End of the Line

About the mural

Town founder Isaac Trabue and Henry Plant, the man who built railroads on the west coast of Florida, are featured in this mural. Punta Gorda prospered when the railroad came to town and it was the “End of the Line” for the west coast of Florida from 1886 until 1904.

There are two separate murals on this building. One mural (facing the parking lot behind the building), was designed from historic photos. It contains Florida Southern Railroad steam locomotive number 11 pulling into town with the eventual owner of the railroad, Henry Plant, pictured above.

The second mural (on the side of the building facing US 41 north) features Plant on the left and Isaac Trabue, our town’s founder, on the right. This mural also emphasizes items shipped from this area. They included oranges, pineapple, cattle, and fish.

It was rumored that Plant and Trabue did not care for each other so Artist Richard Currier purposely painted a scowl on their faces as they look at each other in the mural.

This mural was originally painted in 1997 and dedicated on August 13, 1997. It was repainted in 2009 restoring it back to its original state and re-dedicated on May 28, 2009.