Island Pond One

Apr 21

Site Brief:

Founded: early 1880s

Location: Mount Dora, FL

Additional name(s): N/A

Affiliate group(s): N/A

History:

Island Pond One was formed out of land owned by Jackson Knight, through the Homestead Act. Jack or Jackson Knight, along with a group of former slaves from the William Shelton Delk "plantation" from Apopka, Florida settled in this area after the end of the Civil War. They named this area Island Pond. Property records show two cemeteries and a church, the Island Pond Primitive Baptist Church, existed on adjacent parcels. Over time the lands were sold off piece by piece. These early residents contributed significantly to the creation of and the economy of nearby communities of Mount Dora, Sorrento, and Eustis. In 2009, two women from Fort Pierce came to Lake County, Florida, researching their family history. Their persistence paid off and they registered two cemeteries on the Florida Master Site File, Island Pond One and Island Pond Two. In 2023 a nonprofit was formed to aid in the research, restoration, and preservation of the two cemeteries. In January of 2024, a committee working on behalf of the Division of Historical Resources selected our grant application for funding from the Abandoned African American Cemeteries Grant Program. We are awaiting the legislature's approval for the requested funding for the project.