Lakeland - FL - Images of America Author:Lynn M. Homan and, Thomas Reilly Munnville, Rome City, and Redbug were just a few of the suggested names for the small Central Florida community that would come to be known as Lakeland. Not long after its founding, other descriptive monikersóìLovely City of Lakesî and ìHighest, Healthiest, Busiestîówould be applied. Recently ranked as the tenth ìBest Place to Liveî of medium-si... more »zed cities in the South, Lakeland today offers an entrancing combination of contrasting elements that all work well together. Fields of strawberries and rolling hills covered with citrus groves surround a growing city comprised of a mixture of structures, both new and old, modern and beautifully preserved. Commercial entities join with cultural organizations in mutually beneficial relationships to produce a quality of life that many other cities only hope to attain. Lakeland may well be as it was advertised in 1905óìFloridaís Best Town.î ÝÝ« less