Hi! I am Morse the Peacock. I will be your guide as you explore Winter Park, Florida history. I know a lot about this town because my great-great grandparents were the first peacocks to live in Winter Park.
One of Winter Park's founders was Charles Hosmer Morse. His granddaughter, Jeanette McKean, adopted two peacocks. They were my great-great grandparents. They lived for a short time at her home on Interlachen Avenue. Unfortunately, they woke very early every morning and let the entire neighborhood know that it was time to get up! Not everyone wanted to wake up at the crack of dawn! So, Mrs. McKean moved the pair to a beautiful area of Winter Park called Genius Drive. Genius Drive was far out in the country at that time. It was a great place for noisy peacocks to live and raise a family!
My family loved their new home among the orange trees, oak trees, flowers and lakes. They grew in numbers and were very happy there. So happy, in fact, that they would strut about and display their beautiful feathers. The McKean family would invite visitors to come and drive around Genius Drive. Those visitors enjoyed seeing my family and the beautiful scenery.
Follow Morse by clicking the link to your grade!
