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AHistory
History · Fort Meade

Fort Meade dates to 1849, and 12% of its homes were built before 1940

More historic than 86% of U.S. towns · #10 of 638 in Florida. What drives it

3 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 151 buildings. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1911 on, and the census since 1880.

1849founded
3on the National Register
12%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Fort Meade’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Fort Meade began

When was Fort Meade founded?

1849

Fort Meade dates its founding to 1849 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1880.

First census: 105 in 18802020 census: 5,100177 years

How historic is Fort Meade?

A

More historic than 86% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1860.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Fort Meade’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Fort Meade is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #10 of 638 in Florida. All 3 inputs are above most U.S. towns; its National Register listings ranks highest and its share of homes from before 1940 lowest.

A
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Fort Meade’s overall grade.
Founding era1849, from Wikidata: founded 1776–1849, an older era than 75% of U.S. townsA−Homes built before 194011.7% of homes (±3.8) · typical FL town 0.6% · U.S. 8.4%B−National Register3 listings, 154 historic buildings, 295 per 10,000 residents · typical FL town 0.0 · U.S. 2.4A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 86%
NewerOlder
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)#10 of 638

Few Florida towns list much on the Register (a typical Florida town has 0.0 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Fort Meade’s 295 sits above most of its state (98% of Florida towns have fewer) while its 154 historic buildings outnumber those of 92% of U.S. towns.

How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.8 points). Two sources give 1849.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Fort Meade’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A historic districtThe Fort Meade Historic District takes in 151 historic buildings.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Lost villages1 post office opened and closed inside today’s Fort Meade, and 3 old place names are still on the map.Mapped building by building3 fire insurance maps, 1911 to 1924, drew every building in Fort Meade.
★ What stands out · On the National Register

3 listings protect 154 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
3
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
154
each building in a district counts
first listed
1976
Christ Church
Christ ChurchFort Meade Historic DistrictW. Henry Lewis House
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Carpenter Gothic1
Wood Frame Vernacular1
Masonry Vernacular1
Late Victorian1
Queen Anne1
Christ ChurchCarpenter Gothic
Fort Meade Historic DistrictWood Frame Vernacular
W. Henry Lewis HouseLate Victorian

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Help out

Start Fort Meade’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Fort Meade’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
3 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewHorse-drawn streetcar in front of J.W. …: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Fort Meade’s post office has been open since 1860. Another post office, Peace Valley, opened and closed inside today’s town.

Fort Meade
1860–today
Peace Valley
1916–1917
18601940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Fort Meade Mobile Home ParkOakview Lakes Mobile Home ParkValencia Mobile Home Park
Gone or out of use
Peace Valley Minemine
2cemeteries and burying grounds inside Fort Meade
EvergreenFort Meade

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

The story

How Fort Meade came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Fort Meade.

Read it all →

Fort Meade is the oldest city in Polk County, dating its origins to 1849, when it was established along a new military road from Tampa (Fort Brooke) to Fort Pierce following the Second Seminole War. The town and road were originally sited by then-lieutenant George Meade of the Corps of Topographical Engineers, whose commander named it for him. Around the start of the American Civil War a mounted volunteer company nicknamed the "Hickory Boys" was formed at the fort. The 1880s business district was located on old Wire Street (now Broadway), which was a casualty of four devastating fires. There are over 150 buildings which are designated as landmarks. In the 1890s, the Fort Meade Street Railway operated a horse-drawn service in the town.

ChaptersHistoric homes and buildings

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Fort Meade, 1849 to 1986

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1849
    FoundingFort Meade is established
  3. 1860Post officeThe Fort Meade post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1910In the archiveHorse-drawn streetcar in front of J.W. Stephens' store in
  6. 1916Post officeThe Peace Valley post office opens
  7. 1917Post officeThe Peace Valley post office closes
  8. 1923Born hereJames Henry Mills is born here
  9. 1932Born hereEvon Streetman is born here
  10. 1940In the archiveFlorida [Hamilton County - Sarasota County (part)]
  11. 1951In the archiveSand Mountain in
  12. 1952On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  13. 1984Born hereJemalle Cornelius is born here
  14. 1986Born hereAndrew McCutchen is born here
By decade

Fort Meade, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1910s to the 1950s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1910s–1950s3 items
Horse-drawn streetcar in front of J.W. Stephens' store in1910Horse-drawn streetcar in front of J.W. Stephens' stor…Florida [Hamilton County - Sarasota County (part)]1940Florida [Hamilton County - Sarasota County (part)]Sand Mountain in1951Sand Mountain in
1960s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today15 recent
Sand skiing in2014Sand skiing inSand skiing in2014Sand skiing inW.O. Williams House2011W.O. Williams HouseSeal of2011Seal ofR.c. mcclellan house2011R.c. mcclellan houseFort Meade plaque012010Fort Meade plaque01Fort Meade Operations Center012010Fort Meade Operations Center01Fort Meade Jackson monument012010Fort Meade Jackson monument01Fort Meade Heritage Park sign012010Fort Meade Heritage Park sign01W.D. Turnley House2007W.D. Turnley HouseJ.M. Maddox 19012007J.M. Maddox 19011860's cemetery20071860's cemeteryHurricane Charley wind damage in Fort Meade, Florida 0408132004Hurricane Charley wind damage in Fort Meade, Florida …FLMap-doton-FortMeade2004FLMap-doton-FortMeade1892 Fort Meade house20031892 Fort Meade house
On the map

Fort Meade on the map, 1952 to 1986

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Fort Meade. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Fort Meade on the 1952 USGS mapFort Meade on the 1972 USGS mapFort Meade on the 1986 USGS map1952Homeland sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Fort Meade.

Every building

Fort Meade, building by building, 1911–1924

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Fort Meade fire insurance map, 1911, sheet 11911Sheet 1 of 4
Edition
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Horse-drawn streetcar in front of J.W. Stephens' store in
Retake this viewHorse-drawn streetcar in front of J.W. Stephens' store in, 1910

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Fort Meade’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Fort Meade, census by census

05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0003,5004,0004,5005,0005,5006,00018801900192019401960198020002020Peak: 5,691

Between 105 and 5,691 people in every census since 1880.

15 censuses, 1880–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Fort Meade’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Fort Meade

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Andrew McCutchenAmerican professional baseball player · b. 1986
E
Evon StreetmanAmerican photographer · b. 1932
J
James Henry MillsUnited States Army Medal of Honor recipient · b. 1923
J
Jemalle CorneliusAmerican football player · b. 1984
Onterio McCalebbAmerican gridiron football player · b. 1989

Questions about Fort Meade’s history

What year was Fort Meade founded?

In 1849, according to Wikidata. Fort Meade’s post office opened in 1860, and the census of 1880 counted 105 people here.

How does Fort Meade rank for history?

Fort Meade is more historic than 86% of U.S. towns, #10 of 638 in Florida. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Fort Meade?

Three places: the Christ Church (listed 1976), the Fort Meade Historic District (1994) and the W. Henry Lewis House (2012).

How old are the homes in Fort Meade?

12% of Fort Meade’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.8 points), against a typical 0.6% for a Florida town; the median home was built in 1978.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (18), the National Register of Historic Places (3), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.