Ghost Towns of Florida (Q-S)

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Rattlesnake (Tampa), FL

County: Hillsborough
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Latitude / Longitude: 27°53’20″N 82°31’26″W
Elevation: 3 ft (1 m)
Time Zone: Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
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Comments: Rattlesnake is a neighborhood located in the South Tampa district of Tampa, Florida. The estimated population stands at 488.
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Renfro Springs, FL

Ridgewood, FL

County: Putnam
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Latitude / Longitude: 29° 28′ 13.8432 N, 81° 38′ 43.4400 W
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Comments: Ridgewoodis an unincorporated community located in Putnam County, Florida, United States. Situated two miles east of Welaka and 3 1/4 miles southwest of Pomona Park, it is located at latitude 29° 28′ 13.8432 North, longitude 81° 38′ 43.4400 West. First settled in 1871, by 1883 Ridgewood had a population of 100 with a post office, one store, two steam saw mills and a public school.
Remains: The hard freezes of the 1890s destroyed most of the citrus crops in the area and as a result the community declined. In the years ahead, a forest fire was said to have destroyed the remainder of the town during the 1920s. All that remains of Ridgewood is a cemetery, now known as the Welaka-Georgetown Cemetery but was once known as Ridgewood Cemetery. Putnam County records show the first burial was recorded in 1917. Mail ran on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Unimproved land sold from $5 to $30 per acre. Application to start a post office by Franklin B Parse was submitted May 30, 1883 to the United States Postal Service, approved and appointed June 15, 1883.
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Ringgold (Inhabited), FL

Rital, FL

Ritta Island, FL

County: Palm Beach
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Latitude / Longitude: 26°43′18″N 80°48′18″W / 26.72167°N 80.80500°W / 26.72167
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Comments: Ritta Island was a settlement in Palm Beach County, Florida. The settlement was situated 5 miles (8.0 km) east of Clewiston, on the southern shore of Lake Okeechobee.
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Rochelle, FL

County: Alachua
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Latitude / Longitude: 29°35′47″N 82°13′04″W / 29.59639°N 82.21778°W / 29.59639
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Comments: Rochelle is an unincorporated community in Alachua County, Florida, United States.
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Rollestown, FL

County: Putnam
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Elevation: 16 ft (5 m)
Time Zone: Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
Established: 1767
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Comments: In 1767, Denys Rolle (1725–1797), an English gentleman and philanthropist, established Rollestown on the east bank of the St. Johns River at the head of deep-water navigation. His 78,000-acre (320 km2) plantation was a utopian commercial and humanitarian experiment, recruiting settlers off the streets of London, including paupers, vagrants, pickpockets and “penitent prostitutes.” Two hundred indentured servants arrived to clear wilderness for agriculture and livestock. Unaccustomed to either hard work or a subtropical climate, however, they scattered. Rolle next purchased slaves from West Africa, forcing them to tend chickens, hogs, goats and sheep, or produce cotton, indigo, citrus and turpentine for export to England.
Remains: He built a mansion and laid out a village, but trouble beleaguered the “ideal society.” In 1770, a disgruntled overseer sold over 1,000 of his employer’s cattle and disappeared with the money. Rolle hired new overseers and bought more slaves, but the plantation failed to prosper. When Spain resumed control of Florida in 1783, Rolle abandoned the colony and chartered a ship to carry his household belongings, livestock and slaves to a 2,000-acre (8.1 km2) estate on Great Exuma in the Bahamas. The point, in East Palatka, is still called Rollestown.
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Romeo, FL

County: Marion
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Latitude / Longitude: 29° 12′ 23″ N, 82° 26′ 10″ W
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Comments: Romeo is an unincorporated community in Marion County, in the U.S. state of Florida.
Remains: A post office called Romeo was in operation between 1888 and 1955. The community may have been named after Romeo from William Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet. According to local tradition, the community was named for two star-crossed lovers. The boy was from Romeo and the girl lived in Juliette (an extinct town).
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Rosewood, FL

County: Levy
Zip Code: 32625
Latitude / Longitude: 29° 14′ 0″ N, 82° 56′ 0″ W
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Time Zone: Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
Established: 1890s
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Comments: Rosewood is an unincorporated community in Levy County, Florida, United States. The site is located just off State Road 24, approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) northeast of Sumner and 9 miles (14 km) northeast of Cedar Key. The town was destroyed by whites and subsequently abandoned in 1923 as a result of a white woman claiming that a black man had raped her, leading to the Rosewood massacre.
Remains: The initial settlers of Rosewood were both black and white. When most of the cedar trees in the area had been cut by 1890, the pencil mills closed, and many white residents moved to Sumner. By 1900, the population in Rosewood had become predominantly black. The village of Sumner was predominantly white, and relations between the two communities were relatively amicable. The population of Rosewood peaked in 1915 at 355 people. Two black families in Rosewood named Goins and Carrier were the most influential. The Goins family brought the turpentine industry to the area, and in the years preceding the attacks, were the second largest landowners in Levy County. To avoid lawsuits from white competitors, the Goins brothers moved to Gainesville, and the population of Rosewood decreased slightly. The Carriers were also a large family, responsible for logging in the region. By the 1920s, almost everyone in the close-knit community was distantly related to each other. Although residents of Rosewood probably did not vote because voter registration requirements in Florida had effectively disfranchised blacks since the turn of the century, both Sumner and Rosewood were part of a single voting precinct counted by the U.S. Census. In 1920, the combined population of both towns was 344 blacks and 294 whites.
Current Status: In the spring of 1994, the Florida state legislature voted to give $2 million in compensation for the nine surviving family members (equaling $150,000 each). In December 2010, a state scholarship was established for descendants of families that survived the massacre. A plaque commemorating the massacre was placed in front of John Wright’s general store, the only remaining structure from the Rosewood Massacre, by Governor Jeb Bush in 2004.
Remarks: In January 1923, white men from nearby towns lynched a Rosewood resident allegedly in response to a lie that a white woman in nearby Sumner had been beaten and possibly raped by a black drifter. The woman was actually beaten up by her lover while her husband was at work. When black citizens defended themselves against further attack, several hundred whites organized to comb the countryside hunting for black people and burned almost every structure in Rosewood. Survivors hid for several days in nearby swamps and were evacuated by train and car to larger towns. Although state and local authorities were aware of the violence, they made no arrests for the activities in Rosewood. The town was abandoned by black residents during the attacks. None ever returned.

Runnymede, FL

Rye, FL

County: Manatee
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Latitude / Longitude: 27° 30′ 52″ N, 82° 22′ 4″ W
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Comments: Rye is an unincorporated area in Manatee County, Florida, United States.
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Saint Annes Shrine, FL

Saint Catherine, FL

County: Sumter
Zip Code: 33597
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Comments: St. Catherine is an unincorporated community in western Sumter County, Florida, United States. The ZIP code for this community is 33597, which is shared by Webster to the northeast.
Remains: St. Catherine is bordered by Bushnell to the north, Redrell to the south, Oak Grove and Tarrytown to the east, and the Sumter-Hernando County Line to the west. The elevation of the community is 69 feet above sea level. It is located along U.S. 301 and the CSX Wildwood Subdivision, which is part of the CSX S-Line. The two main intersections are with County Road 673 and County Road 478. At one time an Atlantic Coast Line Railroad line spanning from Brooksville through Webster and Center Hill crossed the tracks.
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Sampson City, FL

County: Bradford
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Latitude / Longitude: 29° 54′ 59.04″ N, 82° 12′ 19.08″ W
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Comments: Sampson City is an unincorporated community in Starke, Bradford County, Florida, United States. It is also known as Sampson and is located near Lake Sampson. The Sampson City Baptist Church and the Sampson City Church of God are located in Sampson City.
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Sand Cut, FL

Sandy, FL

County: Manatee
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Latitude / Longitude: 27° 16′ 25″ N, 82° 6′ 56″ W
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Comments: Sandy is an unincorporated area in Manatee County, Florida, United States.
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Sardis, FL

Sears, FL

Sherman, FL

Silver Palm (Inhabited), FL

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Latitude / Longitude: 25°33′04″N 80°2 6′28″W / 25.551°N 80.441°W / 25.551
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Sisco, FL

County: Putnam
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Latitude / Longitude: 29°31′14″N 81°37′31″W / 29.52056°N 81.62528°W / 29.52056 -81.62528
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Comments: Sisco is a ghost town located in Putnam County, Florida, United States. It lies off U.S. Route 17 approximately 10 miles north of Crescent City.
Remains: In 1884, Sisco was settled by Henry W. and Claire Sisco along the Jacksonville, Tampa and Key West Railway. For the next forty years or so, the population of the town ranged from 150 people to 60 people and, at times, had a post office, hotel, general store and a steam sawmill.
Current Status: Today, the site of the former town is part of Dunns Creek State Park.
Remarks: During the 1920s, there was a steamboat stop along Dunn’s Creek that provided wood and water to the ships loaded with citrus and it was used also as a post office for the towns of Pomona and Cisco.

Slavia, FL

County: Seminole
Zip Code:
Latitude / Longitude: 28°38′53″N 81°13′49″W / 28.64806°N 81.23028°W / 28.64806 -81.23028
Elevation: 39 ft (12 m)
Time Zone: Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
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Comments: Slavia is an unincorporated community in Seminole County, Florida, United States. Slavia is located along State Road 426 near the southwest border of Oviedo.
Remains: In 1911, Lutheran Slovaks originally from what at the time was the Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Slovakia) who were living in Cleveland, Ohio formed the Slavia Colony Company with the goal of establishing a colony in Florida.
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Remarks: Only a few places exist in this small area. Lukas Nursery and Butterfly Encounter and St. Lukes Lutheran Church and school lie within the boundaries, both sharing the Slovak history that Slavia is known for.

Slighville, FL

Shiloh, FL

County: Brevard
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Latitude / Longitude: 28° 46′ 0″ N, 80° 46′ 36″ W
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Comments: Shiloh was a village in Brevard County, Florida, United States.[when”] It is the northernmost place in Brevard County. Scottsmoor also shares the title, across the Indian River.
Remains: Shiloh is currently uninhabited. It was an active community during the turn of the 19th to the 20th Century. During the beginning of the Space Age, the village was later annexed to NASA’s John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Merritt Island, Florida, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, and the Canaveral National Seashore. Shiloh is a “dark sky” site used by the Kennedy Space Center Amateur Astronomers and the Brevard Astronomical Society for astronomical observation and imaging.
Current Status: On May 2, 2013, the Volusia County Council voted 6-1 in favor of a commercial launch site at Shiloh. Though largely symbolic in nature, the vote was considered by many to be a critical step toward any future development of the proposed Shiloh location. After difficulties gaining support from environmental groups and others, Space Florida began looking in July 2014 for alternatives to the Shiloh location that would facilitate commercial space launch pads on the Florida Space Coast. These include working with the US Air Force to see about converting some of the very large amount of unused military launch pads at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (south of Shiloh) to state land that might be used as a commercial spaceport.
Remarks: In the early 2010s, the Shiloh area was proposed by Space Florida as a potential location for the development of a commercial spaceport. Located immediately north of the U.S. Government’s Kennedy Space Center, the open access to the flyover range on the open Atlantic Ocean to the east, and easy access to the tracking facilities of the Eastern Test Range make the location attractive on many margins. Among other potential users of the spaceport facility, SpaceX was reported to be considering Shiloh as one of several potential locations for building a commercial launch facility. Opponents of the proposed Shiloh launch location cite the potential for a negative impact on the natural environment; particular as this area is home to several species listed as endangered or threatened. Even though the National Air & Space Administration has yet to agree to turn over the land to the state of Florida for commercial development, NASA has agreed to let the Federal Aviation Administration lead an environmental impact study at the proposed site. SpaceX ended up selecting Brownsville, Texas to build its private spaceport.

Snake Bight, FL

County: Monroe
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Latitude / Longitude: 25°44′49″N 80°56′24″W / 25.747°N 80.94°W / 25.747
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Time Zone: Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
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Comments: The Wyatt Family (a professional wrestling stable in WWE consisting of Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, Erick Rowan, and Braun Strowman) was originally billed from Snake Bight before the group’s billing was removed completely.
Remains: Snake Bight is a ghost town in Monroe County, Florida, United States. It is located in the Everglades National Park and is marked as Snake Bight Trail on the park maps. The site is approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the main park road at the end of the trail.
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Sparkman, FL

Spray, FL

Spruce Bluff, FL

St. Francis, FL

St. Joseph, FL

County: Gulf
Zip Code: 32456, 32457
Latitude / Longitude: 29°48’53″N 85°17’50″W
Elevation: 2 ft (0.6 m)
Time Zone: Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
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Comments: Port St. Joe is a city located at the intersection of U.S. Highway 98 and State Road 71 in Gulf County, Florida, United States.
Remains: St. Joseph was founded in 1835 by businessmen from nearby Apalachicola, which was troubled by legal conflict over land titles. It was mostly abandoned in 1841 after a yellow fever epidemic; hurricanes in 1843 and 1851 destroyed what structures remained. In the early 20th century a new settlement was founded close to the original after the arrival of the Apalachicola Northern Railroad in 1909. It appears that the more informal “Port St. Joe” was adopted for official use around this time.
Current Status: As of the 2010 census the population was 3,445. This was a decline from 3,644 as of the 2000 census. Port St. Joe became the county seat of Gulf County in 1965.
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Stage Pond, FL

Stanton, FL

Stiltsville, FL

County: Miami-Dade
Zip Code:
Latitude / Longitude: 25° 39′ 12.6″ N, 80° 10′ 17.4″ W
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Time Zone: Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
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Comments: Stiltsville is a group of wood stilt houses located one mile south of Cape Florida on sand banks of the Safety Valve on the edge of Biscayne Bay in Miami-Dade County, Florida. The structures stand on wood or reinforced concrete pilings, generally ten feet above the shallow water which varies from one to three feet deep at low tide.
Remains: Most sources claim the first stilt shack was built in the early 1930s, but some Dade County historians say that there were a dozen shacks in “the flats” as early as 1922.
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Sumica, FL

Sun City (Inhabited), FL

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Latitude / Longitude: 27°40′42″N 82°28′43″W / 27.67833°N 82.47861°W / 27.67833
Elevation: 26 ft (8 m)
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Sweetwater, FL

County: Hardee
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Latitude / Longitude: 27° 24′ 36″ N, 81° 42′ 12″ W
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Comments: Sweetwater Ranch is an Unincorporated community in the southeast section of Hardee County, Florida, United States. Long/Lat: 27°24.6’ N and 81°42.2’ W Peak altitude is 82 feet (25 meters), but the topography varies. Sweetwater is 15 minutes by car southeast of Zolfo Springs, Florida, and is bordered by U.S. 17 to the west, SR 66 to the North, and the unincorporated communities of Crewsville to the east and Fish Branch/Gardner to the South. It contains a significant portion of the Oak Creek watershed and borders on the Charley Creek watershed, both of which empty into Peace River. For many years, Sweetwater was the location of Hardee County’s only lake, Lake Frances, which is privately owned. Sweetwater is only 15 minutes from Highlands Hammock State Park, and 20 minutes by car from Highlands County, and the city of Sebring, which offers regional shopping, recreational and medical centers.
Remains: While the center of the community was roughly considered the Sweetwater Church of Christ, the congregation was disbanded in the early 1970s and the building demolished. The Church’s cemetery remains and was renamed the Mercer Cemetery as a significant number of the population are from that family. The center of the community is now the intersection of Sweetwater (formally County Road 656 and Merle Langford Road) and Crewsville Roads.
Current Status: In early 2007, plans were revealed for a large planned community beginning at Sweetwater Road and US 17 and extending back to Charley Creek to be named Sweetwater Ranch. When fully realized, this development could double the current population of Hardee County.
Remarks: Sweetwater Ranch once had a thriving rural population whose chief occupation was farming and cattle and at one point had its own one-room school and was home to a large turpentine mill with a commissary. Most families lived off the land, farming and harvesting domesticated animals such as beef, pork and poultry. The collection of raccoon and alligator hides was a way of life for some, as was (it was rumored) the making of moonshine. The population has steadily declined since the 1950s and the major industry is now citrus and cattle. The population continues to consist mainly of working-class families, with a few retirees.

Quay, FL