Lakeland, Florida

===Statehood and the 19th century===
Florida became a state in 1845, and Polk County was established in 1861. After the [[American Civil War]], the county seat was established southeast of Lakeland in [[Bartow, Florida|Bartow]]. While most of Polk County's early history centered on the two cities of Bartow and [[Fort Meade, Florida|Fort Meade]], eventually, people entered the areas in northern Polk County and began settling in the areas which became Lakeland.<ref name="Brown-2001">{{Cite book|last=Brown|first=Canter Jr.|title=In the midst of all that makes life worth living : Polk County, Florida, to 1940|publisher=Sentry Press|year=2001|isbn=9781889574127|location=Tallahassee, Fla.|language=English}}</ref>

Lakeland was first settled in the 1870s, and began to develop as the [[railroad|rail lines]] reached the area in 1884. [[Freedmen]] settled here in 1883, starting development of what became the [[African-American neighborhood]] of Moorehead. Lakeland was incorporated January 1, 1885. The town was founded by [[Abraham Munn]] (a resident of [[Louisville, Kentucky]]), who purchased {{convert|80|acre|m2|abbr=on}} of land in what is now downtown Lakeland in 1882 and [[plat]]ted the land for the town in 1884. Lakeland was named for the many lakes near the town site.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=FLROAAAAIBAJ&pg=1418%2C2813009 | title=Polk towns named from various sources | work=Lakeland Ledger | date=July 8, 1987 | access-date=June 6, 2015 | author=Sawyer, Martha F. | pages=5C}}</ref>

In April 1898, the [[Spanish–American War]] began and started a crucial point in Lakeland's development. While the war ended quickly and had little effect on most of the nation, the Florida peninsula was used as a launching point for military forces in the war. The then small town of Lakeland housed over 9,000 troops. The [[10th Cavalry Regiment]], one of the original [[Buffalo Soldier]] regiments, were housed on the banks of Lake Wire.<ref name="Spanish American War">{{cite web| url=http://www.polkcountyhistory.org/pdf/june03.pdf| page=6| title=Spanish American War| date=June 2003| access-date=September 26, 2010|work=Polk County Historical Quarterly|volume=30|issue=1|publisher=Polk County Historical Association|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402101638/http://www.polkcountyhistory.org/pdf/june03.pdf|archive-date=April 2, 2012}}</ref> Soon after being stationed there, the black troops faced conflict with the local white population. In one event, a local druggist refused to sell to black soldiers and an argument ensued which eventually escalated to the point where the druggist brandished a pistol. The soldiers shot the druggist before he could fire, which resulted in two of the troops being arrested.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Knetsch |first1=Joe |title=Florida in the Spanish-American War |date=2011 |publisher=The History Press |location=Charleston, SC |isbn=9781609490881 |pages=131–132}}</ref>