Newspaper The Florida Index (Lake City, Fla.) 1899-1918 Index
About The Florida Index (Lake City, Fla.) 1899-1918
The Florida Index, a weekly publication, began on June 16, 1899, in Lake City. Its original editor and publisher, John Madison Caldwell, had a long history in the newspaper business, beginning in the printing office of the Lake City Advertiser. After the Civil War, Caldwell began working for Florida’s expanding railways–the first of his many careers. In a letter to his son, dated February 10, 1920, Caldwell recollects that “In addition to preaching I have been a farmer, a printer, merchant, barkeeper, carpenter, wheelwright, lawyer, clerk of the Circuit Court, County Treasurer, clock repairer, bridge builder, section foreman, railroad road master, and photographer, as well as pharmacist.” Strangely, Caldwell did not mention newspaper publishing, leaving one to presume that he saw himself more as a printer than publisher. Between 1903 and 1916, the Florida Index was managed by the well-known Appleyard family, later the official printers for the State of Florida.
Lake City was established on the old Spanish mission trail between St. Augustine and Tallahassee. Formerly, the crossroads of Florida, Lake City by the turn of the century was losing political and economic influence to communities on the Atlantic coast. Railroads, agriculture, and tourism were pushing ever further south. In 1905, Lake City lost its bid to host what would become the University of Florida.
The Florida Index, before it ceased operations around 1918, actively reported on economic developments in Lake City and documented the gradual emergence of two different states of mind in north and south Florida. The paper also covered national news, including the controversies surrounding Prohibition, America’s entry into the First World War, and the policies of President Woodrow Wilson.
Provided By: University of FloridaAbout this Newspaper
Title
- The Florida Index (Lake City, Fla.) 1899-1918
Other Title
- Index
Summary
- The Florida Index [LCCN: sn95047271], a weekly publication, began on June 16, 1899, in Lake City, Florida. The original editor/publisher was John Madison Caldwell. The Appleyard family succeeded as editors/publishers between 1903 and 1916. John Caldwell had a long history in the region's newspaper publishing industry, beginning in the printing office of the Lake City (FL) Advertiser [LCCN: not known to exist]. Following the Civil War, Caldwell began working for Florida's expanding railways, which was just the first of several varied careers that took him from law offices to pharmacies and eventually back to newspaper publishing. In a letter to his son, Stafford, dated February 10, 1920, Caldwell recollects that "In addition to preaching I have been a farmer, a printer, merchant, barkeeper, carpenter, wheelwright, lawyer, clerk of the Circuit Court, County Treasurer, clock repairer, bridge builder, section foreman, railroad road master, and photographer, as well as pharmacist." Strangely, he does not mention a career in newspaper publishing leaving one to presume that he saw himself more as a printer than publisher. The Appleyard name would become well established in the State of Florida. By 1915, in addition to publishing the Florida Index, the family was also printer to the State. The politics of Florida at the time were solidly Democratic, with a brief stint by the Prohibition Party from 1917 through the end of 1920. Lake City was the site of the Battle of Olustee, which (ca. 2008) is annually re-enacted. Lake City was and remains, literally, at the cross-roads of Florida. It was established on the old Spanish mission trail between St. Augustine (FL) and Tallahassee (FL). Today, it sits at the intersection of two major interstate highways, the east-west I-10 and the north-south I-75. The Florida Index covered other news that would be tracing the development of the state as the Florida's northern tier of counties. Between 1899 and 1918, when the newspaper is thought to have ceased, this region began losing its political and economic influence to the Atlantic coast counties. Railroad, agricultural industries, and tourism drove ever further south. Education reporting covered Lake City's bid to host what would become the University of Florida, a bid it lost to Gainesville (FL), a dry city during the rise up to national Prohibition, in 1905 legislation. Other local news covers the development of attitudes for/against Prohibition; America's entry into WWI, particularly attitudes towards President Woodrow Wilson; and, the growing differentiation of two Florida states of mind: north Florida and south Florida. As with any older newspapers, the advertising copy is diverting. Then, as now, advertising is a highly graphical industry.--E. Kesse, University of Florida Digital Library Center.
Dates of Publication
- 1899-1918
Created / Published
- Lake City, Fla. : Jno. M. Caldwell, 1899-
Headings
- - Lake City (Fla.)--Newspapers
- - Columbia County (Fla.)--Newspapers
- - Florida--Columbia County
- - Florida--Lake City
- - United States--Florida--Columbia--Lake City
Genre
- Newspapers
Notes
- - Weekly
- - Vol. 1, no. 1 (June 16, 1899)-
- - Ceased in 1918? Cf. Gregory, W. Amer. newspapers, 1937.
- - Publisher: T.J. Appleyard, <1903>; Index Print Co., <1916>.
- - Editor: T.J. Appleyard, <1909>; A.B. Cargile <1916>.
- - Local editor: Alice T. Appleyard, <1903>.
- - Also issued on microfilm from the University of Florida.
- - Latest issue consulted: Vol. 20, no. 32 (Oct. 20, 1916).
Medium
- v.
Digital Id
Library of Congress Control Number
- sn95047271
OCLC Number
- 33963866
Additional Metadata Formats
Availability
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