1920s postcard of "World's Greatest Citrus Grove" - in Temple Terrace.

The new city was named for the then-new hybrid Temple orange, and was the first place in the United States where the fruit was grown in large quantities. Myron E. Gillett, father of D. Collins Gillett, was instrumental in bringing the Temple orange to this country from Jamaica. The "terrace" portion of the city name refers to the terraced terrain of the area. Several of the original homes had yards with lawns sloping, in tiers, down to the river.

1921 Temple Terrace Master Plan (looking Northwest).
This colorized photograph shows the "world's largest citrus grove in the 1920s" (5000 acres of Temple oranges) to the west and north surrounding the city. The Hillsborough River can be seen in the foreground; the Bullard Parkway bridge crosses the river; 56th Street does not yet exist; and Nebraska Avenue appears on the left horizon.

Temple Terrace was one of the first planned golf-course communities in the United States. The town plan design was recently attributed to landscape architect and civil engineer, George F. Young.