Trilby is a State of Mind.doc

May 26, 2006

Trilby Is A State Of Mind

Editorial by Richard K Riley

Where is Trilby?  What is Trilby?  What is in a Name?

The town/city/community of Trilby was established as Macon, Florida in 1885 and then changed to the name of Trilby in 1896, by railroader Henry Plant’s wife, according to legend, who was reading the 1894 George Du Maurier novel, Trilby.  It was incorporated as a city early in the 20^th century, and dissolved into a community in the thirties.

Today, it is a sleepy sister to Lacoochee, above Dade City, and kitty-corner from Blanton.  It is the last community on US 98 on the way to Hernando, and has a downtown that consists of homes, churches, a Post Office and a Community Center.  In its infinite wisdom, the U. S. Postal Service has decreed that all the homes and businesses in the area, even up in parts of Ridge Manor in Hernando County are to be designated as “Dade City, FL  33523.”  Convenience stores are the major public businesses, and now and then residents get together to improve or protect the people, the area, and the history.  In times of emergencies such as hurricanes, the area families and organizations rally together to help each other.

So, when people ask why the Greater Trilby Community Association took the initiative to organize citizen meetings for the planned development on Christian Road named Trilby Estates, it is because we are all in this together. 

With Trilby as “unincorporated county land,” and being just another junction in the county such as Hudson, Land O’Lakes, Wesley Chapel, and New River Shopping Center, we need to stick together.  Luckily, the Northeast Pasco area has been designated an area of special concern for development, but we could still get lost in the overall county mission of build, build, build. 

As a resident who lives 50 feet from the Withlacoochee Greenways Trail, and a quarter mile from the original Trilby Depot, I consider myself a Trilbyite.  Although a newcomer from away, I am proud of the community I have joined, and hope the residents of Christian Road, Powerline Road, and soon-to-be Trilby Estates accept the welcome and support we offer them as we grow and improve our Greater Trilby Community.