Editing Inverness, Florida (section)

== History ==
Archaeological digs showed that the [[Seminole]] resided in the area that is now Inverness. The Seminole leader [[Osceola]] made his wartime camp, known as Powell's Town, in the area during the [[Second Seminole War]].<ref>Weisman, B. R. (1987). On the Trail of Osceola's Seminoles in Florida. Archaeology, 40(2), 58–59. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41731863</ref> During the Second Seminole War, the nearby [[Fort Cooper State Park|Fort Cooper]] was besieged by Osceola and his band of warriors. The garrison was just about out of food when it was relieved by a column of troops under [[Duncan Lamont Clinch|Gen. Duncan L. Clinch]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pearcy |first1=Matthew T. |title="The Ruthless Hand of War:" Andrew A. Humphreys in the Second Seminole War |journal=The Florida Historical Quarterly |date=Fall 2006 |volume=85 |issue=2 |page=132 |url=https://palmm.digital.flvc.org/islandora/object/ucf%3A25562 |access-date=27 March 2023}}</ref>

The city of Inverness was originally named "Tompkinsville". A white settlement of the area dates back to 1868.<ref>{{cite book |title=Back Home: A History of Citrus County, Florida |last=Dunn |first=Hampton |year=1976 |page=67 }}</ref> Tompkins, later known as "Uncle Alf", started the community. To attract newcomers to the town, he established a mail service and helped erect the first [[sawmill]] in the county. He gave his brother-in-law, Frank M. Dampier Sr., a lot to build a store, with Dampier becoming the first merchant in town. Dampier is credited with laying out the town and naming it Tompkinsville.

Not many years later, the town of Tompkinsville was sold to a firm in [[Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville]], and the name was changed to "Inverness".<ref>{{cite book |title=Back Home: A History of Citrus County, Florida |last=Dunn |first=Hampton |year=1976 |page=68 }}</ref> According to the late historian Mary McRae of [[Homosassa, Florida|Homosassa]], Inverness is named directly after a [[Scotland|Scottish]] city of the same name. [[Inverness]] is [[Great Britain]]'s most northerly city, and "the capital of the Highlands", with a population of 46,870. The story goes that Inverness, Florida, got its name from a lonely Scotsman, far away from his home, who gazed upon the blue waters of the Native American-named [[Tsala Apopka Lake]] and thought the area looked like the headlands and [[loch]]s of the area surrounding Inverness, Scotland. ''Inver'' is a [[Scottish Gaelic|Gaelic]] word meaning "mouth of the river", the [[River Ness]] flows through the Scottish city Inverness, so Inverness literally means the mouth of the River Ness, which flows from [[Loch Ness]], which is one of Scotland's most visited areas. Since the Florida city lies at the foot of one of the chain of lakes in Citrus County, Inverness seemed an appropriate name.

According to official city documentation, Inverness was incorporated on March 6, 1919.<ref name="history"/>

Over twelve downtown buildings have been recognized by the historic plaque program and are presently active places for business. Central Business Development grants have helped to retain the historic character of the city. In 1961, the historic courthouse downtown was used to film the courtroom scene of "[[Follow That Dream]]", featuring [[Elvis Presley]].{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}

The city has been designated a "Gateway Community" by the [[Florida Trail Association]].{{citation needed|date=May 2024}} Since 1995, Inverness has been recognized as a [[Tree City USA]] by the [[National Arbor Day Foundation]] and the [[United States Forest Service|US Forest Service]]. In 2009, Inverness was named "City of the Year" by the [[Forty and Eight veterans organization|Forty and Eight]], a national veterans' organization.{{citation needed|date=May 2024}}