blooming city. After his first wife passed away just shortly
after moving to Florida, he married Alice Carothers.
They had children and raised their family in Winter
Garden. One of his daughters (Pauline) purchased the
house Newton built and raised her family there as well.
His combination of commitment to family, ambition and
pride in the city is a cornerstone of what Winter Garden
his humorous little blurb is from a 1910 advertisement is about.
for A.B. Newton’s general store which carried
everything from hats to sundries to fertilizer to candies. Newton became a very prominent and well-respected
You could purchase almost anything you could imagine member of the community and served as the city's very
at A.B. Newton’s store, which was located on the corner first Mayor when the city was incorporated in 1908. He
of Plant and Boyd Streets in downtown Winter Garden. went on to be elected three times to the Florida House
of Representatives and served as Speaker of the House.
You may be wondering, “who is A.B. Newton?!” The
answer is both simple and in-depth. Without Arthur Newton was quoted as saying, “Winter Garden looks
Bullard (A.B.) Newton, there might not be a Winter well toward relieving poverty and suffering. Before the
Garden. He has even been called “the Godfather of Winter depression, we prided ourselves of the fact that we needed
Garden.” Even though Newton was from Mississippi, he no outside aid. The recent depression has brought in a
made Winter Garden his home and was a founder of the number of transient people and the financial aid of the
city we know and love today.
community being somewhat reduced, outside aid and
federal aid have been prevalent and prospects a