The Historical Society of Avon ParkAVON PARK, FL · EST. 1886
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Avon Park Newspapers and the Pioneer Press

From the initial settlement of the town in the late 1880s through the late twentieth century, newspaper publishing served as a vital instrument for attracting northern homeseekers, recording agricultural experimentation, and providing municipal cohesion across isolated interior ridge communities.[maxwell-1976][fla-ag-1890-12-24]

The Frontier Promotional Organs (1888–1897)

The Florida Homeseeker (1888–1894)

The earliest periodical dedicated to the settlement was The Florida Homeseeker, founded by Oliver M. Crosby to promote the land sales of the Florida Development Company.[maxwell-1976] Initiated in New York and subsequently relocated to a printshop near the Hotel Verona in Avon Park, the 12- to 16-page monthly was distributed throughout the United States, Canada, and Great Britain at an annual subscription rate of 50 cents.[maxwell-1976]

Operating an inland press required hauling newsprint twenty-two miles across sandy pine flatwoods by wagon from railheads at Bowling Green and Fort Meade.[maxwell-1976] By 1893, monthly circulation reached an estimated 10,000 copies, creating sufficient postal volume to sustain a third-class post office in interior DeSoto County.[maxwell-1976]

The Pabor Lake Pineapple (1892–1897)

In October 1892, agricultural writer and poet William E. Pabor established the monthly Pabor Lake Pineapple to promote his 1,000-acre fruit colony north of town.[maxwell-1976] Pabor utilized the journal to publicize commercial horticultural trials, meteorological observations, and pineapple cultivation techniques throughout South Florida before returning North in 1897.

Pioneer Weeklies and Regional Correspondents (1890–1918)

Regional Press Pipelines: Bartow and Arcadia

Before the establishment of permanent daily newspapers, regional county-seat publications provided essential journalistic coverage of Avon Park:

  • The Bartow Courier-Informant: Served as a key regional news pipeline in the 1890s, chronicling Crosby’s winter settler excursion trains in December 1890, the 4 December 1895 schoolhouse fire and Episcopal mission loss, and the December 1897 development of the Indiana Pinery on Lake Carter.[fla-ag-1890-12-24][fla-ag-1895-12-18]
  • The Arcadia News: As the DeSoto County seat organ, maintained an active Avon Park correspondent whose late June 1899 report provided the earliest documentary account of the opening of an ancient Indigenous burial mound east of town.[fla-ag-1899-07-05]

The Avon Park Idea (1894–1898)

A. L. Blue and his son were running The Avon Park Idea through 1894, the paper having been established by the Avon Park Town Company and being already quoted as an established weekly in February of that year; absorbing Crosby’s Homeseeker and operating a steam press near Main Street.[gaz-1895][maxwell-1976] Following Blue’s return North, the paper was managed by A. L. Gonzales of Fort Myers and Arthur Sargent through the post-freeze depression until 1898.[maxwell-1976] The Idea was widely quoted across the state for its reporting on C. J. Williams’s sandhill vegetable crops at Lake Pioneer, Judge Ziba King’s 60,000 range cattle driven through town weekly, and editorial advocacy for statutory publication of legal notices.

The South Florida Sun (1900–1912)

Founded by fruit grower and civic leader O. R. Thacher, The South Florida Sun carried the strapline “The Beautiful Lake Region.”[maxwell-1976] From 1905 to 1906, Thacher published full-page weekly departments in The De Soto County News in Arcadia, preserving a detailed record of commercial expansion, lakefront real estate, and municipal affairs until his death in March 1912.

The Avon Park Press (1915–1919)

Weekly press coverage resumed on 12 November 1915 with The Avon Park Press, founded by veteran Florida editor Peter Augustus (“Pete”) Ruhl, former editor of the Fort Myers Press and city editor of the Arcadia Daily News.[gaz-1918] When Ruhl relocated to Sebring in April 1916 to take charge of The Sebring White Way, the paper continued publication under the ownership and plant of the Zolfo Springs Publishing Company (managed by Stuart Hancock) through late summer 1919.[gaz-1918] This contract-printing arrangement bridged the four-year journalistic gap between the demise of Thacher’s Sun and the late November 1919 founding of the Pilot. See The Avon Park Press, Pete Ruhl, and the Zolfo Publishing Company (1915–1919).

Twentieth-Century Commercial Newspapers (1919–1988)

The Highlands County Pilot (1919–1935)

In late November 1919, George W. Adams founded the Highlands County Pilot as a local weekly newspaper.[loc-pilot][maxwell-1976] A run of 231 digitized issues spanning 28 November 1919 through 4 July 1925 is preserved in the Avon Park Historical Society’s collections.[aphs-pilot-run] Acquired by Tampa newspaperman Gilbert Freeman in the early 1920s during the Florida land boom, the Pilot advocated for municipal improvements, the creation of Highlands County in 1921, and the construction of the Hotel Jacaranda and the Mile Long Mall.[gaz-1925][maxwell-1976] By 1930, it formed the Tuesday partner of a semi-weekly publishing cycle alongside Freeman’s Scenic Highlands Sun.

Highlands County Messenger (1921–1923)

Launched on 6 August 1921, within four months of Highlands County’s legislative separation from DeSoto County, the Highlands County Messenger was published weekly by the Highlands County Messenger Publishing Company.[aphs-messenger-run] A run of 54 digitized issues spanning August 1921 to May 1923 survives in the Society’s holdings, documenting early county commission meetings, bond elections, courthouse site debates, and agricultural shipping from the Ridge.

The Scenic Highlands Sun (1925–1946)

Founded as a daily newspaper during the height of the boom around 1925 by Gilbert Freeman, The Scenic Highlands Sun evolved into a semi-weekly publication appearing on Fridays.[maxwell-1976] When Freeman moved to Tallahassee in January 1933 to serve as assistant state comptroller under Avon Park’s J. M. Lee, accountant C. H. Pardee assumed management.[maxwell-1976] In 1934, veteran journalist W. M. (Bill) Hetherington leased the Freeman properties, acquired the rival Avon Park Times, and consolidated operations under the banner of The Scenic Highlands Sun, eventually discontinuing the Pilot masthead by 1935.[maxwell-1976]

By 1938, the Avon Park printing plant of the Scenic Highlands Sun served as the corporate headquarters for Freeman’s central Florida publishing group, which included the Lake Placid News and provided backing for radio station WTAL in Tallahassee.[broadcasting-1938] Nationally and regionally quoted for its editorial analysis of citrus marketing and state taxation, the Sun anchored local journalism through the Great Depression and World War II.[sauk-centre-1937-05-06]

The Scenic Highlands (1938–1974)

Established in 1938 and published by George H. Bicknell, The Scenic Highlands provided more than three decades of community coverage focused on agricultural development, tourism, municipal improvements, and local history.[aphs-scenic-run] A digitized collection of 278 issues spanning 10 June 1938 to 5 April 1974 survives in the Historical Society’s archive.

The Avon Park Times and The Avon Park Sun (1928–1988)

In January 1928, the Schaefer-Broking Printing Company established The Avon Park Times with Hayden Williams as editor (surviving Vol. 1, no. 16 is dated 4 May 1928).[aphs-times-run] Managed from February 1930 by W. M. Hetherington and subsequently owned by William Beckett, the paper maintained an active editorial page commenting on state and national politics.[brooksville-1934-06-14][maxwell-1976] The Society’s collection holds 626 issues spanning 1928 to 1942. Beckett sold The Times to Gilbert Freeman in 1934, allowing Hetherington to merge operations into The Scenic Highlands Sun.

Following Gilbert Freeman’s death in November 1944, W. C. Cleary acquired the publishing assets and in May 1946 sold them to John H. Perry Publications, who established the modern Avon Park Sun.[loc-apsun][maxwell-1976] A preserved run of 924 digitized issues spanning 23 January 1948 to 11 October 1979 is held by the Society.[aphs-apsun-run] In 1972, The New York Times Company purchased both The Avon Park Sun and The Sebring News, publishing the combined Sunday News-Sun until the Sun ceased publication in October 1988 (Vol. 69, no. 26), concluding an unbroken sixty-nine-year line of continuous local publishing tracing back to the 1919 founding of the Pilot.[loc-apsun]

References

  • maxwell-1976 — Leoma Bradshaw Maxwell. The First Hundred Years of Avon Park, Florida. 1976. the-first-hundred-years-of-avon-park_leoma-bradshaw-maxwell_1976.md
  • gaz-1895 — Belden Publishing Company. Florida Railroad Gazetteer and State Business Directory, 1895, s.v. Avon Park. 1895. florida-business-directories.md
  • gaz-1918 — R. L. Polk & Co. Florida State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1918, s.v. Avon Park. 1918. florida-business-directories.md
  • gaz-1925 — R. L. Polk & Co. Florida, “The Playground of the Nation” - a gazetteer and business directory, s.v. Avon Park. 1925. florida-business-directories.md
  • fla-ag-1890-12-24 — The Florida Agriculturist / Bartow Courier-Informant. The Florida Agriculturist, 24 December 1890, page 15 (reprinting Bartow Courier-Informant). 24 December 1890. https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn96027724/1890-12-24/ed-1/?sp=15
  • fla-ag-1895-12-18 — The Florida Agriculturist / Bartow Courier-Informant. The Florida Agriculturist, 18 December 1895, page 15 (reprinting Bartow Courier-Informant on school fire). 18 December 1895. https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn96027724/1895-12-18/ed-1/?sp=15
  • fla-ag-1899-07-05 — The Florida Agriculturist / Arcadia News. The Florida Agriculturist, 5 July 1899, page 5 (Avon Park cor. Arcadia News). 5 July 1899. https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn96027724/1899-07-05/ed-1/?sp=5&r=0.15,0.241,0.53,0.322,0
  • loc-pilot — Library of Congress, U.S. Newspaper Directory. Highlands County Pilot (Avon Park, Fla.), LCCN sn95026910. 31 August 2026. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn95026910/
  • loc-apsun — Library of Congress, U.S. Newspaper Directory. Avon Park Sun (Avon Park, Fla.) 1946-1988, LCCN sn78001441. 31 August 2026. https://www.loc.gov/item/sn78001441/
  • brooksville-1934-06-14 — The Brooksville Journal (Brooksville, Fla.). The Brooksville Journal, 14 June 1934, page 2, quoting the Avon Park Times. 14 June 1934. https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn95047246/1934-06-14/ed-1/?sp=2
  • broadcasting-1938 — Broadcasting Publications, Inc. Broadcasting 1938 Yearbook: Directory of U.S. Broadcasting Stations and Newspaper Ownership. 1938. https://archive.org/details/broadcasting1938unse
  • sauk-centre-1937-05-06 — Sauk Centre Herald. Sauk Centre Herald (Sauk Centre, Minn.), 6 May 1937, page 5, quoting the Scenic Highland Sun. 6 May 1937. https://www.loc.gov/resource/sn89064489/1937-05-06/ed-1/?sp=5
  • aphs-pilot-run — George W. Adams / Pilot Press. The Highlands Pilot (Avon Park, Fla.), 1919–1925, 231 digitized issues. 4 July 1925. ../documents/the-highlands-pilot.md
  • aphs-messenger-run — Highlands County Messenger Publishing Company. Highlands County Messenger (Avon Park, Fla.), 1921–1923, 54 digitized issues. 26 May 1923. ../documents/highlands-county-messenger.md
  • aphs-times-run — Schaefer-Broking Printing Company and Hayden Williams. Avon Park Times (Avon Park, Fla.), 1928–1942, 626 digitized issues. 8 April 1942. ../documents/avon-park-times.md
  • aphs-scenic-run — The Scenic Highlands Publishing Company and George H. Bicknell. The Scenic Highlands (Avon Park, Fla.), 1938–1974, 278 digitized issues. 5 April 1974. ../documents/the-scenic-highlands.md
  • aphs-apsun-run — John H. Perry Publications and Edward Carter. Avon Park Sun (Avon Park, Fla.), 1948–1979, 924 digitized issues. 11 October 1979. ../documents/avon-park-sun.md

Where this comes from

Evidence
corroborated — More than one independent source agrees.
Review
unverified — Drafted from sources but not yet checked by a volunteer.
Rights
society

Sources

  1. Leoma Bradshaw Maxwell, The First Hundred Years of Avon Park, Florida (Held at the Avon Park Historical Society Depot Museum, Avon Park, Florida) (1976)
  2. Belden Publishing Company, Florida Railroad Gazetteer and State Business Directory, 1895, s.v. Avon Park (1895)
  3. R. L. Polk & Co., Florida State Gazetteer and Business Directory, 1918, s.v. Avon Park (1918)
  4. R. L. Polk & Co., Florida, "The Playground of the Nation" - a gazetteer and business directory, s.v. Avon Park (1925)
  5. The Florida Agriculturist / Bartow Courier-Informant, The Florida Agriculturist, 24 December 1890, page 15 (reprinting Bartow Courier-Informant) (1890)
  6. The Florida Agriculturist / Bartow Courier-Informant, The Florida Agriculturist, 18 December 1895, page 15 (reprinting Bartow Courier-Informant on school fire) (1895)
  7. The Florida Agriculturist / Arcadia News, The Florida Agriculturist, 5 July 1899, page 5 (Avon Park cor. Arcadia News) (1899)
  8. Library of Congress, U.S. Newspaper Directory, Highlands County Pilot (Avon Park, Fla.), LCCN sn95026910 (2026)
  9. Library of Congress, U.S. Newspaper Directory, Avon Park Sun (Avon Park, Fla.) 1946-1988, LCCN sn78001441 (2026)
  10. The Brooksville Journal (Brooksville, Fla.), The Brooksville Journal, 14 June 1934, page 2, quoting the Avon Park Times (1934)
  11. Broadcasting Publications, Inc., Broadcasting 1938 Yearbook: Directory of U.S. Broadcasting Stations and Newspaper Ownership (1938)
  12. Sauk Centre Herald, Sauk Centre Herald (Sauk Centre, Minn.), 6 May 1937, page 5, quoting the Scenic Highland Sun (1937)
  13. George W. Adams / Pilot Press, The Highlands Pilot (Avon Park, Fla.), 1919–1925, 231 digitized issues (../documents/the-highlands-pilot.md) (1925) · newspaper
  14. Highlands County Messenger Publishing Company, Highlands County Messenger (Avon Park, Fla.), 1921–1923, 54 digitized issues (../documents/highlands-county-messenger.md) (1923) · newspaper
  15. Schaefer-Broking Printing Company and Hayden Williams, Avon Park Times (Avon Park, Fla.), 1928–1942, 626 digitized issues (../documents/avon-park-times.md) (1942) · newspaper
  16. The Scenic Highlands Publishing Company and George H. Bicknell, The Scenic Highlands (Avon Park, Fla.), 1938–1974, 278 digitized issues (../documents/the-scenic-highlands.md) (1974) · newspaper
  17. John H. Perry Publications and Edward Carter, Avon Park Sun (Avon Park, Fla.), 1948–1979, 924 digitized issues (../documents/avon-park-sun.md) (1979) · newspaper

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