Abstract
Orange County encompasses the city of Orlando and is home to over one million residents and attracts millions of tourists annually. Starting in the twentieth century, areas in the county sustained intensive agricultural use and later massive residential and commercial development. As a result of these activities, natural and historic areas were spoiled while others vanished completely. Prior to the 1970s and the establishment of Walt Disney World, the area’s tourism industry revolved primarily around its natural amenities, only to be supplanted by a form that was thematic and “make believe”. In 2006, an archaeology program was initiated to unearth the county’s early history as a way of searching for the “real Florida.” This paper will discuss how public archaeology has the potential for addressing problems that affect cultural and natural resources as history is unearthed at the neighborhood level.
Highlights
Florida was once home to indigenous peoples as long as 12,000 years ago who resided all throughout the state
Much of the area which encompasses Orange County today experienced very little contact between indigenous peoples and Europeans though when some of the territorial period Euro-American settlers arrived here, the area was home to groups of Seminole Indians who were later displaced through a series of aggressive military campaigns
Cultural, historic, and natural resources have become increasingly endangered but this growth has provided an opportunity for archaeological research through cultural resource management projects and volunteer efforts. These have given us the opportunity to be able to study the town’s history and the role it played in the development of Orange County, as well as the growth of Florida tourism, which is the state’s largest industry
Summary
Florida was once home to indigenous peoples as long as 12,000 years ago who resided all throughout the state. Established in 1844, Oakland served as both a railroad and social hub for Orange County as citrus grown from regional farms were brought in for packing and export to the national market, and people of “wealth and fashion” were attracted to the theatricals, parties, banquets and masquerade balls hosted at the town’s Union Club (Bacon, 1974: 17) Much of this activity waned towards the start of the twentieth century, and Oakland continued to exist as a small rural town. Cultural, historic, and natural resources have become increasingly endangered but this growth has provided an opportunity for archaeological research through cultural resource management projects and volunteer efforts These have given us the opportunity to be able to study the town’s history and the role it played in the development of Orange County, as well as the growth of Florida tourism, which is the state’s largest industry. Since many sites have been destroyed or are threatened by development, our archaeological program has the benefit of heightening public awareness about the importance of archaeological resources to better understand local history
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