About the Chamber

The Clay County Chamber of Commerce seeks to develop and promote programs that provide services and support specifically oriented to the small business sector of the Chamber membership. The Chamber has a wide array of services specifically designed to help your business grow and prosper in Clay County.

Chamber History

The Chamber, which was incorporated in 1962, has roots dating back to 1903 when the Board of Trade was organized to address the stagnant condition of business. The goal of the Board of Trade was to attract new enterprises and draw desirable residents to the city of Green Cove Springs. The board was directly responsible for establishing the Bank of Green Cove Springs, building a telephone system to connect businesses and residences and a barrel and package factory. Other members included a saloon, shoe shop, Masonic lodge, railroad, ice company, undertaker, brickyard, barber shop, rice and feed mill, bicycle shop, livery stable, cigar factory, dairy, sawmills, newspapers, drug store, blacksmith, hotels, stores and churches.

The Chamber office on Kingsley Avenue was once the site of the Yale Anthropoid Experiment Station also known by locals as the “Monkey Farm.” Dr. Robert Yerkes studied primates such as chimpanzees. For more than thirty years, researchers studied psychology and physiology, using primates to learn more about human development, socialization, and health. The facility was renamed Yerkes after his death and later moved to Zoo Atlanta where it is known today as the Yerkes National Primate Research Center.