LIVING HISTORY
one reason why they came — all the vacant
land that they could homestead.”
A MILESTONE
The settlement that Henry Gifford put on
the map by establishing a post office was
incorporated as a town 90 years ago, in 1919.
Vero Beach celebrated that milestone with
a downtown festival in October, though the
incorporation actually became official in
the month of June. The town’s name was
changed to Vero Beach in 1925, when Indian
River County was created.
Early settlers were drawn by the prospect
of being able to grow crops nearly all year,
because of the region’s temperate climate.
The Vero Weekly Bulletin newspaper announced
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in 1917 that “Rice is Another Excellent
Vero Crop.” Early placards touted the
region with the slogan “Grow Two Crops a
Year!” and Henry Flagler’s railroad enabled
farmers to ship their produce north faster
than by boat.
In 1911, James Hudson Baker was living
in Jensen, in what is now Martin County,
when Judge J.E. Andrews of Fort Pierce
hired him to build a home west of Vero. The
stately two-story house was a landmark for
decades on State Road 60 at 58th Avenue.
Baker moved to Vero and built numerous
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ED DRONDOSKI
This historical marker in downtown Vero credits the railroad with helping to settle Vero, a name
which first came into use in 1891 when the community was named after a form of the Latin
word meaning truth.