National Register of Historic Place Multiple Property Documentation Form for the Archaeological and Historical Resources of the Avon Park Air Force Range (1994)

The Avon Park Air Force Range (APAFR) contains a diverse array of cultural resources that span the entire period of human occupation of the Kissimmee River Valley. Documented sites range in date from the Archaic period (ca. 6500-500 B.C.) through the first half of the 20th century. Most of the documented periods of occupation of the APAFR are represented by prehistoric and historic period archaeological sites that have been determined to be eligible for listing on the National Register (NR) of Historic Places. Because of this, and because of the potential for additional NR eligible sites to be discovered in the future, it was decided that a multiple properties listing would be the most efficient and flexible way of managing these resources since it would provide for the inclusion of newly discovered sites in the listing using a unified set of criteria.
The theme on which this multiple property listing is based is the economic and cultural development of the central Kissimmee River valley. The wide range of site types on the APAFR, and the long time span represented by these sites, provides an excellent data base for future archaeological, anthropological and historical studies of the region. The theme is sufficiently narrow enough to focus research on topics that are best addressed by archaeological data, and yet is broad enough to encompass a variety of research approaches. For prehistoric sites research topics related to the overall theme might include aspects of settlement pattern, resource exploitation, subsistence, seasonality, technology, or trade networks, and how these influenced the development of aboriginal cultures in the valley. For historic period sites topics such as the evolution of Euro-american settlement patterns, the effect of 19th and early 20th century developments in transportation, technology and industry on the pioneer lifestyle of south Florida, and the development of the turpentine and cattle industries in south Florida are all possible to study with data from sites located on the APAFR. In addition, the common practice of employing African Americans in the turpentine industry provides an opportunity to study early ethnic behavior and culture at turpentine sites on the Range.