Parthenope Plantation
Dublin Core
Creator
Title
Alternative Title
Date Created
Type
Is Replaced By
Description
Lipona Plantation was purchased in the 1820s by Prince Achille Murat. Murat was related to Napoleon Bonaparte and after exile (and Murat's father's execution) he moved to Florida. After his establishment in Jefferson County and Tallahassee area, he married Catherine Gray Willis. Willis was a young widow and great grandniece of George Washington. Historic accounts diverge on where the couple moved to, or rather the name of the location. Some people say they went to Lipona Plantation then moved to a smaller plantation after financial hardships (allegedly a lapsed mortgage payment, failed attempt at securing the throne in Naples, and a relocation out of state to practice law). However, some people claim they moved to Echonochatti Plantation (spelling varies, Econochattie/Econchatti). The same source claims the Murat family moved to Echonochatti also claims that it was renamed Lipona after one of Murat's trips to Europe. Lipona is an anagram of Napoli.
One consistent piece of information is the blossomed social life of the Murat household. Apparently, Murat embraced his American plantation life and was not adverse to serving any type of meat or carrying on a party. In the 1860 Agricultural Census, it states that the plantation was worth $8,600 on 550 acres. It was likely a cotton plantation. Murat died in 1847 and his wife died in 1867 after life as a successful planter and gained the title of "Princess" from the French government.
After the Murats, the plantation changed several hands over the years and was eventually converted into part of several Tallahassee neighborhoods.
Mediator
1300 FL-206
St. Augustine, FL 32086
Moses Creek Conservation Area – SJRWMD
Source
Photograph 1 (2023): Owens, Katherine. "Picture of Murat's Point in Moses Creek Conservation Area, St. Johns County." February 4, 2023.
Photograph 2 (2023): Owens, Katherine. "Close-up of Murat's Point in Moses Creek Conservation Area, St. Johns County." February 4, 2023.
The following books, articles, and/or websites were used to find information about this location:
1860 Agricultural Census, Jefferson County, Florida. Located on USGenWeb Archives. files.usgwarchives.net/fl/jefferson/census/1860agri.txt.
Henley, Jeffrey. "Lipona Road." Clio: Your Guide to History. April 13, 2020. https://theclio.com/entry/98962.
Robles, E. “Plantation Homes of North Florida.” Semantic Scholar. June 13, 2017. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Plantation-Houses-of-North-Florida-Robles/7029e2c9f0225086a01fbe3300b2b9f6f51d8541.
Works Progress Administration. Plantations, Jefferson County. [Tallahassee, FL: Federal Writers’ Project of the Works Projects Administration for the State of Florida]. Located on Internet Archive. April 1, 2019. https://archive.org/details/plantationsjeffe00work/page/n5/mode/2up.
Rights
Is Referenced By
The following St. Augustine Fiction books feature this natural feature as a location:
Blood on the Moon