I can really use some local Alachua County help to more fully develop the history of these and other Alachua County communities. I am hoping members of the local historical societies will cooperate in this effort and provide additional information. Melanie Cox began this effort to collect historical data and town histories for Alachua County's Cities, Communities and Towns and as the current County Coordinator for Alachua County would very much appreciate ANY contributions to this effort. Please see the CONTACT page for contact information.

CROSS CREEK - Home of Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, author of "The Yearling". Cross Creek was the setting for several of Ms. Rawlings' works.

GAINESVILLE - Founded in 1854 and named for Revolutionary War general Edmund Gaines.

HIGH SPRINGS - Historically a mining and railroad town.

MICANOPY - Florida's oldest inland town, Micanopy is just south of Gainesville and was once the site of a Timucuan Indian village. Arredonda received an early land grant here and eventually the fertile soil was used to produce sugar cane and then citrus. In 1823 Moses Elias Levy established a settlement -- the village was then called Wanton for the postmaster of the first post office in Alachua County (1831). The name changed to Micanopy in 1834.

NEWNANSVILLE - The first Alachua County seat was Newnansville. The village was named Newnansville in 1825 by the territorial legislature but was known as Dell's Court House for the post office established in 1831 until 1837 when the name of the post office was changed to Newnansville. Fertile soil yielded bountiful cotton and the U.S. land office was located here. The county seat was moved to Gainesville in 1854 and eventually the population (more than one-third of Alachua County residents lived here in 1857) moved along with it to be nearer the highway and railroad.