SOIL SURVEY OF THE OCALA AREA, FLORIDA. 
249 
mocks. The highest point in the area is 220 feet and the lowest 
20 feet above sea level. A marked feature of the topography is the 
sinkholes and depressed areas and the general lack of surface drain¬ 
age systems, the drainage waters passing downward through the 
porous soils. 
The area drains into both the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic 
Ocean. The Withlacoochee River passes through the area in its 
central part, flowing northwest and emptying into the Gulf. On the 
northeast the Silver Springs rise from subterranean channels and 
flow east to the Ocklawaha River, emptying into the St. Johns 
River, which in turn empties into the Atlantic Ocean. 
Settlement began prior to 1850, but the extension of settlement 
has been slow, and the rural population is still sparse. The early 
settlers were from Georgia and North and South Carolina. In re¬ 
cent years numbers of settlers have come from the Northern and 
Western States. 
The railroad facilities are exceptionally good, both the Atlantic 
Coast Line and Seaboard Air Line Railroads passing through the 
area. These are main trunk lines. In addition to these are the 
Ocala Northern and Ocala Southwestern Railroads. Water trans¬ 
portation is afforded by Silver Springs Run and the Ocklawaha and 
St. Johns Rivers. There is also local water transportation on a part 
of the Withlacoochee River and Panasoffkee Lake. The county 
roads are numerous. They are being rapidly improved, and there 
are many miles of stone and clay surfaced roads. 
Ocala, the county seat of Marion County, with about 4.500 in¬ 
habitants, is 'the largest town. It is an important business and 
railroad center. Dunnellon, Hernando, and Inverness, in the west¬ 
ern part of the area, are towns of considerable importance in the 
phosphate-mining section. Belleview, Summerfield, Oxford, Wild¬ 
wood, and Coleman are important towns in the eastern part of the 
area on the railroads. Their interests are agricultural. 
The climate of the area is mild, approaching the subtropical. 
The mean annual temperature is 69° F. and the mean annual pre¬ 
cipitation about 52 inches. 
The early agriculture was restricted to the growing of the sub¬ 
sistence crops and sea-island cotton, along with stock raising. After 
the Civil War citrus-fruit growing was taken up, which industry was 
almost entirely abandoned when the trees were killed by the freeze 
of 1894-95. Since 1890 phosphate mining, turpentining, and lum- 
