HISTORY OF THE WOOD & SWINK

The History of the Wood & Swink

The Wood & Swink Old Store and Post Office is a one-story, wood-frame vernacular structure made of heart pine in 1882 by builder, William P. Shettleworth. It was owned by a wealthy Micanopy merchant named Simon H. Benjamin and used as a warehouse to store merchandise for himself and his business partner, Jacob Katz.

It was purchased in 1884 by then Evinston Postmaster, Joseph S. Wolfendon, becoming a general store around the turn of the century when ownership was transferred to John Hester. Then in 1906, Henry Deaver Wood and his brother-in-law, Robert C. Evins purchased the building. In 1910, Robert Evins passed away, leaving Henry Wood as sole owner. Henry also had a large farm and was serving a fourth term as Alachua County Commissioner when he died in 1930. Henry’s son, Robert P. Wood took over the store and post office at that time but in 1933, he sold it to his brother, Frederick W. Wood and his brother-in-law, Paul C. Swink. That was when the store became the Wood & Swink. In 1935, Paul sold his shares to Fred Wood, but the name was never changed. Fred served as postmaster for the next 44 years; longer than any other postmaster in Florida. When he retired in 1979, his daughter-in-law, Wilma Sue Brown-Wood, who was married to Fred Wood, Jr., became the postmaster and recently retired in 2010. The store was run by Jane Younge Wood, Fred Wood Sr.’s wife, until her death in 1990, at which time the store ownership transferred to Fred Jr. and his wife-postmaster, Wilma Sue Wood. Fred Jr. and Wilma Sue Wood, now retired, have passed the store to their son, Fred Wood, III.

In 1989, Jane Wood and Diana Cohen worked successfully to have the building placed on the National Register of Historic Places.