A little history

In the spirit of the 4th of July and a sense of community, I thought I would put together a list of interesting historical facts about Brandon and surrounding areas.

Did you know:

• The town Brandon was named after John Brandon, who donated much of the land in the area to the community.


• Stowers Funeral Home, located on Brandon Boulevard, used to be the home of James and Joanna Brandon (James was the son of John Brandon).


• New Hope Church was the first church and school in Brandon.


• John Brandon's second wife Victoria, opened the first post office in Brandon in her home, after John's death.


• McLane Middle School used to serve as the community's central school, (previously named Brandon Grade School, for students in grades 1 through 12).


• When the first Brandon census was taken in 1922, the population was 100.


• Brandon High School was the second high school established in Hillsborough County.


• Some of the now defunct retail stores in the area include Zayre, Service Merchandise, McCrory's and TG&Y.


• The Bloomingdale High School mascot "BULL" stands for "Bloomingdale's Unique Love of Learning".

To read more about the history of Brandon, visit Wikipedia.

Do you know of more interesting or little known facts about Brandon, Valrico, Seffner, Lithia, Riverview or other nearby communities? Please leave a comment so we can add it to this list!