Ormond Beach
The city that is now Ormond Beach dates back from the period of time immediately following the Civil War when Andrew Bostrom, a former Union soldier, settled land on the peninsula. Settlement on the mainland began in 1873. The city was legally incorporated on April 22, 1880 and adopted a banana tree as the town emblem.
The development of Ormond Beach accelerated during the 1880’s when pioneers capitalized on the rail link that connected the area to the eastern seaboard. Their entrepreneurial spirit led, among other things, to the construction of the Ormond Hotel, a building that helped define the social and economic character of the community. During the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, Ormond Beach became one of Florida’s most recognized resort communities and the homes of some of the first automobile races in the United States. Ormond Beach became, and still is known today, as “The Birthplace of Speed.”
