Englewood from Lemons to Fish

After nearly 20 years trudging it out alone, the Goffs were introduced to three brothers. Herbert, Howard, and Ira Nichols bought 2,000 acres nearby the Goff homestead with the plan to make the area a grove town. Englewood, named for their childhood town, in the suburbs of Chicago, would become an area dedicated to the mass growing of lemons.

Lemons were in high demand because they were excellent cures for the influenza and scurvy that was ravaging the United States and the only way to get a reasonable supply was to import them from Spain. The brothers planned to sell land for homes, on the condition that they also purchased 10 acres for lemon tree groves. They believed if they could get the crop up and running, they and the new homeowners would be set for life.

Unfortunately, as Floridians know, it takes about 2 years for new citrus trees to produce a viable crop. And two record-cold freezes in their first 3 years dashed the brother’s hope of a lemon-squeezed fortune.

Attempting to make lemonade without any lemons, the brothers tried to sell real estate, start a lumber business and even built an inn and a general store that doubled as the post office. But just before 1912, the inn burned to the ground, and the brothers said enough is enough.

Meanwhile, Charles Dishong had been operating a fishing camp on nearby Manasota Key. Three other brothers, Steve, Hubbard & Clay Chadwick set up a business began shipping the plentiful fish of Lemon Bay to packing houses in Punta Gorda.

After the Inn burned down, the Nichols brothers sold their struggling supply business and the post office license to Peter Buchan, the Chadwick’s bookkeeper, for a whopping $315. Despite selling the business, the brothers retained the building and adjacent dock, renting them to Buchan and his wife Florence for $10 a month.

Frustrated with paying rent, Peter Buchan bought property close to the Goff residence and built the Englewood’s very first mixed use building. The bottom story would hold the general supply and post office, which Florence ran, and the Buchan’s would live on the second floor. They also constructed a large connected dock to receive sailing vessels and the whole thing became known as Buchan’s Landing.

For some reason lost to history, either when Manatee County was divided into smaller parcels in 1921, or when Englewood was incorporated four years later, the area designated the town of Englewood was split between Charlotte and Sarasota Counties and remains so to this day.

By 1923, the Buchan’s wanted to relocate to Tampa for their daughter’s schooling and leased the business to Harry Chapin (no relation to the famous folk singer). For the next four years, Chapin would run the store, as well as build a Casino with a mysterious partner named Royal during prohibition years.

In 1925, the town of Englewood incorporated and, as the second largest city, acreage-wise, in Sarasota County, made their case for the currently being built Tamiami Trail to come through their town. They were successful, and even hosted a visit from Governor Hardee in April of 1928, as the road was completed.

To further expand their fish business, the Chadwick brothers commissioned a bridge for $48,000 (more than a half a million in today’s dollars). To offset the expense, they charged people 50-cents to cross.

In the midst of the Florida Land Boom, none other than Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford purchased land to build a 30-room home, along with a half score of producers, managers, newspaper men, authors and other actors in a development they called Hygeia.

Sadly, just a few years later, the stock market would crash, the Casino and general store would be boarded up, the Hollywood types fled, and the Great Depression would be made worse by the decision to re-route the Tamiami Trail away from Englewood.

The Buchan’s returned to Englewood in 1933, and Peter would serve as one of the first Sarasota County Commissioners until 1951. He would facilitate the buying of the Hygeia land for a mere $100 in 1949 and set up a small airport for mosquito control. In 1968, he passed on, but his descendants live in Englewood, in the restored 2-story general store to this day.

In 1956, a local community activist, Jo Cortes, came up with the idea of celebrating the 60th anniversary of the founding of Englewood with a 3 day celebration, titled “Pioneer Days.” 12 of the significant leaders of the town from its early days were honored. And although many of the strange customs established for that first Pioneers Day have been discarded, the annual parade and celebration still take place every year at the end of August/beginning of September.

When the Intracoastal waterway was created in 1964, the Chadwick bridge had the center cut out, but commissioner Bill Anger was able to get the two divided ends preserved as fishing piers.

In 1975, Ruth Swayze, one of the writers behind the TV show Taxi, moved to Englewood and created an artist’s commune in The Hermitage on Manasota Key. Although she died in 2008, The Sarasota County Arts Council took over the property in 2003, shortly after it was added to the National Register of Historic Places, and it remains a thriving artist’s colony still today.

Today, Englewood is a thriving city of around 15,000 residents, just less than half of which are retirees. Because of the county division, unique partnership agreements are in place, allowing sharing of schools, some utilities and law enforcement resources.

Englewood has 4 beaches covering miles of the coastline, and there is plenty of unique Florida nature to explore, like the mangroves, dolphin sightings and manatee watching. Fishing remains to be a popular draw for both residents and visitors as Lemon Bay continues to provide some of the most plentiful fishing grounds in the area. Englewood has been named as one of the top 10 emerging travel destinations in recent years.

Indian Mound Park is a great place to learn about the long gone natives that once populated the shores of Englewood. And the Lemon Bay Conservancy continues to extend protection and preservation of the old Florida habitat surrounding the city.

History remains important for Englewood. You can learn about the area’s past at the free Englewood History Museum, and there are several locations in town that are on the National Register of Historic Places. And earlier this year, a diver seeking fossils uncovered one of the oldest native burial sites underwater off the coast of Manasota Key. It is believed to have originated more than 7,200 years ago, and has been called an unprecedented find by National Geographic.