There was a story on one of the television news programs here in South Florida about the dedication of the Jones' Pier Conservation Area along the Indian River, a 16.5-acre site on Orchid Island. This park is part of the original 160-acre tract settled by the Jones family back in 1889 and located just north of Vero Beach, Florida. The family farmed citrus, and in 1907 built Jones Pier, which was one of the first maritime commerce businesses in the county, and seen in the photograph on the left. At that time, there were no bridges to the mainland, and this bridge was vital to the farmers on the island who needed to get their product to market.
This is a pleasant park, and consists of the pier, a fruit stand, seen in the photograph on the right, and a bungalow, built in the late 1920s and the original residence of the Jones family. The bungalow is now a museum, but is only open certain days and hours, and was closed when I was there. I got information about the place from a plaque attached to a post on the pier. What I want to know, and would have asked if the museum had been open, is if the family homesteaded there in 1889, and the bungalow, built in the late 1920s, was their original residence, where did they live between 1889 and the late 20s? In a tent? In a boat tied up along the pier? The local Motel 6? Questions, questions, but no answers. At least until my next visit.
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