Fort Drum, Florida
Encyclopedia
Fort Drum is a town in Okeechobee County
, Florida
, United States
. It is located on US 441
, between Yeehaw Junction
and Okeechobee
. A service plaza on Florida's Turnpike
is named after the town. The Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area was named for its proximity to the town and is known as the birthplace of the St. John's River. Fort Drum is the only known locale for crystal bearing fossil shells. There is a cemetery in the middle of the town on almost 8 acres in which many of the first settlers of Fort Drum were laid to rest and still remain. It is currently owned and maintained by Okeechobee County.
In the Pliocene
and Pleistocene
it was underlain by the now-smaller Lake Okeechobee
. Vast limestone deposits containing the remains of large bivalve molluscs developed calcite crystalization while still under water. The gemlike crystals were discovered after the hard limestone deposits came to be excavated for aggregate. In 2008 the quarry known as Ruck's Pit was closed and allowed to flood.
, north of present-day Vero Beach
. The other ran approximately north-south from Fort Kissimmee to Fort Jupiter, and came to be known as the 'old wire road'.
Where the two roads crossed, Fort Drum was built. The US Army used it only for a short time and then abandoned it. Settlers began to make their way here in the 1870s, some time after the Civil War
. The area was considered to be potentially excellent cattle
country. The area slowly grew.
With the completion in 1914 of the Kissimmee Valley Extension, the Florida East Coast Railroad brought changes to the area. They built a small depot in Fort Drum, as well as one to the north, named Osawaw, and south, called Hilolo.
Okeechobee County, Florida
Okeechobee County is a county located in the state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 35,910. According to 2005 U.S. Census estimates, its population had grown to 39,836. The county seat is Okeechobee, Florida. The county comprises the Okeechobee, Florida Micropolitan Statistical Area.-...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is located on US 441
U.S. Route 441 in Florida
U.S. Route 441 in Florida is a north–south United States Highway. It runs from Miami in South Florida northwest to the Georgia border north of the Lake City area....
, between Yeehaw Junction
Yeehaw Junction, Florida
Yeehaw Junction is a census-designated place in Osceola County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 240...
and Okeechobee
Okeechobee, Florida
Okeechobee is a city in Okeechobee County, Florida, United States. The population was 5,376 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 5,784. It is the county seat of Okeechobee County. The Speckled Perch Festival is held annually in honor of the most...
. A service plaza on Florida's Turnpike
Florida's Turnpike
Florida's Turnpike , designated as the Ronald Reagan Turnpike, and originally known as the Sunshine State Parkway is a north–south toll road that runs through 11 counties in the Florida peninsula, from U.S...
is named after the town. The Fort Drum Wildlife Management Area was named for its proximity to the town and is known as the birthplace of the St. John's River. Fort Drum is the only known locale for crystal bearing fossil shells. There is a cemetery in the middle of the town on almost 8 acres in which many of the first settlers of Fort Drum were laid to rest and still remain. It is currently owned and maintained by Okeechobee County.
Geography
Fort Drum is located at 27.5264°N 80.8069°W (27.5264, -80.8069).In the Pliocene
Pliocene
The Pliocene Epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 2.588 million years before present. It is the second and youngest epoch of the Neogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Pliocene follows the Miocene Epoch and is followed by the Pleistocene Epoch...
and Pleistocene
Pleistocene
The Pleistocene is the epoch from 2,588,000 to 11,700 years BP that spans the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
it was underlain by the now-smaller Lake Okeechobee
Lake Okeechobee
Lake Okeechobee , locally referred to as The Lake or The Big O, is the largest freshwater lake in the state of Florida. It is the seventh largest freshwater lake in the United States and the second largest freshwater lake contained entirely within the lower 48 states...
. Vast limestone deposits containing the remains of large bivalve molluscs developed calcite crystalization while still under water. The gemlike crystals were discovered after the hard limestone deposits came to be excavated for aggregate. In 2008 the quarry known as Ruck's Pit was closed and allowed to flood.
History
After the end of the Second Seminole War in 1842, the US Army built a network of forts across the central part of the state, with military roads that connected them. Of those roads, one was roughly east-west from Fort Bassinger to Fort VintonFort Vinton
Fort Vinton, also known as "Post #2", was a small Florida military outpost that existed from 1839 to 1858. Location of the fort is approximately a mile south of highway 60 near 122nd Avenue....
, north of present-day Vero Beach
Vero Beach, Florida
Vero Beach is a city in Indian River County, Florida, USA. According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 estimates, the city had a population of 16,939. It is the county seat of Indian River County...
. The other ran approximately north-south from Fort Kissimmee to Fort Jupiter, and came to be known as the 'old wire road'.
Where the two roads crossed, Fort Drum was built. The US Army used it only for a short time and then abandoned it. Settlers began to make their way here in the 1870s, some time after the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. The area was considered to be potentially excellent cattle
Cattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
country. The area slowly grew.
With the completion in 1914 of the Kissimmee Valley Extension, the Florida East Coast Railroad brought changes to the area. They built a small depot in Fort Drum, as well as one to the north, named Osawaw, and south, called Hilolo.