The Watermark was published on January 6-19, 2000, and focuses on community issues with the LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer/Questioning, and others) movement. The main topics covered in this issue include a letter from the editor]]> The Waterfront supplement, which featured articles about Parliament House, The Factory at Garage, and the sale of Viagra on the black market, as well as a gossip column, a nightlife column, music reviews, comics, maps of LGBTQ+ businesses in various Florida cities, and a sex talk column.

Since 1994, The Watermark has been the cornerstone source of LGBTQ+ centered news for the Central Florida region. Founded by Tom Dyer in Orlando, the publication began generating bi-weekly issues beginning August 31, 1994. Since then, The Watermark has consistently published newspaper-style issues every other Thursday. Gaining traction, the publication expanded in 1995 to include Tampa and, in 1997, The Watermark became a permanent piece of LGBTQ+ culture when the publication initiated the first large-scale Gay Days Weekend event, the Beach Ball at Disney’s Typhoon Lagoon. Before 1999, the publication printed 20,000 copies every week, distributing them to over 500 locations between its two major cities. Following 1999, the publication launched watermarkonline.com shifting to an online publication style. In 2016, Rick Claggett purchased The Watermark.
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The Watermark, Vol. 7, No. 1, January 6-19, 2000: Publications Collection, GLBT History Museum of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.]]> Watermark Media]]> The Watermark, Vol. 7, No. 1, January 6-19, 2000.]]> The Watermark Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.]]> Adobe Acrobat Reader]]> Watermark Media.]]> Watermark Publishing Group and is provided here by RICHES of Central Florida for educational purposes only.]]>
Oviedo Historical Society Collection, Oviedo Collection, Seminole County Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.]]> Adobe Acrobat Reader]]> Lawton Elementary School and is provided here by RICHES of Central Florida for educational purposes only.]]> Museum of Seminole County History in Sanford, Florida.]]> 0:01:42 Education
0:05:58 Riding bikes around Sanford
0:11:12 Experiences as a real estate broker
0:13:32 Celery industry and citrus industry
0:22:54 Growing up in Sanford
0:24:01 Running a paper route
0:27:51 Working in a grocery store and as a golf caddy
0:29:24 Serving in the Navy
0:32:27 Community involvement
0:37:17 Wife, children, and grandchildren
0:41:03 Farmers in Sanford
0:43:36 Growing citrus
0:48:35 Closing remarks]]>
Museum of Seminole County History, Sanford, Florida.]]> 16-page digital transcript by Savannah Vickers: White, Garnett. Interviewed by Joseph Morris. October 13, 2011. Audio record available. Museum of Seminole County History, Sanford, Florida.]]> Museum of Seminole County History, Sanford, Florida.]]> Linda McKnight Batman Oral History Project Collection, Seminole County Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.]]> QuickTime.]]> Adobe Acrobat Reader]]> ]]> Museum of Seminole County History and is provided here by RICHES of Central Florida for educational purposes only.]]>

The present-day Sanford area was originally inhabited by the Mayaca/Joroco natives by the time that Europeans arrived. The tribe was decimated by war and disease by 1760 and was replaced by the Seminole tribe. In 1821, the United States acquired Florida from Spain and Americans began to settle in the state. Camp Monroe was established in the mid-1830s to defend the area against Seminoles during the Seminole Wars. In 1836, the U.S. Army built a road (present-day Mellonville Avenue) to Camp Monroe during the Second Seminole War. Following an attack on February 8, 1837, the camp was renamed Fort Mellon in honor of the battle's only American casualty, Captain Charles Mellon (1794-1837). The town of Mellonville was founded nearby in 1842 by Daniel Stewart. When Florida became a state three years later, Mellonville became the county seat of Orange County, which was originally a portion of Mosquito County. Citrus was the first cash crop in the area and the first fruit packing plant was constructed in 1869.

In 1870, a lawyer from Connecticut by the name of Henry Shelton Sanford (1823-1891) purchased 12,548 acres of open land west of Mellonville. His vision was to make this new land a major port city, both railway and by water. Sitting on Lake Monroe, at the head of the St. Johns River, the city of Sanford earned the nickname of the Gate City of South Florida. Sanford became not only a transportation hub, but a leading citrus industry in Florida, and eventually across the globe. The Great Fire of 1887 devastated the city, which also suffered from a statewide epidemic of yellow fever the following year. The citrus industry flourished until the Great Freezes of 1894 and 1895, causing planters to begin growing celery in 1896 as an alternative. Celery replaced citrus as the city's cash crop and Sanford was nicknamed Celery City. In 1913, Sanford became the county seat of Seminole County, once part of Orange County. Agriculture dominated the region until Walt Disney World opened in October of 1971, effectively shifting the Central Florida economy towards tourism and residential development.]]>
The Sanford Herald, April 26, 1968, Semi-Centennial Edition, page 4: Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.]]> The Sanford Herald]]> The Sanford Herald, April 26, 1968, Semi-Centennial Edition, page 4.: Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.]]> The Sanford Herald, April 26, 1968, Semi-Centennial Edition, page 4.]]> Sanford Museum, Sanford, Florida.]]> Sanford Collection, Seminole County Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.]]> The Sanford Herald.]]> The Sanford Herald and is provided here by RICHES of Central Florida for educational purposes only.]]>