Edward D. Plummer wife was Mahala Francis Harley [daughter of Frederick Hartley]. Lawrence Plummer's farm was on Haley Road in what is now Mandarin. - It was known as Plummer's Florida until shortly after the Civil War. - Ole' history on this is varied and mixed, and several descendants now living do not yet know of the many different names that the Mandarin area has been known by, and/or addressed as. - If one will review the many documents available at the Florida Archives [in Tallahassee] you will see that many of the Plummers and the Hartleys listed that they were born in, and lived in Plummer's, Florida [or Plummer's Cove, Florida]. - Ole' maps of the area shown both a Plummer's, Florida and a Plummer's Cove, Florida. - These maps also show the three or four different names for the area now known collectively as Mandarin. - The Spanish, then British, then Spanish, then Federal Territories created their own set of names [with varied spellings] as times continued. In the hopes of clearing up some of the many different stories about "THE" Plummer Cemetery let me begin with this: Several direct descendants from Edward D. Plummer have been researching this problem for over fifty years and much controversy has been encountered. - First and foremost: There is NOT a known [provable] listing of what Plummers are buried WHERE. - There IS much information showing that there is THREE or more cemeteries [in the Duval County area] with the name of Plummer Family Cemetery. - The one most known now is the one from Lucy A. Edwards book "Grave Markers of Duval County". - That cemetery is now located just South of I295 very near the St. John's River. - TWO very important things to remember. - Mandarin was NOT the place that it is NOW when Mrs. Edwards wrote her book. - The part in her book about how to locate the cemeteries is not easily understood today, and only the ole' Floridians and /or those who were around then, can attest to that language. - That same Plummer Cemetery is really several Plummer Family Cemeteries in one, with several neighbors buried in with the Plummer families. - The one most noted within Mrs. Edwards' book mentioned the "William Plummer Family Plot". - Prior to all of the vandalism and destruction of identifiable headstones and the definable "Family" plots within the "Burial Area" this cemetery was a collective Plummer Cemetery. - The unfortunate thing today is that photographs and/or detailed maps or surveys showing WHO is buried WHERE is NOT available. - Most of the people who could share detailed knowledge on that subject are now dead and buried themselves. - There are a few dedicated Plummer Family descendants who are working hard and fast on reconstructing some of that burial history, however do to the many years of neglect and vandalism the records are all but lost. - Eventually something will come to the attention of one of these descendants [such as the unearthing of the Edward D. Plummer plaque] and the search is on again in earnest. Mandarin Road is NOT now nor has it EVER been San Jose Blvd. [another one of those misconceptions]. - Mandarin was a small "Quaint" community that had a beautiful drive [Mandarin Road] lined with ole' Live Oaks. - TODAY everyone thinks of Mandarin as the HUGE community that it is called TODAY. - Ole' Mandarin was a delightful place. - The Ole' Mandarin Post Office/Grocery Store was the hub of the community and everyone knew each other and called them by name. - Farms, Groves and peaceful home life was the norm. - Scattered throughout the area was a dozen or more small communities NOW thought to be WITHIN "THE" Mandarin. - Loretta, Loftin, Doctor's Lake, Plummer's, Plummer's Cove, Summer's, etc. - Today so many do not know just what a historical place that area really is and has been to the State of Florida and to North Florida and Jacksonville in particular. This is NOT a history lesson NOR is it intended to be a correct statement of Governmental facts. - It is the rambling of an ole' 13th Generation Floridian, descendant from the great families of Plummer and Hartley. Read, enjoy and continue to seek, prove and DOCUMENT any and all information on this continuing project. Cordially, RCS

good morning RC - what a wonderful history lesson for us, even if you did not intend it to be so. i hope that you will allow us to "pick your brain" from time to time for more information. i had referred to san jose blvd in an earlier message as thinking it to be what lucy ames edwards had referred to as "the mandarin road." the reason i thought that was because people would refer to a road leading to a town, etc. as "the road to mandarin", or "the middleburg road" (or whatever town they were talking about). i know that a lot of folks in the old mandarin area have worked very hard to preserve and hold onto the old post office/grocery. and the way that mandarin folks preserved the beautiful old oak trees was nothing short of ingenious (having them placed on the national historic register so they could not be destroyed.) i know one lady who used to become quite incensed when people referred to the areas around beauclerc and losco road as "mandarin." she would huff and get quite upset at them. do you know of any maps (that can be accessed by the public) that show the actual (old) communities that you speak of? i've heard of most of the ones that you mentioned, but not summer's. i know we'd all love to hear as much history as you'd like to share with us. thank you for your contribution to our list. julie thames howell jax, fla (a "newcomer" to the area; my family has only been here since 1887) do drawings or surveys still exist showing the location and possible "boundaries" of lawrence plummer's farm? are there any maps available to the general public that show it's location? are any of the documents at the florida archives in tallahassee that you mentioned on line? when you say that old maps show a plummer's, florida and a plummer's cove, florida, are these two different villages or were they references to farms? (i believe you made a reference to lawrence plummer's farm as having been "plummer's, florida.") what were the other names that mandarin was known by? i remember its having been called by one other name, but even that escapes me right now. that's very interesting about how the plummer family cemetery is a burial plot within a larger burial area. ----- Original Message ----- From: Robert C. Smith To: [email protected] Sent: Thursday, June 14, 2001 10:13 AM Subject: [FLDUVAL] Re: Mahala Francis Hartley Plummer Edward D. Plummer wife was Mahala Francis Harley [daughter of Frederick Hartley]. Lawrence Plummer's farm was on Haley Road in what is now Mandarin. - It was known as Plummer's Florida until shortly after the Civil War. - Ole' history on this is varied and mixed, and several descendants now living do not yet know of the many different names that the Mandarin area has been known by, and/or addressed as. - If one will review the many documents available at the Florida Archives [in Tallahassee] you will see that many of the Plummers and the Hartleys listed that they were born in, and lived in Plummer's, Florida [or Plummer's Cove, Florida]. - Ole' maps of the area shown both a Plummer's, Florida and a Plummer's Cove, Florida. - These maps also show the three or four different names for the area now known collectively as Mandarin. - The Spanish, then British, then Spanish, then Federal Territories created their own set of names [with varied spellings] as times continued. In the hopes of clearing up some of the many different stories about "THE" Plummer Cemetery let me begin with this: Several direct descendants from Edward D. Plummer have been researching this problem for over fifty years and much controversy has been encountered. - First and foremost: There is NOT a known [provable] listing of what Plummers are buried WHERE. - There IS much information showing that there is THREE or more cemeteries [in the Duval County area] with the name of Plummer Family Cemetery. - The one most known now is the one from Lucy A. Edwards book "Grave Markers of Duval County". - That cemetery is now located just South of I295 very near the St. John's River. - TWO very important things to remember. - Mandarin was NOT the place that it is NOW when Mrs. Edwards wrote her book. - The part in her book about how to locate the cemeteries is not easily understood today, and only the ole' Floridians and /or those who were around then, can attest to that language. - That same Plummer Cemetery is really several Plummer Family Cemeteries in one, with several neighbors buried in with the Plummer families. - The one most noted within Mrs. Edwards' book mentioned the "William Plummer Family Plot". - Prior to all of the vandalism and destruction of identifiable headstones and the definable "Family" plots within the "Burial Area" this cemetery was a collective Plummer Cemetery. - The unfortunate thing today is that photographs and/or detailed maps or surveys showing WHO is buried WHERE is NOT available. - Most of the people who could share detailed knowledge on that subject are now dead and buried themselves. - There are a few dedicated Plummer Family descendants who are working hard and fast on reconstructing some of that burial history, however do to the many years of neglect and vandalism the records are all but lost. - Eventually something will come to the attention of one of these descendants [such as the unearthing of the Edward D. Plummer plaque] and the search is on again in earnest. Mandarin Road is NOT now nor has it EVER been San Jose Blvd. [another one of those misconceptions]. - Mandarin was a small "Quaint" community that had a beautiful drive [Mandarin Road] lined with ole' Live Oaks. - TODAY everyone thinks of Mandarin as the HUGE community that it is called TODAY. - Ole' Mandarin was a delightful place. - The Ole' Mandarin Post Office/Grocery Store was the hub of the community and everyone knew each other and called them by name. - Farms, Groves and peaceful home life was the norm. - Scattered throughout the area was a dozen or more small communities NOW thought to be WITHIN "THE" Mandarin. - Loretta, Loftin, Doctor's Lake, Plummer's, Plummer's Cove, Summer's, etc. - Today so many do not know just what a historical place that area really is and has been to the State of Florida and to North Florida and Jacksonville in particular. This is NOT a history lesson NOR is it intended to be a correct statement of Governmental facts. - It is the rambling of an ole' 13th Generation Floridian, descendant from the great families of Plummer and Hartley. Read, enjoy and continue to seek, prove and DOCUMENT any and all information on this continuing project. Cordially, RCS