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 Porzig Realty covers four counties in Central Florida area.
This page has links to various community web sites that you, as future or current resident of Central Florida, may find useful. They include schools, hospitals, utilities, post office, churches, among others.
To view the important links to various community web sites of each county, click on the county map.
Florida Facts and Trivia
Saint Augustine is the oldest European settlement
in North America.
The name Punta Gorda, which means, "fat point"
when translated from Spanish. The moniker was
given to the city because a broad part of the
land in Punta Gorda juts into Charlotte Harbor.
The harbor itself is somewhat unique, as it is
the point where the Peace River meets the ocean.
Orlando attracts more visitors than any other
amusement park destination in the United States.
New England Congregationalists who sought to bring
their style of liberal arts education to the state
founded Rollins College, the oldest college in
Florida, in Winter Park in 1885.
Cape Canaveral is America's launch pad for space
flights.
Florida is not the southernmost state in the United
States. Hawaii is farther south.
A museum in Sanibel owns 2 million shells and
claims to be the world's only museum devoted solely
to mollusks.
The Benwood, on French Reef in the Florida Keys,
is known as one of the most dived shipwrecks in
the world.
Safety Harbor is the home of the historic Espiritu
Santo Springs. Given this name in 1539 by the
Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. He was searching
for the legendary Fountain of Youth. The natural
springs have attracted attention worldwide for
their curative powers.
Niceville is home to the famous Boggy Bayou Mullet
Festival celebrated the third weekend in October.
The United States city with the highest rate of
lightning strikes per capita is Clearwater.
Gatorade was named for the University of Florida
Gators where the drink was first developed.
Young aviator Tony Jannus made history on January
1, 1914 when he flew the world's first scheduled
passenger service airline flight from St. Petersburg's
downtown yacht basin to Tampa.
Dr. John Gorrie of Apalachicola invented mechanical
refrigeration in 1851.
Miami Beach pharmacist Benjamin Green invented
the first suntan cream in 1944. He accomplished
this development by cooking cocoa butter in a
granite coffee pot on his wife's stove.
Neil Smith and his brother of Montverde developed
the first Snapper riding lawn mower.
Key West has the highest average temperature in
the United States.
The Saint John's River is one of the few rivers
that flows north instead of south.
The largest lake in Florida is Lake Okeechobee.
May 20, 1970 Florida lawmakers passed and sent
to the Governor a bill adopting the moonstone
as the official state gem. Ironically, the moonstone
is not found naturally in Florida...nor was it
found on the moon.
In 1987 the Florida legislature designated the
American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
the official state reptile. Long an unofficial
symbol of the state, the alligator originally
symbolized Florida's extensive untamed wilderness
and swamps.
Miami installed the first bank automated teller
machine especially for rollerbladers.
Ybor City was once known as the Cigar Capital
of the World with nearly 12,000 tabaqueros (cigar-makers)
employed in 200 factories. Ybor City produced
an estimated 700 million cigars a year at the
industry's peak.
Plant City, the Winter Strawberry Capital of the
World, holds the Guinness record for the world's
largest strawberry shortcake. The 827 square-foot,
6,000 pound cake was made on Feb. 19, 1999 in
McCall Park.
The Sunshine Skyway Bridge is a cable-stayed concrete
bridge. Opened in 1987 the bridge coasts through
the clouds at 190 feet above water. Its bright
yellow support cables spread from the two center
pillars. The structure gives drivers unobstructed
view of the water during the 4.1 mile trip over
Tampa Bay.
Nearly 80 percent of the states intake of sweet
Atlantic white shrimp is harvested in Amelia Island
waters. Two million pounds of shrimp are delivered
to Fernandina docks annually.
A swamp such as the Fakahatchee Strand in the
Everglades functions in three major ways. First,
its vegetation serves as a filter to clean the
water as it makes its slow journey southward.
Secondly, it's a major habitat for wildlife and
plant life. Finally, it actually prevents flooding
by slowing down the flow of water after heavy
rains.
DeFuniak Springs is home to one of the two naturally
round lakes in the world.
The Morikami Museum and Japanese Gardens at Delray
Beach is the only museum in the United States
dedicated exclusively to the living culture of
Japan.
Fort Lauderdale is known as the Venice of America
because the city has 185 miles of local waterways.
Fort Meade is the oldest settlement in Polk County.
It dates back to 1849 when a settlement grew up
around the United States Cavalry fort during the
Seminole Indian Wars.
The Fred Bear Museum in Gainesville is a tribute
to the accomplishments of Fred Bear a promoter
of proper wildlife management and the founder
of Bear Archery Company.
The Hawthorne Trail a part of Florida's Rails
to Trails program and attracts many outdoor enthusiasts
to walk, cycle, or ride horseback through its
17-mile length.
Just north of Haines City is the Baseball City
Stadium the spring training home of the Kansas
City Royals. Haines City is known as The Heart
of Florida.
The city of Hypoluxo's name comes from the Seminole
expression water all 'round -- no get out.
Islamorada is billed as the Sports fishing Capital
of the World.
Key Largo is known as the Dive Capital of the
World.
Marathon is home to Crane Point Hammock, a 63.5
acre land tract that is one of the most important
historical and archaeological sites in the Keys.
The area contains evidence of pre-Colombian and
prehistoric Bahamian artifacts, and once was the
site of an entire Indian village.
Fort Zachary Taylor in Key West was built between
1845 and 1866. Controlled by the Union during
the Civil War, the fort was the home base for
a successful blockade of Confederate ships that
some historians say shortened the conflict by
a full year. The fort also was active during the
Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War
II.
The first graded road built in Florida was Old
Kings Road in 1763. It was named for King George
of England.
During the 1991 Gulf War the busiest military
port in the country was Jacksonville. From this
location the military moved more supplies and
people than any other port in the country.
When first completed in 1989 the Dame Point Bridge
became the longest cable-stayed span in the United
States, the longest concrete span of its type
in the Western Hemisphere, and the third longest
cable-stayed bridge in the world.
The longest river sailboat race in the world is
the Annual Mug Race. The event runs 42 miles from
Palatka to Jacksonville along the St. Johns River.
The Olustee Battlefield State Historic Site commemorates
the largest battle fought in Florida during the
American Civil War.
Venice is known as the Shark Tooth Capital of
the World. Collecting prehistoric sharks teeth
has been a favorite pastime of visitors and residents
of the Venice area for years
The Florida Museum of Hispanic and Latin American
Art in Coral Gables, is the first and only museum
in the United States dedicated to the preservation,
diffusion, and promotion of Hispanic and Latin
American Art.
The Pinellas Trail, a 47 mile hiking/biking trail
connecting St. Petersburg with Central and north
Pinellas County, is the longest urban linear trail
in the eastern United States.
Titusville, known as Space City, USA, is located
on the west shore of the Indian River directly
across from the John F. Kennedy Space Center.
Florida is the only state that has 2 rivers both
with the same name. There is a Withlacoochee in
north central Florida (Madison County) and a Withlacoochee
in central Florida. They have nothing in common
except the name.
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