A to Z: Zellwood Drainage and Water Control District Brochure
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Zellwood (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
Pesticides--United States
Pollution--Florida
Agriculture--Florida
A brochure detailing the creation of the Zellwood Farming District. The brochure gives a timeline of the district's creation and funding, and gives data regarding the District's economic output and employment. The brochure also discusses the District's impact on Lake Apopka.
Swanson, Henry
Photocopy of original 15-page brochure by Henry Swanson: binder 1962, drawer 1938-1987, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
Zellwood Drainage and Water Control District
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Lake Apopka, Florida
Zellwood, Florida
Letter from Edward A. Zagar to J. W. Woods (April 15, 1968)
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
A letter from Edward A. Zagar, fisheries biologist with the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, to J. W. Woods, Director of Fisheries for the commission. The letter discusses a survey of Lake Apopka and Lake Griffin by Zagar and others, looking for hyacinth. The water hyacinth is an invasive aquatic plant, first introduced to the United States in 1884 at the World's Fair in New Orleans, Louisiana. A visitor from Florida returned with samples of the plant, which were then introduced to the St Johns River. The water hyacinth grows extremely rapidly, choking waterways, preventing navigation, and clogging flood control structures. Methods of hyacinth control include chemical spraying, mechanical harvesting, and hand removal. In this letter, Zagar claims no concentrations of hyacinth large enough for spraying were found in either lake. At this time, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CoE) was responsible for hyacinth control.
Zagar, Edward A.
Original 1-page typewritten letter from Edward A. Zagar to J. W. Woods, April 15, 1968: binder 1968, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Lake Apopka, Florida
Lake Griffin, Florida
Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, Tallahassee, Florida
Gourd Neck, Florida
Functions of the Trustees II Fund
Surveying--Florida
Engineering--United States
This document details the history and functions of the Internal Improvement Fund. This fund was created in 1851 to handle the sale, maintenance, and leasing of public lands. These public lands came from an initial grant of 500,000 acres from the federal government at the admission of Florida as a state. More land was available as well for use of public education. The fund's earliest tasks were the construction of railroads and improvement of waterways. The fund's focus shifted to land reclamation and drainage during the 1880s, continuing into the 1920s. The fund also played an active role in the drainage of the Everglades during this period. This document further details the bureaucratic structure of the fund, as well as data on the amount of land still controlled by it.
Original 6-page typewritten report: binder 1968, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, Tallahassee, Florida
Notice of Application for Approval of Bridge Plans
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Army
Bridges--Florida
A public notice from the I.S. Army Corps of Engineers discussing the possible approval of bridge plans proposed by the Florida State Road Department. The plans are for a replacement of an existing bridge, where Florida State Road 48 (SR 48) crosses the Apopka-Beauclair Canal in Mount Dora. The goal of distributing the public notice is to collect data in support of or opposition to the proposed bridge plans. A map and schematics are attached.
McKnight, A. L.
Original notice, November 29, 1966: binder 1966, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Apopka-Beauclair Canal, Mount Dora, Florida
Subjects to be Presented at Public Hearing on Local Water Pollution
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
Pollution--Florida
Fishing--Florida
Citrus--Florida
A document by Arthur "Jimmie" W. Sinclair, executive secretary of the Winter Garden Chamber of Commerce, discussing his planned comments at a public hearing on water pollution held in Orlando Chamber of Commerce building on November 14, 1966. The document gives a timeline of pollution discharges into the lake, and recommends as solution the development of catch basins lining the north shore, and planting of vegetation to act as a buffer zone.
Sinclair, Arthur W.
Original document by Arthur W. Sinclair: binder 1966, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Lake Apopka, Florida
Zellwood, Florida
Orlando Chamber of Commerce, Orlando, Florida
Letter from Arthur W. Sinclair to the Hyacinth Control Society, Inc. (November 16, 1967)
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Winter Garden (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
A letter from Arthur W. Sinclair, executive manager of the Winter Garden Chamber of Commerce, to the Hyacinth Control Society, Inc., requesting information on herbicides to be used on hyacinth and other aquatic plants along the shores of Lake Apopka in Winter Garden, Florida. The water hyacinth is an invasive species, introduced to America in 1884, that quickly overwhelms native life in freshwater lakes.
Sinclair, Arthur W.
Photocopy of original typewritten letter from Arthur W. Sinclair to the Hyacinth Control Society, Inc., November 16, 1967: binder 1967, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Winter Garden, Florida
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Lake Apopka, Florida
Lake Apopka Restoration Project Weekly Report (March 18 to 22, 1968)
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
Pollution--Florida
A weekly report of the Lake Apopka Technical Committee, chaired by C. W. Sheffield. The committee was an initiative by Governor Florida Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr. (1926-2011) to investigate pollution and possible restoration of Lake Apopka, launched in 1967. This report discusses meetings between Chairman Sheffield and Professor Thomas Furman, discussing experimental nutrient removal facilities and future research projects; a meeting with Dr. Robert O'Brien of Rollins College, discussing aquatic weed growth, in hopes of finding a potential candidate for lake-bottom plantings; requests sent to various state and federal organizations seeking suggestions for projects to be carried out that summer; a meeting with K. K. Huffstutler to discuss potential levee sizes for an isolation dike to separate the muck farms from the lake; a demonstration of a hyacinth processing machine made by the Hiller Company, at which Governor Kirk and various committee members were present; and plans for a future flyover of the lake by the Governor.
Sheffield, C. W.
Photocopied 3-page typewritten report by C. W. Sheffield, March 22, 1968: binder 1968, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Lake Apopka, Florida
Lake Apopka Restoration Project Weekly Report (April 22 to 26, 1968)
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
Pollution--Florida
A weekly report of the Lake Apopka Technical Committee, chaired by C. W. Sheffield. The committee was an initiative by Governor Florida Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr. (1926-2011) to investigate pollution and possible restoration of Lake Apopka, launched in 1967. This report discusses a meeting between the chairman and the Kissimmee Rotary Club to discuss the Lake Apopka project; a review of the project by Hugh Putnam, an engineering consultant hired by the Zellwood Drainage District to represent the farming interests; plans to construct nutrient removal plants at various of the Zellwood District's pumping stations; plans to meet with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CoE) to discuss the proposed isolation levee; fixing of the High Volume Air Sampler; a review of the project by Earl Kelly, an agricultural agent from Lake County; and plans to hold a committee meeting on May 1, 1968.
Sheffield, C. W.
Original 2-page typewritten report by C. W. Sheffield, April 26, 1968: binder 1968, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Lake Apopka, Florida
Zellwood, Florida
Kissimmee, Florida
Lake Apopka Restoration Project Weekly Report (April 29 to May 3, 1968)
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
Pollution--Florida
A weekly report of the Lake Apopka Technical Committee, chaired by C. W. Sheffield. The committee was an initiative by Governor Florida Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr. (1926-2011) to investigate pollution and possible restoration of Lake Apopka, launched in 1967. This report discusses a subcommittee meeting to examine levee sizes for a potential isolation pond; a review of the project by Orange County Commissioner Paul E. Pickett, after which it was decided the project would be officially sanctioned by the Florida Air and Water Pollution Control Commission, giving the Lake Apopka Restoration Project a permanent status; general review of the committee's research projects; and plans for a meeting with the Federal Air and Water Pollution Control Commission on May 3, 1968.
Sheffield, C. W.
Original 2-page typewritten report by C. W. Sheffield, May 3, 1968: binder 1968, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Lake Apopka, Florida
Zellwood, Florida
Leesburg Committee Conclusions
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Water quality--Florida
Pollution--Florida
A document outlining the conclusions from meeting of the Lake Apopka Technical Committee, held in Leesburg, Florida, circa June 1968. The committee was formed by Florida Governor Claude R. Kirk, Jr. (1926-2011) in 1967 to study and implement a restoration plan for Lake Apopka. C. W. Sheffield served as chairman of the committee. This committee meeting was held as a review of the project. This document thus examines the works completed by the committee as of June 1968. Additionally, it identifies outside projects related to the committee's goals of restoration, such as plans for nutrient removal systems by the Winter Garden Citrus Cooperative. This document also lists recommendations for the committee going forward, both general and specific.
Photocopy of original 5-page typewritten document, 1968: binder 1968, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Lake Apopka, Florida
Tavares, Florida
Leesburg, Florida
Winter Garden, Florida
Water Management Bulletin, Vol. 1, No. 2 (December 1967-January 1968)
Floods--Florida
Canals--Florida
Levees--United States
Water quality--Florida
The December 1967 through January 1968 edition of the Water Management Bulletin, which was a publication of the Central and Southern Florida Flood Control District. The district was formed by the Florida Legislature in 1949 to manage the Central and Southern Florida Project, a program created by the U.S. Congress as part of the Flood Control Act (FCA) of 1948). The project had several purposes related to water management: flood control, water conservation, and supply for agricultural and urban use, recreation, navigation, and prevention of saltwater intrusion. To accomplish these goals, the project constructed levees, dikes, and canals throughout Central and South Florida. In 1972, the Florida Water Resources Act divided the state into five water management districts and the Flood Control District became the South Florida Water Management District. Issues discussed in this bulletin include: initiation of the first urban water usage study within the district; hearings held by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (CoE) to discuss a proposed Water Resources Plan; the adoption of an alligator mascot by the district; the creation of a traveling steamboat display for educational purposes; a synopsis of the proposed Water Resources Plan; a statement from Robert Padrick, chairman of the district, to the CoE; plans to beautify pumping stations; plans to expand recreational boating canals; plans to clean existing dikes; a resolution seeking protection for alligators; and the observation of an increased number of Everglades kites. The bulletin also contains maps of the district and its constructed and proposed canals and levees.
Original 12-page newsletter: <em>Water Management Bulletin</em>, Vol. 1, No. 2, December 1967: binder 1968, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
<a href="http://www.sfwmd.gov/portal/page/portal/sfwmdmain/home%20page" target="_blank">Central and Southern Florida Flood Control District</a>
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Coral Gables, Florida
Lake Okeechobee, Florida
Kissimmee River, Florida
West Palm Beach, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Miami Beach, Florida
Miami, Florida
Kissimmee, Florida
Interim Lake Apopka Report (August 1974)
Lake Apopka (Fla.)
Pollution--Florida
A report on the potential Environmental restoration of Lake Apopka for the Lake Apopka subcommittee of the Orlando Area Chamber of Commerce Environmental Resources Committee. Allen E. Arthur, member of the Orange County Board of County Commissioners, served as chairman of this subcommittee. This report summarizes the sources of pollution in Lake Apopka and gives a brief Environmental history of the area. The report identifies water quality goals for the lake, and recommends ending pollution discharge as the first step to restoring the lake. The report also discusses a possible lake drawdown as one way to help restore water quality, and notes Lake Carlton, a small lake downstream of Lake Apopka, as a possible test site for the drawdown method. The report also mentions proposals to acquire the Gourd Neck Springs area for use as a recreational park, using funds from the Environmental Endangered Lands (EEL) program, and claims that purchase of the area was turned down by the State Interagency Planning Committee on Environmental Endangered Lands.<br /><br />Lake Apopka is one of Florida’s largest lakes and was once considered to be one of the world’s best lakes for bass fishing, supporting a large sport fishing and tourism industry. The lake’s sport fish population began to decline in the 1960s, with major die-offs occurring almost yearly. The lake’s problems are generally considered to be the result of over-nutrification from various sources. 20,000 acres of wetlands bordering the lake’s north shore were drained in the 1940s and used for highly fertile “muck farms”. These farms were routinely flooded to protect the fragile soil; this fertilizer and pesticide laden water was then discharged back into the lake prior to each growing season. Other sources of pollution include discharge from citrus processing operations as well as treated wastewater from sewage plants. The nutrient-rich discharge promoted algae growth in the lake, turning the water to a green color, and blocked sunlight from reaching aquatic vegetation which provided food and habit to the lake’s fish population. The lake’s bottom soil became increasingly “mucky”, also disrupting aquatic vegetation from taking root.<br /><br />Restoration work on the lake began in the 1960s with attempts by various agencies to remove “trash fish” like gizzard shad from the lake via seining, which would hopefully allow the lake’s sportfish to thrive. The Lake Apopka Restoration Council, an initiative formed under Governor Claude Kirk in 1967, launched several studies to find methods to improve the lake, though no serious action was taken. Various methods were debated to restore the lake through the 1970s and 80s, including “drawdown”, which entailed completely draining the lake to allow the mucky bottom to consolidate. Restoration attempts were stalled for lack of funding and research.<br /><br />The Lake Apopka Restoration Council was reformed in 1985 under Governor Bob Graham; in 1987 the Surface Water and Improvement Management Act was passed; together these allowed comprehensive restoration plans to take shape, such as the Marsh Flow-way, a project by the St John’s Water Management District which uses natural methods to remove nutrients from the lake. The Friends of Lake Apopka, a citizen Environmental advocacy group, began to push for further restoration efforts in the 90s. The lake’s north shore muck farms were eventually purchased by the State of Florida, helping to reduce the amount of nutrient entering the lake.
Original 4-page typewritten report, August 1974: binder 1974, Friends of Lake Apopka Archives, Ginn Museum, <a href="http://www.oaktownusa.com/Pages/Preserve/index" target="_blank">Oakland Nature Preserve</a>, Oakland, Florida.
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Gourd Neck Springs, Florida
Lake Apopka, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Lake Carlton, Florida
Apopka-Beauclair Canal, Florida