Welcome to Historic Palmetto, Florida!

The City of Palmetto dates its beginnings to the arrival of Samuel Sparks Lamb in 1868. He was known as the “father of Palmetto” and gave the town its name, Palmetto, after his home state of South Carolina. As we walk along, we will learn more about the Lamb family, and other pioneers, some of whom arrived even earlier than he did.

Samuel Sparks Lamb (or S.S. Lamb as we will refer to him from now on) was a visionary. It was thanks to his planning and foresight that Palmetto has thrived. When S.S. Lamb first came to Palmetto, he purchased almost 85 acres of land that would become the basis for Palmetto. His plan was to divide his land into plats and create a village. He envisioned a wide avenue stretching from the two entrances of Palmetto (the wharf on the Manatee River and the Seaboard Air Line Depot). Over the years, Lamb donated land for the Palmetto Cemetery, the Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian churches, the Carnegie Library, the Women’s Club, and Lamb Park – which was a Christmas gift to the people of Palmetto in 1909. 

When the railroad came to Palmetto in 1895, the center of activity for the town shifted from the waterfront, closer to the railroad depot, which was located on Main Street (10th Ave) several blocks north of where we are now. The railroad also allowed contractors to have a steady supply of bricks on hand, and buildings became more stable and less prone to fire hazards. Many new brick buildings were built along Main Street to replace wooden buildings near the water and many businesses relocated from the waterfront to these new brick structures. 

This tour was written by the staff at Palmetto Historical Park with historical sources located in the Alice V. Myers Archive Center at Palmetto Historical Park.