Henck
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South Florida Railroad
The South Florida Railroad was incorporated on October 16, 1878, by E. W. Henck, E.F. Crafts, H. Mercer, and Dr. C.C. Haskell, all of Orange County, Florida. These men hired F. C. Tucker as chief engineer, and he located a line running from Lake Monroe (on the St. Johns River) at Sanford to Orlando. The road was projected to run down the state to Charlotte Harbor on the Gulf of Mexico. The South Florida RR was having trouble raising money, but when Mr. Henck obtained the charter of the defunct LM&O, the project could go forward. E.W. Henck had a…
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South Florida Railroad
The South Florida Railroad was incorporated on October 16, 1878, by E. W. Henck, E.F. Crafts, H. Mercer, and Dr. C.C. Haskell, all of Orange County, Florida. These men hired F. C. Tucker as chief engineer, and he located a line running from Lake Monroe (on the St. Johns River) at Sanford to Orlando. The road was projected to run down the state to Charlotte Harbor on the Gulf of Mexico. The South Florida RR was having trouble raising money, but the project progressed when Mr. Henck obtained the defunct LM&O charter. E.W. Henck had a particular reason for wanting…
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Edward Warren Henck
Edward Henck (1846-1930) arrived in Mellonville (Sanford) by steamboat in November 1872 from Boston. He looked at some maps of available homesteads and picked out a few promising locations. Horses were scarce, so he started walking south. He diverged from the main trail to Orlando and took a more western fork near Soldier Creek. He arrived on the southern shore of East Lake and decided to call it home. Edward put in a homestead claim for the eastern side of the section that stretches from 434 on the south to almost Longwood Hills Rd on the north, from Milwee Street…
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Henck-Tinker Building
Over the decades this building has been used for various things. Starting its life as a bank, it has been a feed store, thrift shop, restaurant, grocery, and today it holds a bar, cigar bar, workout studio, barber shop, and coffee shop. Although some reports claim this building was constructed in 1920, those claims are false. It was actually constructed in 1926. At the height of the real estate boom, Longwood founder Edward Henck teamed up with baseball hall-of-famer turned real estate investor Joe Tinker. Tinker was well known for his time as a shortstop for the Chicago Cubs, there…
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Henck House
This was the house of Longwood’s founder, Edward Warren Henck. He first arrived in Longwood in November of 1873 and was given a land grant under the Homestead Act that included all of the historic district and northward almost to Longwood Hills Road. His first home was reportedly near the southern shore of East Lake, but Edward and his wife (Mary) soon relocated closer to the core downtown district. Some references claim this house was constructed as early as 1875, but others say it was built by master carpenter Josiah Clouser. That would mean at least an 1881 date (when Clouser arrived). We…
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Original Longwood Hotel
The first hotel in Longwood was located at the southeast corner of East Warren and Longwood Avenue. Town founder Edward Henck built the wooden structure to handle the influx of prospective settlers and tourists coming down the Sanford-Orlando road via steamboat landing in Sanford. The structure was built in 1883 and should not be confused with the Longwood Inn. It was sold to Henry Hand. It occupied roughly the same footprint that the gymnasium complex today occupies; however, it was oriented to face north on Warren Avenue, the main road through town. This hotel had fewer rooms than the more…