Editing Coleman, Florida (section)

==History==

===Second Seminole War===
On June 8, 1840, Colonel W. J. Worth, Colonel [[Bennet Riley]], and the [[2nd Infantry Regiment (United States)|Second Infantry]] and [[8th Infantry Regiment (United States)|Eighth Infantry]] divisions transferred to Fort McClure to search the [[Lake Panasoffkee]] area for [[Seminole]] warriors. Three days later, the troops discovered an empty village.<ref name=FtMcCl>{{cite journal |last=Thomas Foreman |first=Carolyn |title=General Bennet Riley—Commandant at Fort Gibson and Governor of California |date=Sep 1941 |url=http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v019/v019p225.html |journal=Chronicles of Oklahoma |publisher=[[Oklahoma State University]] |volume=19 |issue=3 |page=241 |access-date=Apr 4, 2014 |archive-date=February 1, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150201060309/http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v019/v019p225.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Modern town===
By 1853, the "''Fort McClure''" community was renamed "''Warm Springs''".<ref name=WaSp>{{cite news |title=Rail Road Convention in Tallahassee |newspaper=Floridian & Journal |location=[[Tallahassee, Florida]] |pages=2 |date=Jun 18, 1853 |url=http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00079928/00216/2x?search=fort+mcclure&vo=22 |access-date=Apr 4, 2014}}</ref>

In 1882, it was officially incorporated as a municipality and renamed the "''Town of Coleman''" after Dr. B.F. Coleman.<ref name="Newcomers Guide">{{cite web |author=Daily Commercial Staff |title=Coleman rural, but correctional facility brings jobs |work=Newcomers Guide |publisher=Daily Commercial |date=Jun 25, 2006 |url=http://www.dailycommercialonline.com/specialsections/newcomers06dc/ |format=PDF |access-date=Apr 10, 2014}}</ref>

The main industries were citrus, cotton, and cattle, but they also grew celery, cauliflower, cucumbers, lettuce, romaine lettuce, tomatoes, and onions.<ref name=Coleman/><ref name="Newcomers Guide"/>  According to Broward Mill, the past president of the Sumter County Historical Society, Coleman became known for its [[cabbage]] production in the early part of the 20th century and by 1923, was called the "cabbage capital of the world".<ref name=Coleman/><ref>{{cite book |author=United States Department of Agriculture |author-link=United States Department of Agriculture |title=Soil Survey of Sumter County, Florida |publisher=[[Soil Conservation Service]] |year=1988 |location=[[Washington, D.C.]] |pages=2–3 |url=http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00025741/00001/ |access-date=Apr 20, 2014}}</ref>

On June 20, 1908, the "'''City of Coleman'''" was incorporated as a municipality.<ref name=ColHistory>{{Cite web|title=The City of Coleman|url=https://www.cityofcolemanfl.com/|website=www.cityofcolemanfl.com}}</ref><ref name=ColInc>{{Cite web|title=FLORIDA CITIES BY INCORPORATION YEAR WITH INCORPORATION & DISSOLUTION INFO|url=https://www.flcities.com/docs/default-source/research-institute-reports/2020citiesbyincorporationwithinfo.pdf?sfvrsn=5009d6d5_0|website=www.flcities.com}}</ref><ref name=ColeInco>{{Cite web|title=MUNICIPAL DIRECTORY: City of Coleman|url=https://www.floridaleagueofcities.com/research-resources/municipal-directory|website=www.floridaleagueofcities.com}}</ref> However, it was officially reincorporated and [[Municipal_charter#United_States|chartered]] in 1925.<ref name=ColHistory/>

In 1926, the [[West Palm Beach, Florida|West Palm Beach]] branch of the [[Seaboard Air Line]] began operations in Coleman.<ref>{{cite news |last=Coll |first=Aloysius |title=Sumter County Citizens Want to Show Goods |newspaper=St. Petersburg Times |location=[[St. Petersburg, Florida]] |date=May 23, 1926 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=888&dat=19260523&id=gw9PAAAAIBAJ&sjid=l0wDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6380,7159160 |access-date=May 8, 2014}}</ref>

In 1966, the [[American Automobile Association]] (AAA) named Coleman the nation's biggest [[speed trap]] after the city's only police officer, Chief Ernest H. Barry, began lurking behind a billboard to catch speeding motorists. Barry arrested 369 motorists in just 5 months, all of them from out of town. In response, Governor [[W. Haydon Burns]] wrote a letter to Mayor J. F. Crawford, urging them to treat tourists as guests, after which Barry was fired.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090312085858/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,836596,00.html The Last Speed Trap?]</ref>

In 1992, [[Southwest Florida Water Management District]] (SWFWMD) officials approved the purchase of {{convert|8.762|acre|ha}} on the northeastern shores of Lake Panasoffkee near Coleman for the purchase of environmental preservation. SWFWMD officials sought to preserve over 300 species and neighboring Lake Panasoffkee. Although some residents applauded the move, others, such as Sumter County Commissioner Jim Allen, felt that the agency would prevent public use of the land.<ref>{{cite news |last=Stephens |first=Henry A. |title=State set to buy lake land |newspaper=Ocala Star-Banner |location=[[Ocala, Florida]] |pages=8A |date=Nov 2, 1992 |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1356&dat=19921102&id=uMBPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ZAcEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6245,1721723 |access-date=May 8, 2014}}</ref>