Masaryktown, Florida

History

Masaryktown was founded in 1924 and named after Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, the founder and first president of Czechoslovakia. Of the original 61 persons who met to found the town, 60 were Slovak and only one was Czech. They formed the Hernando Plantation Company and sold at a price of $1,000.00 per share, which granted the right for each share-owner to purchase 20 acres of land. The settlers first planted oranges, but killer frosts devastated the orchards. Many Slovaks eventually left, and by 1952, only 15-25 families remained to carry on a more prosperous enterprise in chicken farming. But even they declined by 1965 due to intense competition.

Few Slovaks remain there today, but the legacy of their settlement remains, as the original founders named the streets running east to west after Slovak national and literary leaders such as Štúr, Hurban, Kollár, Štefánik, Hodža, Hviezdoslav, and Mudron. One street is named after the famous Czech historian, Palacký, and the central boulevard is named after Masaryk. North-south streets are named in honor of American presidents such as Wilson, who assisted in enabling Czecho-Slovak independence, as well as Jefferson, Madison, and Lincoln.

From the History section of Masaryktown, Florida on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.