FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
237 
several years. He is survived by his 
widow, Mrs. Elizabeth Harrington, and 
one brother, C. W. Harrington. Mr. A. 
B. Harrington was born in Rhode Island, 
but spent most of his life in Connecticut, 
coming to Florida in. 1885. Mr. Har¬ 
rington is spoken of as “a splendid type 
of Christian manhood. Honest, kind and 
public-spirited, he was beloved by all who 
knew him. His death has caused a va¬ 
cancy in the business and social circles 
of Winter Haven that can never be filled,” 
and by the board of directors of the 
Snell National Bank of Winter Haven in 
resolutions of respect, “The deceased was 
always a mat; of unquestioned integrity, 
a citizen of progressive enterprise, always 
in the front rank of every movement for 
the betterment of the community. He 
was a loyal, loving and tender husband, 
and a most efficient and honorable mem¬ 
ber of this board, and the remaining 
members of the board cannot express the 
sense of loss they feel on account of his 
sudden and untimely death.” 
EDWARD OKLE FAINTER 
As different phases of Mr. Painter’s 
life work relating to horticulture have 
already been dwelt on in the Memorial 
Session, we will here present only the 
biographical sketch. 
Edward Okie Painter (1860-1913), 
printer, publisher, editor, fertilizer man¬ 
ufacturer and horticultural benefactor, the 
eldest child of George and Charlotte 
Dadswell Painter, was born in Ontario, 
N. Y., Nov. 3d, i860. 
His early boyhood was spent in Web¬ 
ster and Fairport, N. Y., and when a lad 
of 16 years of age, he went to DeLand, 
Florida, with his parents, who had been 
induced to go South by Mr. H. A. De- 
Land, the founder of DeLand, Florida, 
who then resided in Fairport. 
His chances for a schooling were lim¬ 
ited, consisting of about four years in 
the public schools of the State of New 
York. He was a close observer, a mas¬ 
ter of intricate details, a reader and think¬ 
er, and possessed a wonderful retentive 
and analytical mind. These natural gifts 
he used to offset the loss of an early edu¬ 
cation. 
DeLand was an agricultural and horti¬ 
cultural community, and Mr. Painter ap¬ 
plied himself to studies, researches and 
experiments in plant life and culture and 
was looked upon as one of the most ad¬ 
vanced men in these lines in the South. 
At the age of 17 he was the U. S. mail 
carrier between DeLand and Cabbage 
Bluff, Floridja, meeting the St. Johns 
River steamers. About this time he ob¬ 
tained a tract of land which he cleared 
and set out as an orange grove, working 
for himself and others between mail hours 
and during the evenings. He gave up 
the position of mail carrier for that of 
“printers devil” on the Volusia County 
Herald. In this office was published the 
Florida Agriculturist, which was then, 
and for many years afterward the only 
agiicnltuial publication in Florida. From 
the position of “devil” he rose to a full 
journeyman printer and laler ion was 
promoted to the position of foreman. 
As a young man, in whatever work was 
assigned to him, he established a reputa- 
