Category: History

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com James Lord Pierpont was 10 years old when he left his Boston, Mass. home for a boarding school. The young Pierpont was apparently a handful for his strict father,…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com Hernando de Soto landed in Tampa Bay in 1539, with 700 soldiers. He soon made his way into our present area, traveling through the Suwannee Valley. He built a…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com Pánfilo de Narváez was a Spanish soldier and explorer who made his way to the shores of Florida after conquering Cuba and Jamaica. Narvaez and his 400 men were…

Nov. 18, 1960 Van H Priest was elected Director at Large of the Florida State Chamber of Commerce during their 44th annual meeting and business conference which was held in Jacksonville last…

Gene Hall Contributor Greater love hath no man than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends…John 15:13 NIV. And that is what Henrietta Lacks did; well, all of us were not…

Nov. 11, 1960 US Senator John F. Kennedy, Democrat, was elected President of the United States in one of the closest contests in years, defeating Vice-President Richard M. Nixon, Republican, with a…

Alyssa Ridenour reporter@greenepublishing.com  The large white house stands tall at the intersection of SW Shelby Ave. and SW Bunker St. The pillars on the front porch add character to the home and…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com As highway routes were being laid out in the early 1900s, Madison County officials worked diligently to secure a route through the county on the Dixie Highway. This was…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com Martha Hoyt Young was one of my aunts who passed well before my time. Young died a tragic death within two years of writing this humorous reflection on the…

Oct. 7, 1960 Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Curry of Madison announce the birth of a baby girl on Oct. 3. She weighed 7 lb and 15 oz. Miss Nancy Tibbals, bride elect…

Sept. 23, 1960 Carlton Burnett is receiving congratulations from his many friends upon his promotion to the managership of the Madison Coca-Cola Bottling Company, after 13 years of service as salesman. The…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com Sometime in the early 1900s, Madison County was declared a “dry” county, meaning the sale of liquor was prohibited. By the evening of Nov. 25, 1912, the fair citizens…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com ­­­In the late 1800s, Madison County had plenty of raucous activity that has been duly noted. But, the county also boasted of a rich spiritual life that flourished in…

August 26, 1960 Madison Jaycees, at their luncheon meeting, Friday at Madison Hotel, voted to build 20 yards of new seats at Lanier Field. The work is to begin immediately on the…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com In the 1830s, the population in the territory of Florida was rapidly expanding. Madison County mirrored this population boom by increasing from 522 residents in 1830, to 1,442 in…

August 12, 1960 At the regular meeting of Post 606 on Monday, Aug. 8, plans were disclosed for a celebration Luau to be held at Blue Springs on Aug. 27. Billy Bunting…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com A year before the “great flood” of 1948, tobacco was a big business in Madison County and it continued to be an important crop for farmers in the area…

Mickey Starling  reporter3@greenepublishing.com As the twentieth century came into view in Madison County, there were plenty of places to shop and enjoy yourself. Madison boasted of 24 general stores and groceries and…

July 22, 1960 Eric Falk and Jimmy Adams, members of the Pinetta FFA Chapter, left Sunday to attend the Annual FFA Forestry Camp at Camp O’Leno near High Springs.  Mrs. Dick Baker…