Shalimar Self Storage

About Shalimar

Shalimar is a town in Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Fort Walton Beach–Crestview–Destin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 737 at the 2020 census. == Geography == The exact coordinates for the Town of Shalimar is located at 30°26′40″N 86°34′55″W (30.444398, –86.581904).According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.3 square miles (0.78 km2), all land. == Climate == The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild winters. According to the Köppen climate classification, the Town of Shalimar has a humid subtropical climate zone (Cfa). == History == Originally an area called Port Dixie, the town "sprang up out of the woods" in 1943–1944 as a community of 160 houses to be used as housing for military officers by developer Clifford H. Meigs.During the Civil War [sic- First World War], 130 Germans operated a "dye" plant at Port Dixie, "actually an explosives factory and probably a submarine base as well." Costly machinery was smashed when they fled and the records were thrown into Garnier's Bayou."In February 1927 the Choctawhatchee and Northern Railroad was chartered 'To construct, acquire, maintain, lease, or operate a line of railroad or railroads from a point between Galliver and Crestview on the Louisville and Nashville Railroad in Okaloosa County, to a point in said county on Choctawhatchee Bay, a distance of approximately twenty-eight miles.' On Garnier's Bayou near the present Eglin (Air Force Base) housing development of Shalimar, a $29,000,000 Port Dixie Harbor and Terminal Company was chartered to build wharves for liners, a rail line north, and a city of one square mile, with streets 100 feet wide." These ambitious plans would not see fruition. Badly needed new homes were constructed beginning in 1942 by Clifford Meigs and his associates to provide adequate facilities for commissioned officers assigned at the rapidly expanding Eglin Field, immediately north of what was initially referred to as "Shalimar Park". This land was acquired from James E. Plew. The first 50 homes were almost complete by May, with another 25 underway, with the entire project costing approximately $350,000.