Masaryktown offers a glimpse into Hernando County’s rural roots, marked by working farms, small-town restaurants, and open landscapes. This agricultural heritage is complemented by a vibrant motorsports culture at Lead Foot City, a high-energy destination for car enthusiasts and live entertainment.
In 1924, a New York City editor, Joseph Joscak, began writing a column in a zechoslovak newspaper, touting Florida with dreams of starting a farming community there. His efforts led to the Hernando Plantation Company, with over 50 Czecho-Slovak immigrants who would raise enough money to purchase a tract of over 20,000 acres south of Brooksville. They named the new area “Masaryktown,” in honor of Thomas Garrigue Masaryk, the first president of Czechoslovakia. Unfortunately, their plans for citrus farming proved to be difficult. Multiple frosts killed off the newly planted groves, forcing many families to leave. Others found more success in poultry farming, which led to the Hernando Egg Producers, Inc., dubbing Masaryktown as Florida’s “Egg Basket.”
Today visitors can find a historic marker located next to the Masaryktown Cafe, a building that once served as a hotel and a Polish restaurant. This restaurant now serves delicious Cuban food and desserts.
A few miles north on US 41/Broad Street is a historic marker for Garden Grove, a community first created during the ‘Florida Land Boom’ of the early 1920s with plans for over 1,600 lots on 13,000 acres. These plans were abandoned with the real estate bubble burst in the mid-1902s, and any construction remained paused until the 1950s.
A motorsports-themed entertainment complex featuring drag racing, burnouts, car shows, live music, and events for automotive enthusiasts.
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