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A Century in the Making: New Book Chronicles the History and Transformation of Florida’s Schroeder-Manatee Ranch into the Thriving Community of Lakewood Ranch

A Legacy of Living with the Land explores how generations of vision, stewardship, and entrepreneurial spirit shaped one of America’s most successful communities.

Lakewood Ranch, FL – December 8, 2025 — Long before it became home to one of the nation’s most admired master-planned communities, the place known today as Lakewood Ranch supported a tapestry of Florida enterprise—from timber and cattle, agriculture, shell mining, and water management to recreation. This new book, Lakewood Ranch: A Legacy of Living with the Land, is a nod to Florida’s pioneering history, uncovering how American innovation and perseverance fostered intentional and careful growth, honoring what came before while building for the future.

The story begins in 1846, when the Uihlein family emigrated from Germany to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to establish a brewery that would later become part of America’s brewing heritage. Their journey eventually led them to Florida’s Suncoast, where the land that now encompasses Lakewood Ranch supported thriving timber, agricultural, and shell mining operations. Faced with threats of uninvited uses, including a new airport and landfill site, the family responded with foresight—developing a deliberate, long-term plan to transform the property into the nation’s leading multigenerational community.

Drawing from extensive archives, personal recollections, and behind-the-scenes insights from the owners, developer, and community leaders, the book offers a front-row seat to how vision, resilience, and respect for the land culminated in a modern-day success story. Through political challenges, market change, and early skepticism, Lakewood Ranch not only endured—it thrived.

“Lakewood Ranch represents a winning collaboration of the family, a very talented and dedicated team, and a series of creative public/private partnerships, as well as a great number of business partners and the residents themselves,” comments Rex Jensen, President and CEO of Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, in the book’s foreword. “Each of these key players has placed their own brushstrokes on the broad canvas that now depicts one of the best-in-class master-planned communities in the United States.”

Lakewood Ranch: A Legacy of Living with the Land, written in partnership with Advantage Books, is a limited-edition coffee table book that will appeal to anyone interested in Florida’s history, community building, and the enduring relationship between people and place. To learn more or to purchase a copy, visit the Lakewood Ranch Information Center on Main Street. The book can also be preordered on Amazon. 

ABOUT LAKEWOOD RANCH 

Developed by Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, Lakewood Ranch is the 55-square-mile, award-winning master-planned community located in Sarasota and Manatee counties on Florida’s west coast. Just a few miles from the region’s white-sand beaches and offering a robust mix of cultural assets, Lakewood Ranch is home to more than 77,000 residents. It has ranked as the nation’s top-selling multigenerational master-planned community for seven consecutive years and serves as a major economic engine for the region, with more than 22,000 people employed across a growing mix of businesses, healthcare facilities, and commercial centers. The community also features top-rated schools, Lakewood Ranch Medical Center, the 75-acre Premier Sports Campus, Sarasota Polo Club, and three vibrant town centers with shopping, dining, and entertainment. Lakewood Ranch is a place where individuals and families can put down roots, build careers, and find community. For more information, visit lakewoodranch.com.