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Keystone Heights is a city located in southwestern Clay County, Florida, United States. The population of the city was 1,446 at the 2020 census. [edit] History
In 1917, the area that would eventually become known as the city of Keystone Heights was a small community known as Brooklyn located along present day State Road 100, about one mile north of the present location of Keystone Heights on Lake Brooklyn. In those early days Brooklyn consisted of a large unpainted building called the Brooklyn Hotel; a combination general store and post office; and several small houses scattered about. Property Developer John J. Lawrence, who hailed from Pennsylvania, noticed the area on a visit to Lake Brooklyn, and instantly became attracted to the region.[1] In 1920, the Lawrence family completed their home, the first house built in Keystone Heights, which overlooked Lake Geneva, and still lies there today at the corner of Jasmine Street & Lawrence Blvd. (State Road 21). The town would be incorporated as Keystone Heights, named after Lawrence's home state of Pennsylvania's nickname, the "Keystone" state, in 1924.[1] After hearing of natural wonders and the many different lakes of the area, other families moved to Keystone, putting a strain on those attempting to build structures within the city. Helping to address the issue, in late 1921, C. Ray Lawrence came to Keystone Heights, and began laying out the streets and lots in the town.[1] The next particularly significant event happened on New Year's Day in 1923, when the Keystone Inn opened. The inn hosted many events throughout the community, and became an icon for the town.[1] Tourists visiting the inn would often also frequent the Chautauqua. A large open pit that effectively served as a type of amphitheater, the Chautauqua served as a beacon for various musicians, artists, and speakers from the Chautauqua circuit in New York.[1] Within two years, people were traveling to the Keystone Inn and the community of Keystone Heights from great distances to experience the town for themselves. The small community boasted a public beach with a pavilion, picnic grounds and a nine-hole golf course. The University of Florida's football team would stay at the inn before their homecoming games.[1] The inn no longer exists. It burned in October 1954, and was never rebuilt. Today, the former property of the inn is a park in front of City Hall.[1] The city gained the Keystone Heights school in 1925. As the city rapidly grew, the school began to expand as well, and in 1963, Keystone Heights High School and Keystone Heights Elementary were established on the property of what is today the elementary school. In September 1974, the high school moved to its present-day location across the street, and became Keystone Heights Junior/Senior High School.[1]
[edit] Moon treeIn 1984, an American sycamore seedling, germinated by the United States Forest Service, was planted at the Keystone Heights Library. The "Moon Tree" traveled with Stuart Roosa, a former U.S. Forest Service smokejumper, aboard the Apollo 14 mission on January 31, 1971. Roosa and his five varieties of seeds orbited the moon 34 times and the resulting seedlings were planted all around the United States and the world. The tree was rededicated on February 28, 2015. [edit] Research Tips
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