"Once upon a time," Apopka, Florida was barely populated and virtually untouched. Much distance stood between homes, farms and "town" amenities and you couldn't help but "get away from it all" in Apopka.

Apopka and it's very own Errol Estate Country Club provides the tranquil atmosphere of the hills of North Carolina and back home to many from Long Island, Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia. However, Errol encompasses the lifestyle of a vibrant Florida golf community. Unlike many sections of Florida where the railroad track that runs through town marks the highest elevation, Errol Estate offers splendid hills, rolling almost endlessly throughout both the community and its 27-hole golf course.

What a difference from the Estate's humble beginnings. When first settled, the Estate embodied one main residence, the home of John Thomas Pirie and it was situated on 1,000 acres originally purchased by Mr. Pirie in 1886.

The property was named "Errol" after a village in Scotland, John T. Pirie's birthplace. He later developed Errol into a showplace, not only with the main house called "the Hill House" and grounds, but as a progressive stock farm. He harvested improved varieties of corn as well as beggar weeds, crab grass and velvet beans for hay. He had registered Devon cattle, thoroughbred horses, registered Berkshire hogs, Rock chickens and Bronze turkeys. There was a herd of about 600 range cattle. He planted many orange trees and developed large orange groves.

The Pirie tradition is still alive at Errol Estate. John T. Pirie's great grandson, William "Bill" Pirie and his wife Isabelle built their home on Errol Parkway in 1983 and remain as winter residents and are active members of Errol Estate Country Club.

Today Errol is privately owned and is surrounded by a family-oriented community of varying style homes. Still in the process of development, there are many new home sites with attractive rolling terrains and the community is fast becoming home to many young and active families at Errol Estate in Apopka.

A recent article in the "Orlando Sentinel," by Jeff Kenerth, highlighted Errol's atmosphere of "community." As he quotes one resident, "When we leave Errol, we call it going off The Compound. We don't go off The Compound often." Part of Errol Estate's appeal is its chameleon ability to become whatever anyone wants it to be. In a region where everybody is from somewhere else, a neighborhood that comes with built-in familiarity is like coming home. Another resident states, "When you just look at the sand hills and the oaks, it does remind you of some place other than Orlando. You can make it any place you want."

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