KOSSUTHVILLE, FLORIDA
By Mary Lou (Pécsi) Magiske

 “Kossuthville, Florida?” Many people haven’t heard of it. One reason is that it is hiding under another name, now known to locals as “K-ville,”evidenced by the main street name K-ville Rd. as well as by street and directional signs spelled “K-ville” and by printed municipal references.
We were traveling from Lakeland proper (Kossuthville carries this post office address) via K-ville Rd. on the way to Winter Haven.  I saw a few street signs - Nemeth St., and Pinter Rd.. At the time, I didn’t realize Sunny Rd. had been named after the Szanyi family. A trip to the closest courthouse was in Bartow County where my suspicions were confirmed about the town‘s actual name.
Here is some history of Kossuthville, a.k.a K-ville that I extrapolated from the Bartow County Florida Court House files. Kossuthville is in Polk County Florida.
Due to the ingenuity of early settlers in Florida, such as the Germans and Scotch, who devised the idea of developing land for particular ethnicities, ethnic settlers were prompted to relocate after reading newspaper advertisements. In this case, Hungarians from Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York  and other Eastern states responded by moving to Kossuthville.  Most of them had been born in Hungary but had come to this country prior to the first World War before immigration restrictions were tightened.
In 1924 and1925, the investment company painted a glowing picture of Kossuthville’s future to the prospective U.S. Northeast Hungarians. Many of the early settlers sold businesses and homes on the strength of those promises. In the original group of 90 persons was a construction engineer, a boilermaker who owned his own business, an anthracite coal miner from Allentown, and other artisans and tradesmen. Few of the group were farmers. Their motives in coming to Polk county were varied but they desired a permanent home and all were relying on the investment company’s prophecy that a thriving community would develop there in a matter of months. I’m sure they were hoping others like them would join them in a common bond.
Here is a chronology of Kossuthville (K-ville), as best as I  can determine.     
In 1925, a group of 21 families of Hungarian immigrants settled in the eastern end of the former Carter property. Carter”s Corner was settled in the summer of 1883. The post office opened under the name of Fitzhugh. Mr. H. B. Carter, owner of Carter's lumber mill burned in 1913, and the post office closed in 1918. Carter’s Mills had artisan wells (17) and the water was slightly sulphur. Epper Tucker wrote in 2/21/1900 in the Courier-Informent (SIC), Bartow..."I am inclined to believe they will be found to possess curative properties of great values"...near future resorts for invalids - possible”
The startling contrast between the advertised and promoted plans, including  a 100 feet wide main street, a spacious park in the center of town and a railway station were in contrast to what the early settlers found according to a second generation, unidentified Hungarian-American  who was a small boy when his family settled in Kossuthville.  It was raw, flat pine woods that greeted the eye of  new arrivals.  He wrote,  “The company had taken us on a tour of the West Coast area - St. Pete, Tampa, Clearwater, all around - and when we got off the bus that sultry July afternoon, we had to walk about a mile from the place where the bus stopped to where we were supposed to live, and the road was dusty and not even paved.
 “When we got to our house, my mother was all for turning right around and starting back to New York. The place was not much better than a shack, poorly painted and much too small for our family of four.  You couldn’t even get a bed in what was supposed to be a bedroom We slept on the floor of another family’s house that first night, and the company had to promise to build us another place before my mother would consent to stay.”
Many of the families did turn right around and go back to where they came from when they saw that they were being asked to pay $325 to $600 an acre. Seven years later, one of those who stayed bought 25 acres of the same land for just $13 an acre.  Nineteen families started farming in that first year. Only a few stayed with it through 1930. Those who stayed discovered that farming in Florida was not so different than in other areas. They learned that hard work and failures and poor markets were as much a part of agriculture here as elsewhere.

1929--According to one third generation person I interviewed in 2008, he said his
grandfather lost everything in the Depression.

1930--Saw residents dwindle from 90 to 40; some moving to Lakeland, Auburndale or Kathleen, nearby communities. Some remained in Kossuthville, but found jobs in other towns. Reasoning has it was due to poor crops, and no doubt the  Depression.
A county agriculture agent from Bartow aided them the first year, advising on what crops to grow and what fertilizer to use. The earlier years saw Kossuthville growing bananas at first but the plants froze and the crops were turned into growing strawberries. Profits for successful crops such as strawberries were far below their expectations. Many second generation workers took other jobs in nearby phosphate plants.
One third generation family, that of Don Szanyi, still resides in Kossuthville. His street was named Sunny Rd.. for a “sound like” of Szanyi. Don referred me to his brother Arthur who lives in another part of Florida. Arthur remembers his grandfather had a truck farm, taking about a 100 bushels of bell peppers over to Plant City to sell at the markets for 35 cents a bushel. Sometimes it paid off better to bring many bushels back for the cows to eat.  Another produce customer was the Hungarian restaurant in town.  Arthur’s grandfather would go through town honking his truck horn to indicate to the Black residents that it was time to pick the crops. His grandfather always gave them free vegetables to take home.           

1941-1943: Kossuthville had 17 enlistments in WWII.  They were all-American citizens since 1941. Some came back and tried farming under the GI on-job training program.

December 1950: Lakeland Ledger contained a picture of the founding fathers at the 25th anniversary, which was celebrated at the Hungarian Inn. The cornerstone had been laid in 1925 with 90 persons attending.

July 1954: Three farmers are left in town: Jos. Nemeth Sr., Jos. Szanyi, Andrew Dohany who raise vegetable and berries.  The young people were leaving farms due to jobs at the phosphate and canning plants. They had paid land prices of $350-$500 an acre, and today the land is valued at $50-150 except the phosphate owners were getting $250 an acre. Now there are only middle-aged and elderly people in K-Ville today.
According to an undated article in the Lakeland Ledger, (probably written around 1955), Nemeth was reminded that the farmer has freedom probably unequalled in any other walk of life. The farmer is strictly his own boss, he is out in the fresh air and sunshine, and no one tells him what to do. This has elements of a pusztaság. Nemeth also laments, “Yes, but the weeds, they will tell you what to do, and the weather tells you what to do, and the prices and the buyers, they will all tell you what to do.”  

1955: Six of the 19 families now living in Kossuthville depend on farming for the major part of their livelihood. They raise peppers, beans, cabbage, strawberries and other truck crops and poultry.  Of the 90 Hungarian-Americans who came here in 1925, 15 still live in Kossuthville. They are Joseph Nemeth, Joseph Nemeth Jr., Ambrose Windisman, Stephan Windisman, Andrew Dohany, Andrew Dohany, Jr., Joseph Hreha, John Wollman, Joseph Szanyi, Joseph Szanyi, Jr., Andrew Szanyi, John Stephan Barilovitz, Anthony Pogany and Paul Balint.

December 1956: Kossuthville collected $155 and sent this to DC for refugee aid. Twenty families donated. The money was collected by Jos. Nemeth Sr.
Donors were: Frank Toth, Alex Szabo, MM Robert Wehr, E. Mortonoietz, Joe Voss, L. R. Croir, F. Zottan (as spelled) Tomcsa, J. Gnandt, Mrs. Vera Marko, Fenessy Jainosisneje, John Focheresneje, Ace Gilbert, Polk Paint Co., Hany Seigle, J. L. Weiss, John Vochek, Steve Kolak.
Those from Kossuthville who donated money in 1956 were M/M Nemeth, M/M John Kessler, M/M Anotras Korose, M /M Charles Langbein, Gaspoir Juhasz, Doratz Jossef, Alex Forehas, Toth Teter, M/M John Kessel, M/M George Hollincek, M/M Stephen Balatinacr, M/M Curt Meyer. M/M Sakedy Mihaly, John Kenesey, M/M Toul Andrar, Mrs. Kelman Kir, M/M Kelman Solloy, Ambur Windirmen, M/M Joseph Nemeth Jr., Aron Vor, Stephen Barilovis and Jimy Ordoiz.
Plant City Move: Albert Tershansy, chairman of the planning committee for the group (movement to organize a American-Hungarian Society in Plant City FL).
MEMO:  All above as spelled in Lakeland Ledger  on Monday, Dec. 3, 1956.

May 19, 1963: A fire hall was started. In 1963, the Hungarian Inn was still there on old Winter Haven Rd. C. E. Longbein owned the Hungarian Inn and was trustee of the fire hall and volunteer fire department between Lakeland and Auburndale on the old Winter Haven road.

January 11, 1963: The fire department was "born" when the home of Herman Scott was burned.

July 14, 1963: The fire station was being built next to the Hungarian Inn; scheduled completion January. Memo: Calvin Nemeth was the only volunteer fireman named of Hungarian extraction...the rest were English names. I neglected to copy these names.

January 12, 1964: The new fire station was built. On 2/2/1964, John Kessell was the sergeant at arms.
November 19, 1966: K-ville Assembly of God church built in memory of Rev. Karl M. Gygax.

1988: The K-ville volunteer fire dept. dissolved. The members tried to dissolve and distribute the proceeds among themselves; however in May, 1993, a judge ruled it belonged to the community and not the board of directors.

September 27, 1997: K-ville new community church was built on Payne/K-ville Avenue

2008: Not much is known about how many Hungarians are still living in Kossuthville today. It is suspected to be very few. It was mentioned that there is an active Hungarian Club quite a distance away in Plant City.
Another resident of Lakeland, I interviewed said his grandfather was one of the prominent settlers in Kossuthville, having been a prisoner of war in Italy during World War I, and subsequently leaving Kossuthville during World War II to work at the Brooklyn NY Navy yard.
In summation, the formal name of Kossuthville still remains on the books in Polk County; however, meeting minutes always indicate the additional information of “commonly known as K-ville.”
What can be done about changing the streets signs to read the full name?
 I remember when I carelessly used the name Frisco instead of San Francisco to a native of the city. I was politely asked to use the full name.  I agree. Some harder to pronounce town names elsewhere aren’t shortened such as Kosciusko, Lafayette and the like; there is even a Masaryktown in Hernando County, Florida, not abbreviated.  The town was established in 1926.  Masaryk, the Czech, was in the United States in 1918, primarily in Pittsburgh. While I haven’t researched it, it stands to reason that this Florida town would have been settled with the same concept of towns with foreign names as Kossuthville, Florida.
To me, K-ville sounds like a pseudonym name rather than the diminutive of a proper town name.  Kossuth should be remembered properly. At the present time, if there isn’t a town stone marker remaining with the full name on it, as one person now remembers it having been there, I’ll see what can be done about making one or perhaps applying for a State Marker.


Credits:
Lakeland Ledger, Lakeland FL, Thursday Evening July 15, 1954. Staff writer George Knight.   “Kossuthville Farmer Sees His Plight Getting Worse”

Lakeland Ledger, Staff Writer Phil Collier - estimated to be published in 1955

Lakeland Ledger, Monday, Dec. 3, 1956. “Lakeland Area Hungarians Join Relief Movement”  No Staff Writer indicated.

Plus some hand written notes placed in the Kossuthville file at the Bartow County
Courthouse.

Italics are Mary Lou (Pécsi) Magiske’s notes.
Rostraver, PA
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Memo:  In some cases there will be words or names misspelled. This is due to keeping to the original newspaper text spelling. As there were so many, the use of “SIC” would convolute the reading of the text.