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The original Fort White
settlement was located on both the north and south sides of the Santa Fe
River.
In 1836, the fort, called Fort White, was established to protect the
Cow Creek settlement and the nearby area settlers from Indians during the
second Seminole War period. Supplies were brought in by steamboat and
distributed to other forts making Fort White a depot. Due to sickness,
flooding along the river and along with rumors of a railroad coming to the
area, the settlement was moved four miles east to its present location.
On November 3, 1884, a committee of 23 men met at the McKinney Hall in the
"village" of Fort White, with the purpose was to incorporate the village. On
November 26, 1884, the name Fort White was unanimously adopted. Just like
all pioneer towns in the past, the old town was rough and lawless. The
rumors were true and the railroad did come to town as well as phosphate
mines and turpentine stills.
Times change, things come and go, but many the descendants of the old
pioneers stayed and their family names are still prominent in town today. In
the late 1800's and early 1900's the town was quite a community with a
population of 2,000. Due to the economy, the population dwindled, and in
1979 there were only about 365 people in town. Unlike so many small towns
from the past which just disappeared from maps, the Town of Fort White still
exists today with a population of over 500 and growing. Hopefully it will
continue to keep its peaceful small town ways where people come to enjoy the
simple country life, along with nature's own resources. There are plenty of
fishing, canoeing, tubing, picnic areas, restaurants, and churches.
It has an Elementary and a brand new state of the art twenty-five million
dollar high school.
There is an active
Chamber of Commerce, a ne wly re-instated Historical Society, and the Ichetucknee Springs State Park, all working together to preserve the local
history and save our natural ecology.
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Fort White is the second
largest city in Columbia County, at approx. 2.3 square miles.
Fort White offers an abundance of natural beauty and many different outdoor
activities. It is a community that works together to preserve its local
history and natural ecology. Fort
White is located about 20 miles South of Lake City and has a population of
around 600 people in the year of 2004. Its location between Lake City and Gainesville makes it an easy commute to
schools and shopping.  Employment opportunities exist in education,
health, retail, transportation, warehouse, and utility industries.
In 1884 the
village of Fort White was incorporated.
It is best known for it's Spring Fed River (Ichetucknee River) where you can
enjoy a nice swim, canoe or tubing experience. Ichetucknee Springs is a
crystalline river that flows through approx. 6 miles of shaded hammocks and
wetlands before it joins the Sante Fe River. The Springs is located approx.
4 miles northwest of Fort White on Hwy 238, for the Head Springs entrance.
Tubing the entire stretch of the river takes around 3 hours. You can also
tube from the Midpoint which is off of Hwy 27 and in
approximately one and a half hours.
Telephone service is in the 386 area code and the postal zip code for this
community is 32038.
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