principal industries of the district. The Eagle Quartz Mine, located the same year as the Steely, was famous in its day for the wealth it poured into the hands of its lucky owners. Much of the reputation which this camp enjoys followed the working of this mine. Among its original owners were Dr. Clark, its discoverer ; his nephew, Robert Clark ; Elijah Kink, Benjamin Joiner, -------- Tuomey and John Cable. Clark, King, Tuomey and Cable are no longer living, and Joiner--known as Dr. Joiner--still lives in String canyon, near the locality of his old property.

Like the balance of the ledges, work on the Eagle was done principally on the surface. No considerable depth has been attained in that or any of the neighbors. The Mount Pleasant has a depth of three hundred feet. Want of faith or want of money--the latter probably--has kept these quartz miners in the upper levels ; but it is to be hoped that a better day is dawning. Persistent going down will hereafter be in order until they pay. These mines and dozens of other are crying aloud for justice, which means that they are tired of mere surface scratching ; that their real worth lies deep, and are awaiting the dalliance of the miner's pick to yield bountifully their golden affection.

From 1853 to '57 the fever of quartz mining prevailed, but not to the exclusion of placer or river mining, which held their own in the contest for supremacy. Among other notable mines was the Roberts' lead, struck in 1855 by that man, which proved rich for a season, and work, when it involved cost, was continued. At present it is owned by A. B. Driesbach, of Carson City. Also, the Valle del Oro, operated in 1867 by Captain Gedge, now of the steamer New World. This is a southern neighbor of the Mount Pleasant, and had a forty stamp mill, hoisting works, etc., erected on the ledge, when work ceased, the mill and other property sold, carried off and rebuilt twenty miles below, upon a worse mine. So also with the Mount Pleasant (originally Steely). This mine, after several years of abandonment, resumed work in 1867, spending three-fourths of their capital in the wrong place--on the top instead of under the ground--with only partial success. In March, 1872, it ceased operations. Its extensive improvements--a twenty stamp mill, boiler, engine, steam hoisting works, buildings, stores of every kind -- were sold, torn down and moved away. These costly but imperfect and superficial attempts did, perhaps, as much or more harm than good, as the results, if not properly studied, looked like a condemnation of this leading industry of the county; but there are men enough with an abiding faith in the value of all these mines and the future will vindicate their confidence.

The Eagle mine, after a five years' sleep, got awakened, and under the management of the intelligent and energetic superintendent, John Treglook, promises to revive its former reputation. Other valuable mines have from time to time been discovered and opened. The indefatigable and lucky E. R. Morey, one of Grizzly's oldest and most valued citizens, is still operating in the fascinating gamble of quartz mining. His late developments on his lead formerly known as the "Charles," promises what he is entitled to--a golden harvest. Gabe Wentz, another of the old and respected citizens, and Dave Brandover, his partner, have for years been hammering away at a rocky rib at Henry's diggings, three miles south of town. Their perseverance is about to be rewarded, as a permanent ledge, rich in gold, already proved, awaits only the future industry. But perhaps the most important discovery in this camp of later years is that made in June, 1874, by that embodiment of every industry and good humor, F. W. Earl. Having prospected for five months in the winter of 1873, frequently uncovering snow ten feet in depth to reach the earth, and sinking as much deeper after he found it, only to meet with a failure (for the whole of the time his means and his patience were alike exhausted), he packet his blankets and made for Grizzly Flat. He did not remain idle for a day. Prospecting as suppossed, almost against hope, in n abandoned locality near the old Mount Pleasant and Irish lodes he struck a quartz ledge that has since proved itself to be worth anywhere from a hundred thousand to half a million dollars. 

Early in 1853 while working the rich surface of Spring Flat, half a mile north of Grizzly, the rivers of the adjacent hills were touched, which paying well led to explorations in the hills themselves. These old riverbeds, which have strangely enough turned to mountains, are known to be the true storehouses of our vast mineral wealth, and yet they have not been fairly tested. The central channels, by tunnel or drift, have never yet been cut, and they still award the proper attack of industry and capital before they will surrender the rich tribute concealed within their deep bosoms. 

The first store established in the place was in 1852 by Chris. Nelson, a German. He kept but a short time, and whether living or dead is not known. Others soon followed ; for awhile Col. Knox was in the business, then A. J. Grahm, Hurlburd, Deal and Weatherwax and others. Since 1858 we have had Hulburd Milleken Bros., Riehl and S. F. Davis, who kept until 1867. That year D. T. Loofbourrow bought out Dvis, the next year Smith and Courson, and in 1869 sold to Alexander, bought back again in 1870 and sold in 1875 to S. P. Haskin, besides which a second store is kept by Nic. Aversine ; two hotels are kept in the town, one by A. C. White, and the other by McClellan, there are also two blacksmith shops. The principal mines in the district are : Mt. Pleasant, Driesbach, Eagle, Spencer & Morey, Eagle King, Bullard, Melton Bros., Ohio extreme of the Mt. Pleasant, and the Arctic, most of which are connected with stamp mills ; the Mt. Pleasant is working a 20-stamp mill. There are several small ranches and orchards in this vicinity; viz: those of M. Martin, S. Springer, Fred. Zollers, Stephen Leoni, Samuel Finley, Wm. Cole, John O'Lean, Slook & Smith, A. H. McAfee, August Niebur, S. Webster, A. Myers, Jacob Behrens, George Haas and Bernard Plunker. About 3 miles from tow there are two large saw-mills not the property of S. P. Haskin, merchant of Grizzly Flat.

In 1866 the village met with its first calamity, being nearly destroyed by fire, but few houses remained. Little suffering followed, however, as the mines were on the height of their productiveness, and everybody soon recovered their losses. In 1869 the village was again destroyed by fire, and this time the loss was most disastrous, as the place was larger, the houses more costly and a greater amount of personal property contained in them. This fire originated in an outbuilding where a drunken Indian was sleeping,  and it is supposed his attempts to light some matches during the night and carelessness in extinguishing them, was the immediate cause; his body badly burnt and life extinct, was discovered next morning. The town has never been build to the same extent since. Two stone fire-proof buildings only withstood this conflagration.

In 1855 the Catholics were sufficiently numerous to erect a neat and commodious place of worship. Its site was on the side of the hill just east of Grizzly Flat and near the residence of A. H. McAffee, and was the first building to meet the view of the traveler as he entered the village. In 1857 the Methodist church, a handsome edifice, was erected on a lot just at the edge of town. This lot has been used as the village burying ground, but owing to the wonderful healthy locality it contains but few graves. The church itself was converted years ago into  school house, which it still remains. In 1855 the Masons built their commodious hall, and a lodge organized by the appointment of Wm. McKean as Master. Strange as it may seem an Iron Foundry was built in 1855, and for some years did  paying business. The old brewery that furnished beer equal to the best Boca, gladdened the lips of the thirsty about 1854. For many years this town was the residence of Hank Hazard, whose varied attainments a professor of Spanish, German and Chinese, and master of many musical instruments was well as unparalled teller of strange but true stories most everybody had occasion to admire and appreciate. 

In 1856 Kine's and Hereford's saw-mills were in full blast. They made but little sunshine, however, in the surrounding dense and magnificent forest. The remains of Kine's mill are yet to be seen in String canyon. The first water ditch brought into the camp was dug by the Eagle Mining Company in 1852 ; Bartlett & Co.'s ditch one year later. Both ditches still supply the mills and mines in the vicinity, and run water eight or nine months a year. The zenith of prosperity was reached in 1856. At the election in the fall of that year over six hundred votes were polled, and the population probably exceeded twelve hundred. 

The first judicial officer was  Mr. Clegget, who was elected Justice of the Peace in 1853. He died in Grizzly Flat. Never of citizen of this place was elected to occupy a county office. James H. Watson was elected to the Assembly in 1858. Colonel Knox, for one term, occupied a seat in the Board of Supervisors from this district. From 1855 to 1857 two semi-weekly stage lines were maintained.

Grizzly Flat, like other mining towns, has had its share of vicissitudes. It has always been a pleasant place to live in, and its citizens possess the usual characteristics of Californians--hospitable, generous and obliging. For a border town, but little outlawry and but few reckless and desperate characters have flourished at any time in its history. But one murder was ever committed in the place : Hiram Palmer, while drunk, killed an Indian in 1873. A few of the old pioneer citizens are still in town. Colonel Knox, who grows old slowly, can be seen most of the time reading on his cozy front porch. A. H. McAffee, formerly Justice of the Peace, who knows not what an idle day is, must be sought at his claim. He has been living there since 1852. Jim Marshal, Samuel Stare, Uncle Amon Melton and many others have been residing here more than twenty years, with the intention never to leave except for a lot on that schollhouse ground. Of other residents of Grizzly Flat unmentioned yet are : Pink Fowler, who would not part with his bachelor's homestead for a kingdom ; Shippey, Dave Hannah, Antione and Dominic Myers, Frenchmen ; Sime Springer, a miracle of good nature ; Dennis Gallagher, Jim Bartlett, Uncle Tommy Garland and others. 

The patriotism of the young men of Grizzly Flat became electrified before those of any other place, when, in the fall of 1857, the Mormons became troublesome. They organized a volunteer company to operate against them, on January 11th, 1858, and elected E. C. Springer captain. A resolution was also adopted at the meeting, requiring the captain to report the company ready for service and for marching to Utah at the shortest notice. The members of this company were called the "Grizzlies."

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About Eureka Mining Inc

Eureka Mining Inc is a full service mining company based in Nevada City, California. We specialize in mining and selling quality mining properties, both patented and unpatented and can provide mining equipment for both recreational and commercial prospectors. We have over 20 years of combined experience in California's colorfull Placer Mining Industry and are currently setting up commercial operations in Nevada County in the Red Dog Mining District. The material is derived from the Tertiary Yuba Channel and is also known as the Blue Lead Channel that extends into Sierra County. We will be mining and estimated 3 million yards of bulk material from the Ancient Channel using chemical free gravity seperation to extract precious mineral values. The scope of the project is 50 years with reclamation running concurrent to the mining activities. We are an enviromentally safe mining company practicing enviromentally friendly mining strategies. During our mining activities we will be ridding the land of harmfull waste left behind by earlier miners, such as Mercury, Lead, Iron, and other contaminents from the ground and groundwaters of California.

Eureka Mining Inc also have dredging operations in nearby Greenhorn Creek in Nevada County, California during the dredge season. So remember from dredges to trommels we can help you obtain the right equipment for your property needs, at affordable prices. So feel free to call us today at 530-816-0451 with any questions about our claims or equipment being offered for sale on ebay, or schedule a site visit at mine. Thanks For Your Time !!

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Once payment has cleared you will receive a copy of the notarized warranty mining claim deed, original location notices with both the county and blm, gps coordinates and a welcome letter within 10 days of cleared payment. We do not charge any ownership transfer fee, we provide this service free of charge !! You will also receive detailed instructions and forms on how to maintain your new claim from year to year with our Welcome Packet, once again We Thank You For Your Buisness !!

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At Eureka Mining Inc We strive for customer satifaction and approval. This is why we are the only sellers that give a 15 day money back gaurantee or we will trade you another claim of equal value that suits you. This is just another reason you should purchase your new claim or equipment from Eureka Mining Inc !!

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End Time: 2010-09-06T04:00:10.000Z