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Downtown Gainesville, Florida, looking southwest from SE 1st Avenue in November 2021: a brick street lined with parked cars, two- and three-story storefront buildings and a construction crane

Gainesville, FL history: how a railroad town became a university market

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Downtown Gainesville, looking southwest from SE 1st Avenue, November 2021.

I find that Gainesville, FL history helps explain where commercial land sits today. The town was placed to meet a railroad, grew as a farm-trade center, and then became home to a university and a teaching hospital. Two of its redevelopment sites are a former hospital site and a park cleaned of gas plant residues. My timeline uses county, state, university and National Park Service records, plus dated local reporting.

A town placed on the railroad (1824 to 1869)

Alachua County, according to the county government's history, "was created in 1824 as a massive county, extending from the Georgia border to Tampa Bay." Before 1853 the county seat was at Newnansville, in the northwest.

The Florida Railroad changed that. Its route "cut diagonally across the county and bypassed the county seat at Newnansville." The county's answer was to follow the tracks: "it was decided at a Boulware Springs meeting on September 6, 1853, to move the county seat near the railroad." The new town needed a name, and by the county's account veterans of the Seminole Wars "suggested naming the new town after General Edmund P. Gaines, under whom they had served." Gainesville was officially incorporated in 1869.

The rails themselves arrived later than the town. The first railroad reached Gainesville in 1859 and Cedar Key by 1861, according to the Guide to Greater Gainesville and the Clio historical database. Downtown, in the guide's words, "became a center of agriculture and industry."

Cotton, vegetables, citrus and phosphate (to 1900)

The county's history describes Gainesville as "a mercantile center for cotton and vegetable crops," and says "the citrus and phosphate industries gave it a secure economic base." Phosphate was the big one for a time: "During the 1890s, Gainesville's Dutton Phosphate Co. shipped over half the state's phosphate."

In 1900 the Seaboard Air Line Railroad "acquired the old Florida Railroad right-of-way through Gainesville." The Old Gainesville Depot at 203 SE Depot Ave, linked in the National Park Service record to Seaboard Air Line Railroad, is listed in the National Register of Historic Places (NRIS 96001369). Other Gainesville properties in the National Register include:

Property Address National Register (NRIS)
Baird Hardware Company Warehouse 619 S. Main St. 85003053
Cox Furniture Warehouse 602 S. Main St. 94000580
Cox Furniture Store 19 SE First Ave. 94000579
Hotel Thomas N.E. 2nd and 5th Sts. and N.E. 6th and 7th Aves. 73000563
Boulware Spring Waterworks 3400 SE 15th St. 85001255

The Southeast Gainesville Residential District (NRIS 87002435), roughly bounded by E. University Ave., S.E. Ninth St., S.E. Fifth Ave. and Sweetwater Branch, is also listed. If you are buying or renovating a listed building, or one inside a historic district, ask the City of Gainesville what review applies. Do that before you price the work.

The university arrives (1906 to 1947)

The University of Florida came to Gainesville after Florida passed the Buckman Act. WUFT reported on July 23, 2026 that it had been 120 years since UF moved from Lake City to Gainesville, a move that happened "because Florida passed the Buckman Act." Local lobbying for the school included "the promise of free water from Boulware Springs."

The UF Faculty Handbook says "the Gainesville site for the campus was chosen in 1906" and "Classes began on September 26, 1906 for 102 students." In 1947, the handbook says, "the student body numbered 8,177 men and 601 women." By the county's account, "the university had become the most important staple in the county's economy."

Hospitals and the medical corridor (1928 to 1965)

Health care grew alongside the university. A state historical marker for Alachua General Hospital records that "In 1928, the 58-bed Alachua County Hospital opened." UF Health reports that "On Oct. 20, the 400-bed UF Teaching Hospital opened" in 1958. In 1965 "the UF Teaching Hospital name was changed to the W.A. Shands Teaching Hospital and Clinics." If you are looking for medical office space, I start by measuring how far a building is from that hospital campus.

Archer Road and the southwest (1941 to 1975)

An airfield once operated off Archer Road. Carl Stengel "purchased 30 acres off Archer Road, southwest of the city, and relocated his flight school operations," and "the U.S. Army took control of the airport in 1941 and paved the runways so B-25s could take off and land," the Guide to Greater Gainesville reports.

The Independent Florida Alligator reported that Butler Plaza "started in 1975 with the opening of a Publix." The Guide to Greater Gainesville wrote that the face of the original Butler Plaza along Archer Road "has been transformed from its dated 1970s look to a modern setting." WUFT reported that the Oaks Mall had served the community "Since opening on Aug. 2, 1973." My Archer Road page covers that corridor today.

Rebuilding the core (2008 to 2016)

  • Alachua General Hospital "closed in 2009 and in 2010 became the site for the Florida Innovation Square at the University of Florida," the state marker says. WUFT described Innovation Square in 2015 as "a new 40-acre space."
  • Depot Park was built on the site of a former manufactured gas plant (MGP). "The primary contamination source at the site was coal tar residues from the former MGP." The area remediated "was excavated to a depth of 50 feet and over 147,000 tons of contaminated soil was removed." The park's own history says it was "Completed in Summer 2016."
  • The Power District redevelopment, WUFT reported in 2019, "has been in the works since 2008" and "has produced tangible results, such as the Catalyst Warehouse."

For a buyer, I think that history matters in two ways. If a parcel you are considering has an industrial history, order the environmental reports early. My Innovation District page and market outlook follow the public redevelopment efforts close to downtown.

What the history means for property today

The listed warehouse buildings near South Main Street, the redevelopment sites near downtown, the university and hospital campus, and the shopping centers along Archer Road each come from a different chapter of this history.

When I compare two sites, I ask which of those stories each one belongs to. Then I ask what that means for its zoning, its tenants and its condition. My city facts page covers the city's size and government. The contact page is the place to start a conversation with me about a specific property.

Frequently asked questions

Why was Gainesville, FL founded?

The Florida Railroad route bypassed the county seat at Newnansville. At a Boulware Springs meeting on September 6, 1853, Alachua County decided to move the county seat near the railroad, and the new town became Gainesville. It was officially incorporated in 1869.

Who is Gainesville named after?

Alachua County's history page says veterans of the Seminole Wars suggested naming the new town after General Edmund P. Gaines, under whom they had served. The county describes this as the story behind the name.

When did the University of Florida come to Gainesville?

Florida passed the Buckman Act, and the Gainesville site for the campus was chosen in 1906. Classes began on September 26, 1906 for 102 students. Gainesville's pitch included the promise of free water from Boulware Springs.

What was Innovation Square before it was built?

It was the site of Alachua General Hospital, whose 58-bed county hospital opened in 1928. The hospital closed in 2009, and in 2010 the site became Florida Innovation Square at the University of Florida. A Florida Division of Historical Resources marker records that history.

When did Butler Plaza and the Oaks Mall open?

The Independent Florida Alligator reported that Butler Plaza started in 1975 with the opening of a Publix. WUFT reported that the Oaks Mall opened on August 2, 1973.

Sell your commercial building in Gainesville, FL
Sources
  1. Alachua County Government, accessed 2026-10-13
  2. Guide to Greater Gainesville, accessed 2026-10-13
  3. Clio, accessed 2026-10-13
  4. National Park Service (NPGallery), accessed 2026-10-13
  5. WUFT, accessed 2026-10-13
  6. University of Florida Faculty Handbook, accessed 2026-10-13
  7. Florida Department of State, Division of Historical Resources, accessed 2026-10-13
  8. UF Health Shands News + Notes, accessed 2026-10-13
  9. WUFT, accessed 2026-10-13
  10. Depot Park, accessed 2026-10-13
  11. WUFT, accessed 2026-10-13
  12. Guide to Greater Gainesville, accessed 2026-10-13
  13. The Independent Florida Alligator, accessed 2026-10-13
  14. Guide to Greater Gainesville, accessed 2026-10-13
  15. WUSF (WUFT story), accessed 2026-10-13
  16. National Park Service (NPGallery), accessed 2026-10-13
  17. National Park Service (NPGallery), accessed 2026-10-13
  18. National Park Service (NPGallery), accessed 2026-10-13
  19. National Park Service (NPGallery), accessed 2026-10-13
  20. National Park Service (NPGallery), accessed 2026-10-13
  21. National Park Service (NPGallery), accessed 2026-10-13