The citrus industry is intimately tied to Florida's image in popular culture. Citrus trees, however, are neither indigenous to Florida nor to North America. Citrus arrived with European explorers in the 16th century and quickly took root in Florida, but it was not until the 1830s that Florida developed a monopoly over cultivating citrus fruits. A devastating freeze in 1835 destroyed citrus growing efforts in the Carolinas and Georgia, beginning a permanent southward migration of the industry into Florida.
Douglas Dummett's Merritt Island grove survived the 1835 freeze unscathed. His rootstock repopulated the nascent Florida citrus industry for the remainder of the 19th century. Dummett introduced the practice of "topworking" where buds from sweet varieties of citrus were fused onto the base of hardier species, such as rough lemon. Topworking, also known as "grafting," thereafter became the standard method for growing citrus in Florida.
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General note: Streamliner named the Orange Blossom Special.
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General note: Photographed during Navy discussion for concentrated orange juice.
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General note: Bok Tower (also known as the Singing Tower) is a National Historic Landmark that was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. A Symbol of Florida, the Singing Tower rises 250 feet on the slope of Iron Mountain, overlooking some of the richest orange groves of Florida. Here on Iron Mountain, the Indians of Central Florida held their ceremony of the Rising Sun each Spring. A large stone circled by 13 smaller stones, representing the sun and the 13 moons of the Indian year, has been found there.
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General note: Democratic Representative Harry P. O'Neill (Dunmore, Pennsylvania), Mrs. O'Neill and their daughter visit Ocala during the Congressional Baseball Training Tour.
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General note: The 1967 Legislature declared "the juice obtained from mature oranges of the species Citrus sinensis and hybrids are hereby adopted as the official beverage of the State of Florida." Fla. Stat. 15.032.
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