Ponce de Leon is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in northeastern Stone County,

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, United States, approximately south of

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

. It is part of the

Branson, Missouri Branson is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. Most of the city is situated in Taney County, with a small portion in the west extending into Stone County. Branson is in the Ozark Mountains. The community was named after Reuben Branson, postma ...

Micropolitan Statistical Area. The community is located on the East Prong Goff Creek, which is a tributary of the

James River The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...

about three miles to the west.

Missouri Supplemental Route A supplemental route is a state secondary road in the U.S. state of Missouri, designated with letters. Supplemental routes were various roads within the state which the Missouri Department of Transportation was given in 1952 to maintain in additio ...

V passes through the village, which lies at an elevation of 1100 feet.

Spokane Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the Ca ...

, in

Christian County Christian County is the name of several counties in the United States: * Christian County, Illinois * Christian County, Kentucky * Christian County, Missouri Christian County is located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Missouri. ...

, lies about three miles to the east on US Route 160.

Branson Branson may refer to: Places ;Canada * Branson, Toronto ;United States * Branson, Missouri, a popular tourist destination in the Ozark Mountains * Branson, Colorado * Branson City, California * The Branson School, in Ross, California * Warrenpoi ...

lies about 25 miles to the south.''Highlandville, Missouri,'' (1955) and ''Spokane, Missouri,'' (1956) 7.5 Minute Topographic Quadrangles, USGS

History

The community was founded ''circa'' 1875 as a health resort to exploit the

mineral spring Mineral springs are naturally occurring springs that produces hard water, water that contains dissolved minerals. Salts, sulfur compounds, and gases are among the substances that can be dissolved in the spring water during its passage underg ...

at the location. The resort was named for the explorer

Juan Ponce de León Juan Ponce de León (, , , ; 1474 – July 1521) was a Spanish explorer and '' conquistador'' known for leading the first official European expedition to Florida and for serving as the first governor of Puerto Rico. He was born in Santervá ...

.A Directory of Towns, Villages and Hamlets of Stone County, Missouri
Compiled by Author Paui Moser, White River Valley Historical Quarterly, Volume 4, Number 6 - Winter 1971 The resort and town prospered, and with a population of around 1000, it was the largest town in the county. Businesses included a sawmill, a gristmill, a bank and tomato cannery. However, the boom did not last and by 1885, damage by flash floods and other economic problems led to decay and loss of population. Area residents refer to the community as "Poncie"; for years, use of the full name has virtually been abandoned.

References

Unincorporated communities in Stone County, Missouri Branson, Missouri micropolitan area Unincorporated communities in Missouri {{StoneCountyMO-geo-stub