The history of Delray Beach effectively begins with the construction of the Orange Grove House of Refuge in 1876. The house derived its name from the grove of mature sour orange and other tropical fruit trees found at the site chosen for the house of refuge, but no record or evidence of who planted the trees has survived. Indians presumably lived or passed through the area at various times, and hunters, trappers, and run-away slaves may also have lived or passed through the area in the 18th and 19th Centuries, but there is no record or evidence of them.Settlement began around 1884, when African-Americans from the Panhandle of Florida bought land a little inland from the Orange Grove House of Refuge and began farming. By 1894 the African-American community was large enough to establish the first school in the area.