Woodlawn was a large plantation of located in northern Leon County,

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established by Dr. Griffin Holland in 1834. Holland was married in 1839 to Margaret Whitaker.

Property history

In 1826, John Phinzy of Georgia purchased Lot 4 of Section 22, Township 3 North, Range 1 East. In 1827, Samuel Bryan purchased Lot 1, Section 22 and Island 3 on

Lake Iamonia Lake Iamonia is a large, subtropical prairie lake in northern Leon County, Florida, United States, created during the Pleistocene epoch. History Forming Iamonia Lake Iamonia's base was established during the Early Pleistocene through submerg ...

within Section 22. In 1834, Dr. Griffin W. Holland, of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

purchased Lots 2 and 3 of Section 22, Township 3 North, Range 1 East naming the property Woodlawn.

Location

Woodlawn would now be a good portion of County Road 12, Gallen Drive, Henry Beadel Drive including

Tall Timbers Research Station Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy is a research and learning facility located in northern Leon County, Florida, just off County Road 12 on the north side of Lake Iamonia. Tall Timbers researches the areas of fire ecology, resource ...

, Iamonia Landing Road including the small

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neighborhoods located on Waterfront Drive, Pelican Lane, Seagull Lane, and Annabelle Lane.

Plantation statistics

The Leon County Florida 1860 Agricultural Census shows that Woodlawn had the following: * Improved Land: * Unimproved Land: * Cash value of plantation: $30,000 * Cash value of farm implements/machinery: $1200 * Cash value of farm animals: $7000 * Number of slaves: 95 * Bushels of corn: 7000 * Bales of cotton: 225

The owner

G.W. Holland was a signee to the Southern Rights Association of Centreville District on secession from the Union for the protection of Southern interests and the vindication of Southern rights to preserve and protect the Constitution in its purity as the basis of Federal compact, and the only foundation on which the Union of the States was made, or on which that Union should be preserved.

Purchase of Woodlawn

Dr. Holland lived on the property until about 1844. Having fallen on hard times during and post-

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, Holland sold the land to Alexander Mosely in 1871 for $6,760.47 (~$ in ). Mosely was a 30-year-old farmer and Civil War veteran from Leon County and had a wife, Mary L. Moseley and a young son, William. During his 9 years on Woodlawn, Mosely would also become Leon County Sheriff. Mosely's new occupation led to the Mosely's selling Woodlawn and moving to

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...

. In 1880 Mosely sold Woodlawn to Eugene H. Smith, a storekeeper from

Thomasville, Georgia Thomasville is the county seat of Thomas County, Georgia, United States. The population was 18,413 at the 2010 United States Census, making it the second largest city in southwest Georgia after Albany. The city deems itself the "City of Roses" an ...

for $4000 (~$ in ). Smith then renamed the property Hickory Hill. The Smiths lived at Hickory Hill for 15 years before Mrs. Eugene Smith sold the property.Bauer, Robin Theresa, Master's Thesis, Department of History, Florida State University, 2005 In 1895 Hickory Hill was purchased for $8000 by Edward Beadle of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

and became a

quail hunting plantation A quail hunting plantation is a large tract of land typically with a natural wooded and grass habitat for the purpose of recreational hunting of bobwhite quail. Range Quail hunting plantations are found throughout the Southern United States, from ...

called Tall Timbers Plantation. It would be passed down to Beadle's nephew and then later become the property of

Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy is a research and learning facility located in northern Leon County, Florida, just off County Road 12 (Florida), County Road 12 on the north side of Lake Iamonia, Florida, Lake Iamonia. Tall Timber ...

References

{{coord missing, Florida 1834 establishments in Florida Territory Plantations in Leon County, Florida Cotton plantations in Florida