Welcome to Crescent City;

You will take a step back in time when you visit this little town filled with old Florida charm. Crescent City is a small, picturesque community full of beautiful turn of the century homes, and churches. Parks abound here, as well as the wonderfully quaint shops, and fine dining establishments.

As you drive though the countryside, you will see several orange groves and ferneries surrounded by majestic mossy oaks. Even though Crescent City is a small country town, it is a short drive to Palatka, Deland, Daytona Beach, Jacksonville, St. Augustine, and the Ocala National Forest. It is a scenic two-hour drive to Orlando, Disney, Cape Canaveral, and Gainesville. Crescent City is located between Jacksonville and Orlando on Highway 17. Crescent City offers a quiet place to get away from it all. Crescent City sits between Lake Stella and Lake Crescent, one of the largest fresh-water lakes in Florida, connecting to the St. Johns River. Lake George is just to the west. Crescent City is at the heart of the "Bass Capital of the World".

Lake Crescent is 16,000 acres and it is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the State of Florida.  The lake is approximately 13 miles in length and 2 miles wide. It connects to the St. John's River on the North via Dunn's Creek. Amazingly, this area is largely undeveloped; the entire eastern shore of Lake Crescent is the same as it was 100 years ago.

 Statistical data on Crescent City can be found at:

http://cirrus.dnr.state.sc.us/cgi-bin/sercc/cliMAIN.pl?fl1978

 Crescent City history:

South Putnam was settled in the 1700's when English landowners established rice and indigo plantations along the shores of the St. John's River. Prior to that it was home to Native American Indian tribes that fished the river, hunted the forests and grew food crops.

Crescent City, on the western shore of Dunn's Lake, was first settled in 1852; however, there is evidence of earlier property owners before that time.

What is now Crescent City was once part of the "Old Oliver Plantation." This was a tract of about 1,800 acres. In 1867 and 1870 large portions of original tract were sold to three men and their wives and became the City of Ellington, named for one of the wives. In 1876, Charles R. Griffing and his wife Jennie purchased the land and began C.R. Griffing & Company. The existing lake, known as Dunn’s Lake at that time, was thought by Mrs. Griffing to have a crescent shape. She changed the name of the lake to Lake Crescent. In 1876, an area of the shore was surveyed and platted. The name chosen was Crescent City. Another lake on the west was named Lake Stella because it looked like a star.

 At one time, much commercial fishing took place here with Crescent City becoming known as the "Bass Capital of the World" It was named such by the Putnam County Courier after Al McClaine, fishing editor of Field and Stream magazine selected Crescent City's waters as being the best for largemouth bass.

Crescent City is on the

 NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES

Crescent City Historic District (added 1996 - District - #96001367) Roughly bounded by Lake Stella, Vernon Ave., Lake Crescent, and Orange Ave., Crescent City

Historic Significance: Architecture/Engineering, Event Architect, builder, or engineer: Eaton, Leonard Architectural Style: Colonial Revival, Italianate, Queen Anne Area of Significance: Community Planning And Development, Architecture Period of Significance: 1875-1899, 1900-1924, 1925-1949 Owner: Private , Local Gov't Historic Function: Commerce/Trade, Domestic, Education Historic Sub-function: Department Store, Hotel, Multiple Dwelling, School, Secondary Structure, Single Dwelling, Specialty Store Current Function: Commerce/Trade, Domestic Current Sub-function: Business, Department Store, Hotel, Multiple Dwelling, Restaurant, Secondary Structure, Single Dwelling, Specialty Store

For more information on South Putnam County Visit these links:

TheBassCapital.com

Putnam Co. Chamber of Commerce