CHRISTMAS, Fla. – Central Florida has so many hidden gems including a small Orange County community where it's pretty much Christmas all year round.
On Christmas Day 1837, a group of soldiers came to the area to build a fort during the second Seminole War, which is how the town got the name Fort Christmas. But after the first post office opened in 1892, the word "Fort" was dropped and the community became known as Christmas, Florida.
Ever since, it's been very popular, especially during the holidays.
"Everybody in my family and all my friends look forward to getting mail from Christmas, Florida," Doris Burslie said.
She came from Wedgefield to mail out her Christmas cards, a tradition she's been carrying out for several years. It's because of the town's name, that the post office has become an attraction of its own.
"In every card I put, look at the postmark because I think in today's age, most people aren't gonna pay attention so I think it'll (cause) an extra smile, a little extra of happiness with a postmark from Christmas," Brian Earley said.
He came from Port St. John in Brevard County.
Christmas Postmaster Dawn King said it's not unusual to see an influx of visitors this time of year.
"Our business probably triples for the holiday season. We'll have a line out the door. We have a lot of tourists that come out here. We send out probably two or three thousand Christmas cards a day," King said.
For Burslie, making the trip to Christmas is a tradition.
"Every year I make sure I come to Christmas Florida to put the unique stamps from this unique town here in Florida," Burslie said.
Christmas, Florida
Cecil Tucker II and his family have lived in Christmas since the 1800s. His mother, who died in 2008 at the age of 101, worked as a postmaster for more than 40 years. Tucker said Christmas was her favorite holiday, so much so that she made sure to have a Christmas tree put up all year round, which became a staple of the town and a joyful sight for drivers.
"Where else can you have Christmas 365 days a year but in Christmas Florida? They dreamed of doing this and she made it happen," Tucker said.
The Central Florida town is also where visitors come to enjoy a stroll around the Fort Christmas historical park. With help from the Army Corps of Engineers, Orange County Parks and Recreation reconstructed a replica of the fort built in 1837.
"We knew what our fort looked like. We had a description of it from an Army Sgt. Jarvis, Nathan Jarvis, of being built of pine pickets, 80 feet square with two block houses 20-foot-square each. We've moved 11 structures here. I have seven historic houses on what I call the historic site and they date from about 1870s to the 1930s, and then I have the school for Christmas which was built in 1906. We get people from all over the United States and then we get a large percentage of foreigner visitors," Joseph Adams, with Orange County Parks and Recreation said.
So whether it's summer or fall and you're in the mood to feel that Christmas joy, well what better place to come than to Christmas to feel a little bit of that Christmas spirit?