SPARKMAN
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SPARKMAN |
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NAME: Sparkman COUNTY: Charlotte ROADS: 2WD GRID: 3 CLIMATE: Hot in summer (and most of spring and fall) BEST TIME TO VISIT: Anytime |
COMMENTS:
Off of SR 31 approximately 5 miles north of 31/CR74 intersection. Townsite is deserted and mostly located on private ranch land. REMAINS: not much from original town period |
| Sparkman was a turpentine and sawmill town just a short ways north of Bermont. Sources claim it was named either for Senator John Sparkman or a real estate investor named Thomas Sparkman. The area was first settled around 1905 and continued to grow until the mid 1910's. In addition to the sawmill and turpentine stills it had a school that doubled as a church on weekends, a general store, and like Bermont it had it's own local baseball team. Sparkman also received it's own post office in 1914. The Florida Land Boom lead to investors purchasing large areas of land in Sparkman. Very ambitious subdivisions were platted out and even had streets and sidewalks put in. However few were sold before the boom collapsed in 1925. By 1926 only seven families still lived in Sparkman. The investor-owned properties eventually went to the government for back taxes, and by the time the post office closed in 1942 Sparkman was already abandoned. Today most of the former townsite is part of the Hall Ranch. Little still exists from the old town. Submitted by: Jim Pike |
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