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Okeechobee City was laid out by the Florida East Coast Railway Engineers in the early 1900's, after Hamilton Diston had drained the land north of Lake Okeechobee.  It is located three miles north of the shores of the Lake, at a place originally called "The Bend".   At the time of the "Florida Boom" (1920's), it was advertised as the "Chicago of the South".   After the "Bust" it was just a  sleepy little Cow Town in South Central Florida.  I moved here in 1937, when I was two years old.    At that time the only jobs to be had were either in the Fishing Industry, or day work as a Cowboy. From that time until now, some seventy years, I have witnessed much change.  The pictures that you will see on the following pages capture the progress and flavor of this community.  Let me know how you liked the story and pictures. Tommy  Markham

"Portions of the story were taken from the History of Okeechobee County, by Kyle S. VanLandingham and Alma Hetherington, copyrighted in 1978 and is reprinted with the permission of Mr. VanLandingham."

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