Who is Fleming Island?
While we aren’t exactly right around the proverbial corner from our fair Jacksonville, we are still considered a “suburb” of the Gateway of Florida. St. Augustine is also a wonderful sister city. Being surrounded by such culturally rich cities and stunning waters, Fleming Island has some big shoes to fill – and boy, do we make good on that.
Yes, we’re an island. Kind of. Sorta
Our name should easily indicate our geographical state in the Sunshine State. However, it is not that easy. Even prominent geologists are flummoxed about what to define Fleming Island as (but who wants to live by labels all the time anyway, right?).
While we do have water on all sides of our community, it’s not necessarily rivers or oceans surrounding us. Some wetlands figure into the equation as well, making it not entirely an island. A more appropriate name may have been Fleming Peninsula, but that doesn’t sound quite as cool. Don’t you think?
Some say that if water of any sort surrounds the main body of land, that is the true definition of an island – luckily, that means our precious Fleming Island doesn’t need to be renamed any time soon.
How did we get started?
When Pangea split apart… ok, ok, we won’t go quite that far back. In the 1500’s Spanish settlers… Not that far back either? Ok, let’s start with how the “island” (still up for debate, remember) got its name.
It all started with a Fleming (obviously).
Traveling from the Emerald Isle, George Fleming made his way to the St. Augustine area (owned by Spain at the time) in the late 1700s and enlisted in the military. He became well-admired for his service, and the Governor granted him 1000 acres of land in the area to settle.
The rest is history, the kind of typical family story that is so familiar: man gets 1000 acres of land, builds a plantation, gets married, has a couple of kids, kids have kids (including the 15th Governor of Florida), and our lovely community is what it is today.
We have a bit of military history, too.
During the Civil War, our Fleming family sent the four sons at the time off to fight. Margaret Fleming likely sat a great deal of the time with her daughters, wringing their hands in worry, as mothers all over the country did. Margaret and her girls made the most of the war when they tended the wounded at a hospital upon being expelled from Hibernia, the Fleming plantation established so many years before.
Like many other families, the Flemings returned home after the war to find it in need of some serious refurbishment (probably could have used a really good pressure wash). Successful in their restoration, the post-war plantation spent some time as a hotel before its eventual decline.
The military wasn’t quite done with Fleming Island yet. Fast forward a bit to World War II. Naval Air Station Jacksonville established itself in 1940 but needed all the room it could get. They wanted training and auxiliary airstrips but were running out of space to put them. Fleming Island looked appealing, so they built four airstrips here.
Fleming Island NOFL wasn’t long for the road, though. Although it did receive a small bit of use through the 1940s, by the 1950s, it appears that the runways were no longer used at all. In the 60s they were declared “abandoned”.
The strips, while still intact, served as a cool dragstrip, filming location, and more for a few more decades. The new millennia had different ideas for the area and are now unrecognizable as an airfield, covered with houses, schools, shopping, and even a lake.
What makes us unique?
Fleming Island’s individuality begins and ends with the amazing pressure washing company Shark Pro Wash… Just kidding. Not the part about us being amazing, but about us being the ONLY part of Fleming Island that makes it unique.
We’ve covered that Fleming Island served essential roles in two of America’s biggest wars in many ways. And, of course, how we are an island and not an island all at the same time. And how Shark Pro Wash circles the Island, ready to take a bit of dirt and grime from all the gorgeous properties there (more on this awesomeness later).
We aren’t a town, per se, but a census-designated place. So what the heck is that?
Wait, what? Fleming Island is a what, now? A census-designated place (CDP) is a name for a place that doesn’t fit into the defined label of “legally incorporated” areas but is still a community of people, education, shopping, parks, and more. Remember? Labels sometimes don’t have a place, so this island-not-island shouldn’t fit the typical mold either!
Because it doesn’t fall under a label of town or city and is more like an “other”, there needs to be a good way to collect data for funding. So CDPs were created to still provide statistical data. You down with CDP, yeah, you know we!
Parks, water fun, and Jacksonville right around the corner – oh my!
Enough about statistics, though – you want to recognize your home as the coolest place to live, and Fleming Island sure lives up to that. With paved sidewalks that literally travel the length of the entire Island, getting outdoors to go walking, jogging, and biking is super easy. And what a gorgeous run you’ll have too!
So many amazing parks for the kids are scattered about, with boating and fishing a regular pastime for our community. Not to mention premier shopping, dining, and even indoor ax throwing (yes, you read that right)!
Keeping Fleming Island beautiful – one wash attack at a time.
You know what an amazing and stunning place Fleming Island is to live – and we live to keep it stunning. SharkProWash uses the power of water to release all the dirt, grime, algae, mold, and mildew from the surfaces of your property. We specialize in pressure washing, soft washing, roof cleaning, house washing, screen enclosures, sidewalks, walkways, and driveways. Our professional and courteous team will give you results that make JAWS drop!
