Green Cove Springs and Melrose Railroad
The 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge[1] Green Cove Springs and Melrose Railroad was incorporated under Florida state law and approved February 28, 1881. The railroad was promised land grants along its line.
Florida state law chapter 3495, approved March 2, 1883, enlarged the area from which they could choose land grants. At the time, their route had been adopted, and most of the land along the route had already been sold off.
Florida state law chapter 3644, approved February 11, 1885, further enlarged the area for land grants, and extended the deadline to January 1, 1886. The railroad was extended with a branch to Starke, in Bradford county.
Florida state law chapter 3796, approved June 7, 1887, extended the deadline for land grants to July 1, 1888.
Portions of the rail bed can still be seen running east-west at the southern end of the town of Penney Farms, Florida, which was a project of J. C. Penney. It is assumed that the railroad made a stop in Penney Farms because the tracks ran adjacent to a series of buildings that became the maintenance shops of Foremost Dairy of Jacksonville, which purchased much of Penney's timber and farm lands. The maintenance shops have since been removed. Michael M. Maguire, 8-28-10.