Mandarin/Julington Creek

Mandarin is a neighborhood located in the southernmost portion of Jacksonville, in Duval County, Florida, United States. It is located on the eastern banks of the St. Johns River, across from Orange Park.

Julington Creek Plantation is an unincorporated community in the larger community of St. Johns, St. Johns County, Florida, United States. It consists of several large neighborhoods, and is located along Race Track Road east of State Road 13, across from Fruit Cove.

Mandarin was named after the mandarin orange[1] in 1830 by Calvin Reed, a prominent resident of the area .

Once called “a tropical paradise” by author Harriet Beecher Stowe, the quaint area of Mandarin is marked by its history, ancient oak trees draped with Spanish moss, beautiful parks, marinas and more water views than any other area in Jacksonville. In the 19th century, Mandarin was a small farming village that shipped oranges, grapefruit, lemons and other fruits and vegetables to Jacksonville and points north on the steamships that traveled the St. Johns River. In 1864, the Union steamship, the Maple Leaf, hit a Confederate mine and sank just off Mandarin Point.

The majority of the land was planted with orange trees for many years, but a freeze in the early 1980s destroyed a lot of the crop. Orange farmers decided not to replant their destroyed trees and sell off the land to developers.

Just a short drive south of Jacksonville’s city center, the community is bordered by Beauclerc to the north, Julington Creek to the south and St. John’s River to the west.

Julington Creek has major super markets, pharmacies, top-ranked restaurants, golf courses, and numerous office parks.

The neighborhood of Julington Creek Plantation has a new $15 million country club-style clubhouse with a state-of-the-art gym, skate board park, turf football and lacrosse field, four soccer fields, volleyball and four basketball courts, and a full-service restaurant. Other amenities include 130 lakes, 1200 acres of nature trails, parks, playgrounds, and a top-rated golf course. Centrally located on the east side of the St. Johns River with the intracoastal waterway to the west, it houses its own boat marina and water view restaurants. Micklers Landing Beach is east of the neighborhood.