Central Florida
Manufactured Home Sales

Central Florida
Manufactured Home Sales

While Orlando’s history may be short, it is certainly colorful. Once known for its cotton, cattle and citrus industries, the area has now become one of the world’s leading residential and vacation destinations. 

Cuba’s demand for beef cattle was the chief reason for Orlando’s growth in the cattle industry prior to 1863. With the growth came widespread cattle rustling, which led to street gunfights in downtown Orlando that were more typical of the Wild West than the Deep South. The lawlessness within the cattle industry caused losses to mount quickly and cotton became woven into Orlando’s early history as a means of making a living.

As more settlers began working the fields, the small community soon found itself located in the middle of a large cotton plantation. Orlando’s cotton industry met its doom when the Civil War impacted the industry’s workforce. Homesteaders soon realized that citrus trees were easier to grow and more profitable.

“Orange fever” took over in 1870, and Orlando’s residents began planting seeds in the land that once yielded cotton. With the nation’s growing demand for grapefruit, tangerines and oranges, coupled with the extension of the South Florida Railroad into Central Florida in 1880, the citrus industry flourished. 

When the hard freezes devastated orange groves in 1895, an industrious citrus grower, John B. Steinmetz, converted his packing house into a skating rink, added picnic facilities and a bathhouse and built a toboggan slide that spilled into Wekiva Springs. His entertainment complex soon made Orlando an important leisure destination.

Orlando began taking steps toward becoming a world-class vacation and recreation mecca when Cypress Gardens Adventure Park opened its doors in 1936. But, it was an announcement made on Nov. 11, 1965 that forever changed Orlando’s destiny.Walt Disney World Vacation Kingdom offering  magical family vacations by Disney opened its gates on Oct. 1, 1971. SeaWorld Orlando splashed open in 1973. Over the years, Walt Disney World Resort continued to expand with the opening of Epcot in 1982, Disney-MGM Studios in 1989 and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park in 1998 as well as resorts, water parks, golf courses and entertainment complexes.  In 1990, Universal Studios Florida came onto the scene.  In 1999, Universal Orlando Resort opened a second park, Universal’s Islands of Adventure, followed by the addition of the Universal City Walk entertainment complex. In 2000, Discovery Cove opened with a unique dolphin-swim experience and in late-2004 Cypress Gardens Adventure Park re-opened its extensive gardens along with new rides and a water park.The Kissimmee and  Winter Haven Chain Of Lakes, NASA, and Historic Bok Tower in Lake Wales are also very accessible.

Today, Orlando sets the gold standard for vacationers, business travelers, and residents. Orlando continues to grow, offering nearly 100 attractions, 112,000 hotel rooms and more than 5,300 restaurants, as well as the second largest convention center in the nation. Orlando welcomes  approximately 50 million visitors annually to experience the ever-evolving destination.

Be sure to bookmark our site and use it as a reference while you are making progress towards buying or selling.  Also, feel free to contact us if you have any questions.  You may also call us at(863)221-5664 or Email us at TheThompsonTeam@PamThompsonTeam.com 

Find all the information you need on buying or selling your home in the Orlando area of Florida.  Let the Orlando area Florida's Specialist, Central Florida Manufactured Home Sales, The Thompson Team assist  you throughout your next Real Estate buying or selling transaction.