Orlando is in central Florida, and is the county seat of Orange County. It was incorporated in 1875, and became an official city in 1885. The city has a population of near 250,000 full time residents, with the population swelling to over 2 million for the Metro area during tourist season.
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| Seaworld Adventure Park |
In the Pre-European Era, a few Creek and other Native American tribes only sparsely settled the area. One of the first permanent settlers was Aarron Jernigan, who acquired land along Lake Holden under the terms of the Armed Occupation Act of 1842. The area was named after him. Later, the area was re-named after a soldier who was killed in the 2nd Seminole War, Orlando Acosta. It was called Orlando's Grave, and later shortened to just Orlando. The area never had much of a population until after the 1850s. Until then, the main occupation was cattle production. During Reconstruction, the area became the hub of a huge citrus industry, and the economy boomed for a time. Important families to Orlando's history include the Ward, and Curry families, whom many local geographical features have been named after. By the 1820s, Orlando had become a major resort city, and it continued to expand. This triggered a major housing boom that lasted until WW-II. After WW-II Pincastle Army Air Force Base was established, and was re-named McCoy Air Force Base when the Air Force became a separate service in 1947. Lockheed-Martin built a plant in Orlando in 1956, providing even more of an economic boost.
However, the single most important event in the history of Orlando came in 1965 when Walt Disney announced plans to build Disney World. Orlando was selected as the location, over Tampa, and Miami. Orlando's inland location would provide a measure of protection from hurricane damage. Disney World opened in 1971, and since then, the Orlando Metropolitan Area has expanded to include Orange, Seminole, Osceola, and Lake counties, and is one of the top vacation destinations in the world. Orlando now boasts more Theme Parks, and entertainment attractions than any other place on the planet.
When you visit, be sure to go downtown to Church St. between Orange, and Garland Avenues. This is "Old Orlando" and has some of the oldest houses in the area, with beautiful Old World architecture. And don't forget to see all the Disneyworld Rides, Universal Studios, and Sea World Adventure Park.
There are thousands of hotels and restaurants for when you get tired and hungry.
For more information about the area, or to make reservations, try this great website: Expedia.com!
From Canada? You can get great travel deals on Expedia.ca
There, you can get information on hotels, restaurants, make disneyworld reservations, and even get discount tickets to some of the areas other attractions - like seaworld adveture park and Universal Orlando Harry Potter.
Orlando could just be your Place-In-The-Sun. Please enjoy the photos below.
