Long before the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville or Wolfson Park, J.P. Small Memorial Stadium was the home of Jacksonville's professional baseball community.  Amazingly, it's still standing today.

By the luck of the draw, exactly as the era of Robert Moses was at its greatest power and influence, the city of Jacksonville found itself in the hands of an odd and ambitious Good Old Boy Network of politicians and powerbrokers led by the development and growth minded Haydon Burns. The irrascible mayor was not only an admirer of the great reformer from New York City but one of the most infamous good old boy politicos in the city's history.

This site led the explosion of controversy over the appointment of Brad Thoburn to the position of Planning Director.  We devoted a lot of typestrokes to the basic unfairness of appointing a person who did not (and still doesn't) posess the basic qualifications to hold the position.  Most of the public and all of the local media felt this was simple cronyism and unwise.

Now known as the Prime Osborn Convention Center, the Jacksonville Terminal was once the South's largest railroad station.

What do Jacksonville, St. Louis, Milwaukee and Denver all have in common?  At one point in their histories, they have all been the home of some of the most popular beers to be produced on United States soil.

While our city still struggles to promote the historic legacy of the St. Johns River and its impact on the community, the Jacksonville Maritime Museum Society (JMMS) operates a small, yet informative facility that does just that.

Connecting the River City for travel and commerce, they create an urban-scape that is unique in the Southeast. They are the bridges of Downtown Jacksonville.

Preserving history - such a simple concept, apparently so difficult to execute.

When a historic building is demolished, some people say, "That's progress".  Yes, that's true, but is all progress good?  "Progress" has shown us that it is possible to see the horizon from parts of LaVilla.  "Progress" has shown us that it's silly to maintain an older building that one might own, when it's much more cost effective to dynamite it and plant grass. Most importantly, "Progress" has shown us that while people might like looking at older buildings, they would much rather park on it's foundation.

Today, MetroJacksonville.com takes a look at some of the "Progress" that we have made over the last 30 years.

The story goes that the Jacksonville Traction Company got its historical start when an African American man found a four wheel tram, built a car body on it, and went into the street railroad business. While that may sound far fetched today, it should be remembered that many different trams and rails were in use in industry, such as sawmilling, throughout the area. There is also a story of the first car to climb the old Acosta Bridge Viaduct in Riverside. It is said that when the motorman reached the top and looked down the hill, he set the brakes, got off and quit his job. Having talked to many of the old crews, they said that hill never gave them any trouble. 

Established in 1852, the Old City Cemetery on East Union Street, is one of the most overlooked and underrated historic sites in Jacksonville's urban core.