Viking was a town settled in 1892 by Major B. Daniels (1860-1947) who started a pineapple plantation. In 1895 Norwegian immigrants Jens (1858-1944) and Agathe Helseth arrived, growing pineapples on Daniels 80 acre farm. More pioneers moved and the settlement grew and it became known as Viking, because of the large population of Scandinavians living there. Viking had a post office and school. It was a flag stop on the Florida East Coast Railway. The first sheriff of Saint Lucie County, Bob Lennard, was a Viking resident. Jens Helseth granted one acre of his property as the town cemetery in 1905 which was the year the first burial took place when Sea Captain Jacob Erickson was interred. The cemetery contains members of the Helseth family and WWI and II veterans. As the population in the area grew, pineapple farms were replaced with streets, houses, and businesses. Viking was renamed Indrio by Mrs. Edwin Bonney, the wife of the founder of Crayola Crayons. The couple had a home on Indrio Road. South Viking became Indrio and West Viking is now a protected nature preserve. Today all that is left of this Florida ghost town is the cemetery and the light posts from the Helseth estate. read more

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