James Knox Polk - Polk County, FL
Posted by: 
lazyCachers
N 27° 53.804 W 081° 50.571
17R E 417048 N 3086048
Polk County is located in central Florida.
Waymark Code: WM4B9W
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 08/01/2008
Views: 38
Polk County became Florida's 39th county on February 8, 1861, when the State of Florida divided Hillsborough County into eastern and western halves. The eastern half was named Polk, in honor of the 11th President of the United States, James Knox Polk. Though not necessarily the reason for Polk County's name, Polk was sworn in as president on the day after Florida's statehood (March 3, 1845).
Following the Civil War, the county commission established the county seat on 120 acres donated in the central part of the county. Bartow, the county seat, was named after Francis S. Bartow, a confederate Colonel from Georgia who was the first confederate officer to die in battle during the first battle of the Civil War. Col. Bartow was buried in Savannah, GA with military honors, and promoted posthumously to the rank of brigadier general. Fort Blount , as Bartow was then known, in a move to honor one of the first fallen heroes of the Confederacy, was one of several towns and counties in the South that changed their name to Bartow. The first courthouse built in Bartow was constructed in 1867. It was replaced twice, in 1884 and in 1908. As the third courthouse to stand on the site, the present structure houses the Polk County Historical Museum and Genealogical Library.
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