Historic Limona Cemetery in Brandon commemorates 150th anniversary: ‘Those are our ancestors’

Historic cemetery marks 150 years in Brandon

A small community in unincorporated Hillsborough County is celebrating 150 years. FOX 13's Kylie Jones reports. 

BRANDON, Fla. - A small community in unincorporated Hillsborough County is celebrating 150 years. Historians say Limona, FL, which is now known as Brandon, used to be a small community centered around a cemetery.

The backstory:

Leaders with Preserving Brandon say Brandon was known as "New Hope" in the 1800s. They say in 1876, Judge Joseph Knapp bought 160 acres of land in the area and became largely responsible for the development of "Limona."

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"It was a lemon farm," Mark Proctor, the Chairman of Timberly Trust, said.

Karen McGinnis, the chair of Preserving Brandon, says Knapp and his family were eventually buried at what would become Limona Cemetery.

"Limona actually is Spanish for 'place where lemons will grow,'" she said.

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Over time, the cemetery grew to house the gravestones of many prominent family names throughout Hillsborough County.

"You'll recognize, as you walk through here, names that are streets and avenues," Proctor said.

Historians say it's important to maintain the land and preserve the history it holds.

"Here in unincorporated Hillsborough, the locations haven't had as many rights as places like the City of Tampa, Ybor City, some of these other places where they can't demolish dwellings," McGinnis said. "And so, it's very important for us to take a stand now before our history is erased altogether."

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She says there are believed to be some unidentified and unmarked graves on the land.

Historians say the community surrounding the cemetery was officially named Brandon in 1890. There is still some land available for new plots.

Local perspective:

As Limona commemorated 150 years on Monday, some families who have plots at Limona Cemetery shared their stories.

"Those are our ancestors," Amy Carey Lee, whose father is buried at Limona Cemetery, said. "Those are the people that formed the Brandon community."

Lee grew up down the road from Limona Cemetery.

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"My dad came down in the late 50s and started the Carey Cattle Company," she said.

She says her father passed away unexpectedly, 29 years ago last week.

"Back in 1997, my dad actually was on his way to his dairy and crossing some railroad tracks," Lee said. "He was hit by a train, and he died at the age of 61."

Lee and her family now own a piece of history at Limona Cemetery.

"Very heartwarming, very nostalgic that this is where I grew up, my father's here, my mother will be buried here, I will be buried here," she said.