TOURISTS,
INVALIDS,
AND
SETTLERS
CONTAINING
PRACTICAL
INFORMATION
REGARDING
CLIMATE, SOIL, AND PRODUCTIONS; CITIES, TOWNS, AND PEOPLE;
THE CULTURE OF THE ORANGE AND OTHER TROPICAL FRPIT8;
FARMING AND GARDENING; SCENERY AND RESORTS;
SPORT; ROUTES OF TRAVEL, ETC., ETC. .
GEORGE
.WITH MAP
D. APPi
ND ILL T TATION8.
COMPANY,
STREET.
1882.
tfu
COPRTIGHT BY
D. APPLETON AND COMPANY,
1881.
PREFACE.
THE writer of the following pages first saw Florida
in the month of January, 1880,
when he accompanied
General Grant on his tour through the State, as corre-
spondent of
the "Chicago
Times."
He had
previ-
ously either traveled
or resided in
: portion of the country, East,
_first
impressions of
the "Land
nearly every other
West, and South
Flowers "
but his
were so
favorable that, his special service as correspondent being
over, he returned thither with the idea of making for
himself a permanent home which should put an end to
his wanderings
-experience in
Since then he has enjoyed an extended
the State, engaged in a vocation requir-
ing visits to all the more prominent places, and traveled
over its immense territory under circumstances the most
favorable for learning its real resources and observing
the great variety of its productions.
SAlmost from the beginning, the importance of writ-
ing a book
embodying the
results of
his observation
experience
was urged
upon
him by the
friends
a
rPREFACE.
whom he made in the course of his travels; and his pe-
rusal of the multifarious inquiries addressed to the State
Bureau of Immigration, at Jacksonville, convinced him
that there is a real demand for an adequate and trust-
worthy descriptive work on Florida.
With
the excep-
tion of a few
brief
pamphlets,
written for the
most
part in the interest of some land scheme or other spec-
ulative enterprise, there appears to be really no publi-
cation
(except
the Bureau
Immigration
pamphlet)
which answers practical
questions
in a
practical
man-
ner;
and even
those books designed
for transient vis-
itors have been rendered wofully inadequate and anti-
quated by the progress that has
been achieved
during
the past few years.
The present volume is the result of personal obser-
vation and study; and is wri
to do justice to all parts of
tten with a sincere desire
the State, and to describe
accurately and with precision its real resources and ad-
vantages.
It is written for
Florida entire, and not in
the interest of any corporation, speculative scheme, or
special locality.
Having no land to sell, and no personal
interest of any kind
to further, the author
has found
little difficulty in following Othello's injunction,
to extenuate, nor set down aught in malice."
Where so many have aided him
and suggestions,
"naught
C5
with information
the author feels that it is almost in-
vidious to name only a few; yet he can not forbear thus
explicitly
acknowledging
his obligations to
the Hon.
PREFACE.
Seth French, late Commissioner of the Bureau of Im-
migration; to Captain Samuel Fairbanks, Assistant Com-
missioner;
and to Mr.
William Bloxham,
the present
Governor of the State.
Last, but not least, he would
offer his acknowledgments to Mr. C. H. Jones, of New
York City, who rendered him invaluable aid in the ar-
rangement and revision of his work.
G. M. B.
September, 1881.
4
I" ~ *?V
'IMONIAL.
It is known
to the undersigned
that the
author,
George
M. Barbour,
traveled
over
almost the
whole
Florida,
under circumstances
peculiarly advantageous
enabling
him to acquaint
himself
the varied
resources
offers
of the
to the there
State, and with t
e classes to whom
he attractions
his work
which it
is addressed
-Tourists,
his abilities
Invalids,
as a writer
and Settlers.
on Florida
Our knowledge
subjects,
opportunities
he has enjoyed i
preparing
his book,
that we tan commend it
once
trustworthy and
comprehensive-greatly
superior
in these
respects
anything
hitherto
published
descriptive
the entire
State
and its soil and productions.
W. D. BLOXHAM,
F. DREW,
SAMU
Ex-Commissioner
EL FAIRBANKS
Assistant Commi
Immigration.
ssioner of
gration.
and of
are
Governor
of Florida.
ORGE
SETH
Ex- Governor
'RENCH,
Florida.
Immi-
,
CONTENTS.
CHAP. PAGS
I.-QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 11
II.-NATURAL DIVISIONS OF FLORIDA 17
III.-A TRIP THROUGH THE STATE WITH COMMISSIONER
FRENCH 80
IV.-A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA WITH CAPTAIN
FAIRBANKS. 67
V.-JACKSONVILLE, FERNANDINA, AND ST. AUGUSTINE 9
VI.-THE ST. JOHN'S RIVER 107
VII.-THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER, SILVER SPRINGS, AND @CAI 125
VIII.-THE INDIAN RIVER REGION AND THE INLAND LAKES 136
IX.-THE GuLF COAST ANDUKEY WEST 145
X.-THa SAsFORD GRANT AND ORANGE COUNTY .155
XL.-RANDOM SKETCHES.-AN OCEAN VOYAGE IN WINTER;
THE ATLANTIC COAST OF FLORIDA; THE SOUTH-
WEST COAST .178
XII.--CLIMATE AND HEALTH.-SUGGESTIONS FOR INVALIDS 184
III.-RETROSPEOTIVE.-AN HISTORICAL SKETCH 209
IV.-FLORIDA FOLKS AND FAMILIES 225
XV.-ORANGE-CULTUR 289
XV.L-OTHEB TROPICAL AND SEMI-TROPICAL FRUITS 22
t
CONTENTS.
CHAP.
XVII.-FIELD
AND FARM PRODUCTS.-VEGETABLE-GARDEN-
XVIII.-LIvE-SToCK
XIX.-FuE, FIN, AND FEATHER
XX.-INSECTS AND REPTILES
XXI.-OPPORTUNITIES FOR LABOR AND CAPITAL
XXII.-A WORD OF FRIENDLY ADVICE TO NEW-COMERS
.294
XXIII.-ROUTES TO AND THROUGH FLORIDA
PAGE
LIST
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
A Florida Orange-Grove
Lighthouse on Florida Keys
. 19
Hammocks
The Banana
A Typical Country Hotel in Florida-" Ocklawaha House,
A Pair of
Pendryville
'" Crackers"
View on the Escambia River, near.Pensacola
Street-Scene
in Pensacola
View of Bay from Shot Park, Navy-Yard
Specimens of Pensacola Fish
Ruins of Fort McRae, with Fort Pickens in the Distance
Fort Barrancas .
Street-Scene
in Jacksonville
A Cluster of Palmettoes
Street in St.
Augustine
t. Augustine Cathedral
to Fort Marion
I Mouth of the
St. John's
Stowe's Residence .
Entrance to Hart's Orange-Grove
Forest on the Ocklawaha
.126
. 55
. Fivontispicce.
LIST OF ILLUSTRA TIONS.
PAGE
A River Post-Office
. 129
The Lookout
Silver Spring
.183
A Sudden Turn .
Looking across Indian River
S151
The Cabbage-Palm
Key West
. 228
A Country Cart
Out for a Drive
Orange-Trees
The Fig
.256
A Pineapple Plant
The Date.Palm
Sugar-Mill
A Cypress-Shingle Yard
Florida Pine-Barrens
A Hunter's Camp
.266
.280
.240
CHAPTER I.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.
FLORIDA! What kind of a place is it? How does it
look? What does it produce? What are the conditions
of success there? How do the people live? How do they
like it? These are a few of the multitude of questions
that are eagerly showered upon a resident of this sunny,
genial clime, when visiting the less favored regions of our
country.
Those who ask them commonly suppose that they can
be answered as compendiously and precisely as the some-
what similar questions in a geographical text-book; but,
unfortunately, this
comprising the pre
swer them in fulL
,answering these an
the following book
it, the reader will
demands upon his
accomplishment of
response to the firs
is not possible, and the numerous pages
sent volume are none too many to an-
In fact, it is for the sole purpose -of
d similar inquiries that I have written
; and I trust that, when he has finished
acquit me of
attention that
this object.
t question, that
having
Swas
I migh
it is a
made
neces
t say
delig
to the second, that it looks like a region
breathed upon by airs from Araby the blest;
other, that it produces nearly everything, with
any larger
sary th the
,indeed, in
htful place;
perpetually
and to the
less expen-
FLORIDA.
diture of labor than is the case in any other portion of the
wide domain included within the United States. There
are few, however, who will be satisfied any longer with
such "glittering generalities "-a surfeit of them having
already been dealt out by previous writers on the subject;
and my own aim ha been to give as clearly and specifi-
cally as I can such information as may prove helpful to the
ehree classes of readers
the tourist who comes
sport; the invalid who
nial climate which shall
even more especially, thi
self a home under plea:
tions than those which
to whom the book is addressed:
for amusement, sight-seeing, or
comes in search of that more ge-
prolong his days in the land; and,
e settler whose aim is to make him-
santer and more promising condi-
he encounters on the stern soil or
amid the harsh blasts of the northern sections of our coun-
try.
Florida has a history (as will be told in the chapter on
that subject) that extends back to 1512, covering a period
of nearly four hundred years; yet in spite of this, and in
spite, too, of its unequaled natural advantages, it has a
smaller population, in proportion to its great size, than any
other State in the Union, except, perhaps, Nevada and
Colorado. A constantly rising tide of immigration is now
flowing in, and there has been a surprising increase in the
number of inhabitants during the past ten years; but some
of the very choicest localities in the State are still in a
state of nature, and there is room and verge enough for an
additional million of busy and prosperous workers. 'For
Florida is a very large State-one of the largest in the
Union-with an awj of nearly sixty thousand square miles;
and, in proportion to its size, it has as large an acreage of
productive soil as any other, except the prairie States of
the West. Many portions, no doubt, are ill adapted for
what are commonly regarded as the great staples of the
country; but in the range and variety of its productions it
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 13
is hardly equaled, and is certainly not surpassed, by any
other section of equal area.
This fact in regard to Florida is usually overlooked
by those who derive their ideas from the hasty conclusions
of transient winter visitors. Each so-called "season" wit-
nesses an influx of thousands of these visitors, in search of
health or on pleasure bent," usually wealthy, and equipped
with more prejudices than their well-filled traveling-bags
would contain. Their chief desire is to find an elegant
hotel, having "all modern conveniences"; and, once estab-
lished there, to secure some cozy nook on a broad veran-
da, where they may watch the fruits and flowers growing
Sin the open air, breathe the soft, balmy air, and lazily en-
joy all the luxury and delights of June in January. For
recreation, they ride to the nearest orange-groves, or in-
dulge in a moonlight sail, or, if a little more adventurous
and "masculine," take a few quiet fishing-trips, or hunt
quail and duck. Once, at least, during their stay, they
make the "grand tour" by the regulation route-up the
St. John's to Palatka, Enterprise, and Sanford, up the
darkly-mysterious Ocklawaha (very few, on this excursion,
even leaving the boat), then down the river again and.over
to St. Augustine, where the longest stay is apt to be made,
as its many points of interest and its animated social life
render St. Augustine peculiarly attractive to the average /
pleasure-seeker. This, in the -great majority of instances,
is the full extent of their study and observation of the char-
acteristics and resources of Florida; and, such being the
case, it can hardly be regarded as surprising that they should
represent it as a pleasant enough place of resort in winter
for invalids, but a hot, unwholesome region in summer,
poor in soil, arid of aspect, the haunt of alligators, reptiles,
and insects, with nothing especially good in it but oranges.
It need hardly be pointed out, however, that the true
capabilities of a great State can not be dealt with ade-
14 FLORIDA.
quately in this summary fashion; and, as a matter of fact,
Florida has a soil in which can be grown every variety of
fruit, flower, garden-vegetable, field-crop, or forest prod-
t
uct, that grows in any temperate or semi-tropical region
of the world. Every one has heard of its fabulous yield
of oranges, lemons, and the like; and the stories told on
this head are not always exaggerated. I have seen groves
of orange-trees which produced from two hundred to four
thousand dollars to the acre, and know of an acre of pine-
apples that, within two years after the trees were cleared
from its surface, yielded the owners (two bright young
New York lads, by-the-way) eighteen hundred dollars.
But these, and such as these, by no means exhaust the
list of valuable products which Florida yields to the cul-
tivator. I have seen fields of wheat rinening in January
that prod
produced
sugar-can
net profit
two hund
a net prol
that netti
melons ai
size, are o
markets,
uced twenty-eight bushels to the acre; corn that
in the same month seventy bushels to the acre ;
e that yielded one hundred and sixty dollars
to the acre; common Irish potatoes producing
hired bushels to the acre; fields of rice that paid
fit of two hundred dollars an acre; and cassava
ed a hundred and fifty dollars per acre. Water-
nd
)f
or
garden-vegetables grow rapidly, attain great
excellent quality, and, where convenient to city
to lines of
transportation, pay the
from one hundred to one thousand dollars per
garden-vegetables three and even four crops
\Pimes take from the same tract within twelve
and of the entire list of strange or familiar
garden products, fruits, and flowers, you may,
through the State, find each and every one g
abundance. The largest peach-tree, undoubtedly
ica, is near Orange City, in Volusia County, witl
of branches over seven ty feet in diameter !
Nor is this all. I have seen bean-vines in t
producer
acre. Of
are some-
months;
farm and
in a trip
rowing in
,in Amer-
a spread
heir third
QUESTIONS AND
ANSWERS.
year bearing as vigorously as when first planted; pears
growing on vines; peas growing on trees; and plants
growing on nothing at all-the latter being the common
air-plants. Of live-stock, I have seen as large, fine, fat
swine, and as nea
York, or Illinois;
good condition at
Northern-raised st
The climate of
delightful, and the
most other portion
gA -* rt'xt\/ 1 '
of I-U w
and the w
affirm front
were both
It seems a
any living
from either
is asserted
t -cattle and sheep, as in Vermont, New
and they can be raised and kept in
so small a cost that comparison with
ock is absurd.
Florida in the winter months is simply
Summers are about as endurable as in
is of the United States. The summer
11 1 .1 I AA P
as said Dy all to De the nottest ior many years,
inter of 1880-'81 to be the coldest; yet I can
i the sure basis of personal experience thai they
healthy and agreeable, even to a new-comer.
absolutely impossible that any human being, or
creature able to move about, should really suffer
r cold or heat, or from hunger, in Florida. It
(and meets with no dispute) that no case of
starvation, of freezing, of
was ever known in the Sta
never been heard of.
Consider the terribly co
winter season throughout
causes; the many deaths
want of a little friendly wa
of sunstroke,
indirectly by
summer; and
vation for lac
cities. Then
clime, where
sunstroke, or of hydrophobia,
ite; and local epidemics have
Id weather of the long, dreary
the North; the suffering it
among the poor, perishing for
irmth. Consider also the cases
the suffering and deaths caused directly or
the heat, in those same regions during the
the still more sorrowful cases of actual star-
k of the plainest food in many of the large
contemplate the advantages of this favored
food-even such articles as are regarded as
luxuries in other localities-may be had in abundance,
for very little cost or labor, and where a genial tempera-
ture prevails at all seasons!
I
ML
FLORIDA.
But there is one
tion with all
be supposed
a man can
"which
climate
labor is
thing to be remembered in
connec-
Sthis-and it is forgotten oftener than would
: even Florida is not the garden of Eden, and
not live even here like the lilies of the field,
not, neither do they spin." Florida soil and
and will do a great deal; but living without
possible, and here as elsewhere the great law
/ prevails, that in the sweat of his brow shall man eat his
bread. The tr advantage which Florida offers is, that
* by little labor can much comfort be enjoyed, and the bet-
ter directed the labor the greater the comfort. To those
who have but little capital (or none),
iously seeking for a home with all the
believe that this State offers the best
our country.
Finally, as a compendious answer
ries upon the subject that have come
I would say that a settler in Florida-
as a capitalist, as a farmer, or as a labi
more ease and personal comfort, can
can enjoy more genuine luxuries, can
come from a smaller investment and by
sooner secure a competency, than in a
portion of North America.
and who are anx-
comforts of life, I
chances of any in
to the many inqui-
to my knowledge,
-whether he comes
orer--can live with
live more cheaply,
obtain a greater in-
less labor, and can
my other accessible
CHAPTER II.
NATURAL DIVISIONS OF FLORIDA.
As I have already remarked, Florida is a very large
State, containing nearly sixty thousand nare miles (59,-
268). From north to south it stretches 450 miles-from a
temperate to a tropical clime. Washed along its entire
eastern border by the e4uable waters of the Gulf Stream,
which always pours its pure salt breezes over the peninsula,
and by the tropically warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico
on much of its western boundary, it possesses a variety of
climate, soil, and products, such as can be found nowhere&
else save in Italy, which enjoys a similarity of geographi-"/
cal conditions.
Though its
Cape Sable is
than 90 miles,
sula, extending
toward Cuba,
West. On the
by the Straits
nates on the so
of rocky islets,
Florida oj the
200 miles, and
called the Tort
merely frequent
Keys rise, and
is the narrow a
extreme length from the Perdido River to
about 700 miles, its average breadth is less
and in shape it is a long and narrow penin-
southward into the Atlantic and pointing
Havana being only 110 miles from Key
southeast it is separated from the Bahamas
of Florida. The peninsula proper termi-
ith in Cape Sable; but a remarkable chain
known as the Florida Keys, begins at Cape
eastern shore, extends southwestward nearly
L ends in the cluster of sand-heaped rocks
ugas, from the great number of turtles for-
ing them. South of the bank on which the
separated from them by a navigable channel,
nid dangerous coral ridge known as the Flor-
FLORIDA.
ida Reef.
The entire State is comprised between latitude
24" 30' and 310 north, and longitude 800 and 87
45' west.
LIanerousS ON FLORIDA KITs.
In the aggregate Florida possesses a coast-line of more
than 1,150 miles, but on this long stretch of seaboard there
are onlay-afelgogd harbors. The principal on the Atlan-
tic coast are St. Augustine, Fernandina, Port Orange, and
Jacksonville (on the St. John's River)
those on the Gulf
coast are Pensacola, Appalachicola, St. Mark's, Cedar Keys,
NATURAL DIVISIONS.
Tampa,
Charlotte Harbor, and Key West.
19
The latter is
one of the most important naval stations of the republic,
owing to its commanding situation at the entrance of the
most frequented passage into the Gulf of Mexico. The
chief rivers are the St. John's, which furnishes nearly 1,000
miles of water navigation; the Indian River, a long, nar-
row lagoon on the eastern coast; the Ocklawaha, the AppP:
1^
-~ ~'~ "--------' -
A HAMMOOK.
lachicola,
the Ocklockonnee,
the Perdido,
the Suwanee,
and the St. Mary's.
The Withlacoochee, which discharges
20 FLORIDA.
its waters into the Gulf, is an important stream, as are also
Peace Creek, which falls into Charlotte Harbor, and the
Caloosahatchie,
south. Kissimn
lakes with Lake
The surface
elevation being
and this being
are classified a
swamp, and pin
which empties into the
nee River, connecting sev
Okechobee, is also a nav
of the State is generally
but littlenmomthan 500
attained in only a few
es
ie.
Gulf still farther
eral of the smaller
igable stream.
level, the greatest
feet above the sea,
places. The lands
high-hammock, low-hammock, savanna,
The hammocks vary from a few acres
to thousands of acres in extent, and are found in
of the peninsula.
growth of red, liv
ory, and dogwood
They are usually
e, and water oak,
and when cleared
almost inexhaustible fertility.
vial tracts on the margins of
areas, yielding largely, but r,
in ordinary seasons. Except
generally sandy and apt to b
the surface of the interior,
The s
streams
quiring
in the
e poor.
covered with
magnolia, gu
I they afford
avannas are r
, or lying in
all parts
a dense
m, hick-
a soil of
ich allu-
letached
ditching and diking
hammocks, the soil is
Numerous lakes dot
the largest being Lake Oke-
chobee, which is said to cover an area of more than 650
square miles. Perhaps the most remarkable geographical
feature of the State is the immense tract of marsh or lake
filled with islands, in the southern part of the peninsula,
called the Everglades b the ndn "-water"). It
is about 60 miles long by 60 broad, covering most of the
territory south of Lake Okechobee, and is impassable dur-
ing the rainy reason, from July to October. The islands
with which its surface is studded vary from one fourth
of an acre to hundreds of acres in extent, and are usually
entangled in dense thickets of shrubbery or vines. The
water of the lake is from one to six feet deep, and the bot-
tom is covered with a growth of rank grass which, rising
abova the surface, gives it the deceptive appearance of a
boundless prairie.
Another noteworthy feature of Florida
I
NATURAL DIVISIONS.
are the subterranean streams which undermine the rotten-
limestone formation, creating numerous cavities in. the
ground that are locally known as "sinks." These are in-
verted conical hollows, or tunnels, varying in extent from a
few yards to several acres, at the bottom of which running
water often appears.
The foregoihg is a rapid summary of the geographical
or cyclopedic descriptions that are usually given of Flor-
ida, and it is as accurate, perhaps, as such sweeping gen-
eralizations can be expected to be; yet when taken too lit-
erally these descriptions are not only inadequate, but mis-
leading. For the truth is, that there are tre -
Florida-three Floridas, so to speak-each distinct in soil,
c mate, and productions; and it is because of this that the
people of other sections, as they read abodt the State in
short newspaper sketches, or in pamphlets published in the
interests of some special locality, are apt to draw erroneous
inferences.
For instance, the winter of 1880-'81 was ex-
ceptionally severe everywhere, making itself felt even in
Florida; and the Northern and foreign reader, learning
that fruits were destroyed, garden-crops hopelessly ruined,
oranges frozen on the trees by thousands, in fact that cold
and frost played havoc in Florida as well as elsewhere,
doubtless came to the conclusion that it was not much of a
tropical State after all. Well, these things happened, just
as reported. The
done, and much loss
tion thus visited inc
-only the northern
large portion of tb
kLfos.that kill.
they were not the
tricts to which they
frost came, and immense damage was
s inflicted. Yet the fact is that the sec-
luded but a small portion of the State
i and a portion of middle Florida. A
Le Statejw a6 -u neer is-- *ed
So that, while the reports were true,
whole truth, and there were many dis-
did not apply at all.
The three natural divisions under which Florida must
be described, if it is to be described accurately, maybe
FLORIDA.
classified as the Nortbern orTemperatothe Semi-trnial,
3 and theTropical.
Northern Florida, especially the western section of it,
in soil, productions, and general appearance, closely resem-
bles regions much farther north. It is a land of live-stock,
of corn, wheat, cotton, cane, jute, rice, ramie, potatoes, ap-
ples, grapes, peaches, figs, in fact all the products of fields,
forests, and gardens of a northern clime, with a few of the
hardier of southern products. The tropical banana, pine-
apple, etc., do not grow there, nor the orange or lemon, as
a crop for profit. Its soil is excellent; its surface is rolling
and hilly, with grand forests, rocks, springs, and streams;
and the roads are firm and good. It is not tropical, but is
very picturesque and home-like, and, to the Northern visit-
or, is the most agreeable portion of the State. Better live-
stock, or crops, can not be produced in the world, in great-
er abundance, or with less expense and labor, than grow
here; but they are not tropical crops. Such is Northern
Florida, where frosts and "cold snaps" are not only possi-
ble, but frequently occur.
Middle Florida is that portion of the State lying be-
tween the twenty-eighth and thirtieth parallels, and may
/ be termed Semi-tropical Florida. It is the region where
many of the products of both the temperate and the tropi-
cal climes may be found growing side by side; where the
orange, lemon, fig, guava, citron, grape, and all garden-
vegetables, may be found growing, for profit, in the open
air, all the year round. It is where cotton, cane, rice, and
all field-crops pay best, and where wheat, corn, and live-
stock are noticeably less productive than a little farther
north. The soil here is mostly of a sandy character, and
begins to have the characteristic appearance of a tropical
soil; while the surface is generally flat and uninteresting,
with occasional slightly rolling tracts. There are but few
streams or lakes, except in the central portion-known- to
NATURAL DIVISIONS.
the residents as the Orange Lake region-where there are
several quite large-sized lakes, which are of very attractive
appearance.
Large orange-groves are found growing in all parts of
this region, and thousands of trees are being set out
yearly. Hundreds of the settlers there-especially along
the line of the Transit Railroad (that runs from Fernan-
dina to Cedar Keys) and its branches-in the vicinity of
Starke, Waldo, Gainesville, and of Ocala and Leesburg,
are engaged in raising vegetables of all kinds for the
'Northern markets. Thousands of crates of green peas,
tomatoes, beans, cucumbers, onions, cabbages, cauliflower,
spinach, celery, lettuce, beets, etc., and car-loads of water-
melons, are gathered and shipped to all -points North in
January, February, March, and April. It is an industry
that has, in a few years, -grown to great proportions, and,
when the season is at all favorable, repays those engaged
handsomely. In many cases profits of several hundreds
of dollars (upward of a thousand dollars are known of in
several cases) have been made in a single season, from an
acre or but little more, of some special crop, that for-
tunately ripened and reached the market at the right
moment. Strawberries here grow abundantly, and with
proper care and culture yield immense crops, repaying
wonderful profits. I know of several cases where the
clear profit, netted from about an acre, was almost fabu-
lous. This is rapidly becoming a leading crop or industry
of the State.
i Semi-tropical Florida, while not very attractive in
,scenery, probably produces the greatest variety of mar-
ketable and profitable crops of any region in our country.
Although the hardier field-crops of the North, such as
wheat, corn, etc., and the more delicate fruit-products of
the extreme South, like the banana, pineapple, etc., do not
grow well in this region, yet the variety of the vegetable
2
.1
FLORIDA.
kingdom, including the hardiest of the Southern and the
tenderest of the Northern crops, is so great that the land
will always produce paying crops in one form or another.
As transportation facilities increase, the opportunities and
advantages will multiply; for the crops of this region
are grown in that season, and are of that kind, that they
must be at once placed in the hands of the consumer.
Without entering into a lengthy description of its
climate or physical features, I may say that it
/ region, and that game and
one unpleasant feature to
it is liable to frosts. Th
may not in a dozen year
very apt to destroy your
Of oranges and such frui
fish are
mar its
ley may
s-but a
hopes of
plentiful.
numerous
come any
visit, when
profit for
is a healthy
There is but
advantages:
winter-and
it comes, is
that season.
ts, in this semi-tropical belt, the
farther south the better; every mile north is a step toward
greater risk. You can not get too far south-that is, if
you find good soil-but you can easily get too far north,
even for semi-tropical products.
South Florida comprises all that region of mainland
and innumerable keys or islands, great and small, lying
south of the twenty-eighth parallel, and is the really, truly
tropical Florida-the Italy, the Spain, the Egypt, of the
United States. In this region frosts rarely come, and-
every fruit, flower, shrub, plant, or product, that grows in
any tropical region of the world grows, or can be grown,
here. Either on its Atlantic, breezy, rocky coast; its hot,
torrid, south end shores, or its balmy Gulf coast, or within
its vast interior-the famous Everglades region-in all
these prolific, tropical soils can something of profit be
grown; though, of course, the farther south the more
surely can the really tropical products be counted upon.
It is the region of the pineapple, banana, cocoanut, guava,
sugar-apple, bread-fruit, sugar-cane, almond, fig, olive, and
all the innumerable list of tropical fruits.
NATURAL DIVISIONS.
great Everglades region
includes
Much
of the
mainland of this part of the State.
region, but is a flat, prairie country
nois, only this is covered with clear, p
sands of square miles, from three to
and studded with islands that have
palmetto, cy ress, pine, bay, cedar,
magnolia, and all such timbers. The
by-the-way, are the homes of the re
powerful Seminole Indians. A contra
made, and ratified by the State, for t
vast region, which, if successfully perf
for settlement millions of acres of t]
valuable sugar and cotton lands in ti
It is not a swampy
very much like Illi-
ure water for thou-
thirty inches deep,
a dense growth of
oak, hickory, gum,
se island fastnesses,
mnant of the once
rct has recently been
;he drainage of this
formed, will open up
he richest and most
e world.
The regions along the coasts generally, contain the best
soil for the production of vegetables and fruits. It -is
also in these localities that the sand-fly, gnat, mosquito,
and such pestiferous insects are most abundant. But even
here there are months when they are not trqgblesome : it
is during the midsummer nquthh *text they Ste .worst,
and it is the fact that rip t' it those localities thr ae
places perfectly free fri i sj the insects that infest other
places. The coasts especially on ~,1e..Atlantic, .ate very
rocky, and the sB3eTr y is in gen a fcee~e!gropical
and interesting~''The woods, ffdlds, air, lakes, bays, and
rivers are filled 'wth fur, fin, and feather, flesh and fowl,
oysters, turtles, and fruits. The metropolis of all this
region is Key West, itself on an island just off the south-
ern extremity of the peninsula; and other prominent
places are Indian River, Lake Worth, Key Biscayne Bay,
Florida Bay, Cape Sable, Whitewater Bay, Oyster Bay,
Charlotte Harbor, and Tampa Bay.
This is the region to go to for purely tropical products
and for the benefits of a summer climate in winter; but
as a place for a continued residence the entire year, it will
FLORIDA.
not be desirable until many more settlers move in. It is
too lonely, and the means of transportation are too few
and irregular
but all who live in those regions are quite
unanimous in asserting that the climate is pleasant all the
year, and I have reason to believe life is just as pleasant
there in all seasons as anywhere, except for the lack of
society and transportation above mentioned.
If large set-
elements, towns, and cities were founded there, and regular
communication opened, it would be one of the most de-
lightful regions of America, healthy and agreeable, while
the products of its salt-water coast, fresh-water lakes and
rivers, fields, gardens, and groves would furnish to man-
kind, at all seasons, the
best and
most delicious of
foods that human nature craves.
" Like all other tropical countries, Tropical Florida has
its wet and dry seasons.*
The wet or rainy season is dur-
ing midsummer, which has a tendency to cool the atmos-
phere, and render the summer months cooler than they are in
the more northern portions of the State or in other portions
of the" Sbuodt* Duri g: the rainy season nearly the whole
o6tat'y fldoe&s, te fkowfoy, being so flat and level that
tha water does not flow 65t e8dily, A great portion of the
country requires ditching aAcd.'aning, and. w
systenf.4aQmethoh. gihll be adopite't jl tet 6f the surplus
water dturrg.fie tdifty gean, this p6rfon of the State will
prove the'*d6st proahctikea part of thel'oseth. It has but
few swamps or marshes, unless you conslelr'the Everglades
a marsh. The Alpativkee Swamp, upon the head-waters of
the St. Lucie River, is the only swamp of any magnitude in
Tropical Florida, and this part of the State has less swamps
than northern Wisconsin or Michigan. The country east
and south of the St. John's River has more swamps than any
other part of the State through which I have traveled
They are principally covered with cypress-timber, and, be-
ing easy of access from the St. Johns and Indian Rivers,
are valuable. There are fine lands upon Halifax River and
*The following paragraphs are abridged from a report prepared by a
resident at the request of the Commissioner of the Bureau of Immigration.
I
^
u
NATURAL DIVISIONS. 27
Mosquito Lagoon, which, at a former period, were under cul-
tivation, but were abandoned during the Indian war by their
owners. All that portion of the State which I have denom-
inated Tropical Florida is capable of producing oranges,
lemons, limes, arrow-root, cassava, indigo, Sisal-hemp, sugar-
cane, sea-island cotton, rice, figs, melons of all kinds, as well
as the vegetables grown in the more northern States. The
country around Charlotte Harbor and Biscayne Bay is sus-
ceptible of producing cocoanuts, cacao, pineapples, gua-
vas, coffee, bananas, plantains, alligator pears, and all the
fruits and plants of the West Indies. The rich lands which
skirt the savannas upon the coast side are covered with
rotten limestone, and have mixed with the vegetable matter
to that extent that the soil will effervesce as soon as it comes
in contact with acids These savannas are valuable for
sugar-plantations, as the sugar-cane requires a large per-
centage of lime, and the climate is so mild that the cane
will not require planting oftener than once in ten or twelve
years. The Palma Christi, or castor-bean, is here perennial,
and grows to be quite a tree. I saw a number as large
as peach-trees twenty feet high. Sea-island cotton seems
to be a perennial in this section of the State, and is of a fine
quality. Live-oak, yellow pine, cabbage-tree, and mangrove
are the most abundant forest-trees, though formerly a good
deal of fustic, mahogany, lignum-vite, and braziletto was to
be met with; but these valuable species of timber have
been so much in demand for ship-building and commerce
that trees of any size are rare. The most formidable obsta-
cle the farmer meets in preparing ground for cultivation is
the saw-palmetto (Cham"rops serrulata), with plated pal-
mate fronds and sharply serrate stipes. The roots cover
the surface of the ground, and are removed by the slow
process of the grubbmg-hoe. Several species of this genus
of palm afforded the Florida tribes food, wine, sugar, fruit,
cabbage, fans, darts, ropes, and cloth. Some have good
fruit, like plums; others austere, like dates. They are now
chiefly used to make hats, fans, baskets, and mats, with the
leaves.
The land bordering on the Caloosahatchie River and its
tributaries is accessible by vessels drawing not more than
six feet, and contains enough live-oak to supply the navy
of the United States for a quarter of a century. Other val-
28 FLORIDA,
unable timber for ship-building is found in the same locality.
Such being the natural advantages which invite enterprise
to this quarter, there can be no doubt that, when its agri-
cultural resources are more generally understood, southern
Florida will be covered with a dense population of thrifty
farmers. Cuba with almost a c rrendg-elimate, has
several hundred plants which serve as a basis to her agri-
culture, such as grains, farinaceous roots, edible seeds, veg-
etables, salads, sauces, and fruits ; the great staples of ex-
portation sugar, coffee, and tobacco; plants for dyes,
yielding oil, suitable for cordage or cloth, yielding gums
and resins, good for tanning ; grasses; and woods employed
in various uses. Now, it is well known that most of the
productions of Cuba are growing in south Florida, and,
with cultivation, might be made to rival those of that cele-
brated island. Sea-island cotton of a fine quality has been
produced in the very center of the peninsula. Florida sur-
passes Cuba in variety and delicacy of vegetable culture.
At all seasons of the year beets, onions, egg-plants, carrots,
lettuce, celery, etc., are produced with the most indifferent
culture, while everything that grows upon vines is in abun-
dance and in great perfection. Cabbages and Irish pota-
toes, if planted in October, produce well. The former have
been grown at Fort Myers, a single head weighing forty
pounds. Cattle, hogs, and poultry increase astonishingly.
Besides the above, tobacco, pindars,. cow-peas, and Irish
potatoes yield abundantly.
The prairie lands are immense meadows, clothed with
luxuriant verdure, interspersed with clumps of oak-trees
and palmettoes of from five to ten acres each. These lands
are looked upon as inferior for agricultural purposes, and
are subject to periodical inundations during the summer
season-i. e., from the beginning of June to the 25th of
August. They are the favorite resort of vast herds of cat-
tie and game, which roam and graze upon the fragrant herb-
age. The estimate of the amount of cattle is from 150,-
000 to 200,000 head, thereby forming one of the principal
products of the country. Stock-cattle sell for five dollars
per head, and beef-cattle from nine to thirteen dollars per
head. Hogs also do well, and, when strict attention is paid
to them, pay well. I have known and heard of several
instances m which the common woods-hog, two and a half
NATURAL DIVISIONS. 29
years old, weighed from 400 to 500 pounds gross. Sheep
and colts, with the natural advantages that this country
possesses, could be made profitable. The forest abounds in
game, such as bears, panthers, deer, cats, raccoons, squir-
rels, and turkeys, and the lakes and rivers afford innumer-
able multitudes of fish and waterfowl. There are also nu-
merous small lakes of pure water, some of which are only
a few rods in extent, while others are from two to ten miles
in length, filled with fish. These prairies are the paradise
of the herdsman and the hunter. The cattle require no
feeding during the winter, and one can hardly travel over
the prairies a whole day without seeing from fifty to one
hundred deer."
CHAPTER
A TOUR OF THE STATE WITH THE COMMISSIONER OF IMMI-
GRATION.
IN the midwinter of 1879-'80 the Hon. Seth Fren
State Commissioner of Immigration, decided to make
official tour through the southern and middle regions
the State, for the purpose of better informing himself
to the general character of the people, the soil, the pr
ucts, and the facilities for transportation. He kindly
vited the writer to accompany him, and the invitation
gladly accepted. It was a very extensive tour, and g
us an unusually excellent opportunity to fully acqua
ch,
an
of
as
od-
in-
vas
ave
int
ourselves with
French-known
tive of New Yc
NI L---. "yr
W isconsin.
presence and
ested in his
all respects j
position which
At noon
lie
ad
du
a very large section of the State. Mr.
to all his friends as Dr. French-is a na-
,rk, but was for many years a resident of
is a man of wealth, liberal education, fine
Dress, social disposition, thoroughly inter-
ties, and an enthusiast about Florida-in
just the
h he th
of one
man for the peculiar and responsible
en held.
rainy day late in January, we took
passage at Jacksonville on the old, small, odd-looking but
excellent steamer Volusia, commanded by young Captain
Lund. It is an up-river steamer, an old-timer, built espe-
cially for navigating the narrow, crooked channel of the
far-up St. John's. The steamer was crowded with passen-
gers, including an elderly lady and her husband, from
New England; a Massachusetts school-ma'rm; a lady with
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
a daughter of about sixteen, from Ohio; and a lady resid-
ing in Jacksonville, with three small children and a nurse.
The latter was on an excursion-trip, up and return; and
those three children, that is to say, the two eldest boys,
kept the entire party in an uneasy fidget for fear that they
would or wouldn't get drowned.
The morning of the third
and from this point the trip
ing.* The St. John's above
below Lake Jessup) is little
crooked creek. Passing out
entered this narrow stream,
day found
was novel
Lake Mo
more than
of Lake J
and found
us in Lake Jessup,
as well as interest-
nroe (twelve miles
a narrow and very
ressup, we at once
ourselves in a re-
gion differing wholly from any other portion of the St.
John's country. It is a flat, level region of savannas, much
resembling the vast prairies of Illinois. In all directions
the eye ranges to the horizon, with nothing to break the
monotony. But though monotonous, it is not uninterest-
ing. These savannas, or prairies, are everywhere densely
covered with luxuriant growths of marshy grasses and
maiden-cane (the latter a tall,
the sugar-cane species, in ap]
fields of wheat, ten to fifteen
clumps of timber, consisting
four trees, and sometimes be
The trees are nearly or quite
slender, waving
pearance closely
Feet high), with
sometimes of bu
ing several acres
all of palmetto, a
growth of
resembling
occasional
t three or
in extent.
nd lend a
distinctively tropical appearance to the scenery. They
much resemble small islands dotted over the surface of a
great lake.
Throughout that entire region were to be seen hun-
dreds of cattle grazing on the rich vegetation, which is
said to be greatly liked by tlem, and very fattening. One
herd alone, owned by J. M. Lanier, numbers over twenty
thousand head, and there are several other herds fully
The lower St. John's is fully described in another chapter.
FLORIDA.
as large. The scene, too, was enlivened by hundreds of
storks, cranes, curlews-of all gay colors-pelicans, herons,
flamingoes, and water-turkeys, nearly all varieties being
large, long-legged, long-necked, and long-billed, in gay-
colored or snow-white plumage, all quite strange, and cu-
riously interesting to the Northern visitor. Everywhere
they could be seen standing in motionless meditation; or,
if the boat approached too close, they would rise in a sin-
gularly graceful manner, and wheel off into the distance.
The water everywhere was alive with ducks of several
varieties, and numbering millions, pr
tors were very plentiful. This, indeed
of these great, hideous, but always i
here are the largest size, the monster
of ten to fifteen feet in length. This
is, in fact, but little traveled. Onl
steamers ply upon its waters, and it
than two steamers pass a given point
beasts and *rptiles that haunt it are
)bably, while
kd, is the real
interesting
Sof the ra
portion of
Ly five or
is seldom 1
in one da
but little
sau
ce ;
alliga-
home
rians;
often
river
small
more
y; so the
disturbed,
and thrive unmolested by mankind.
The stream is so narrow that the little seamer, only
about
both s
if the
sharp.
almost
that i
nose i
twenty feet wide, often brushed the tall cane on
ides as,it passed along. Now and then it seemed as
boat was traveling on land, as it came to some
bends, and .pushed its way through the tall grasses
overarching above. And the channel is so crooked
i many places the steamer would have to plow its
nto the bank, let the stern swing around a little,
while a small boat, rowed by two stout de
tow the head around the sharp bend.
travel, we could look back, and within
distance see the outlines of the stream
to the right and left, like a great letter
we could see across five of these curves
5ck-negroes,
After hot
one or two
zigzagging
S. At one
within a di
would
urs of
miles'
across
point
stance
of two miles.
At intervals the stream widens into broad,
I
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
shallow lakes, full of fish and covered with ducks. These
lakes are the paradise of alligators, fish, birds, and cattle.
Late in the afternoon-it was supper-time-we arrived
at Salt Lake, the end of our journey by the boat, having
traveled a distance of three hundred and eleven miles by
water, or about one hundred and forty-five miles in a di-
rect line, froii Jacksonville.
Salt Lake is a small lake, or series of connected ponds;
prairie on all but the east side, which has a heavy growth
of timber, the commencement of a forest that covers the
intervening country to the Indian River. On the shore
was a solitary cabin, the depot of the mule-power, wooden-
railed road over to Titusville. We anchored some distance
from the shore, for the water was too shallow for the little
steamer to go close in. At once several of the passengers
took the small boat and went fishing, having a grand suc-
cess. In a half-hour, five men caught upward of forty-five
fine, large fish. Others continued shooting away at the ducks
all around us, killing great numbers, that were brought in
by the sn
nail boats. Many passengers had
been shooting
at ducks (and alligators) all day; most of the ducks were
picked up by a little Mexican, a member of the crew, who
followed along behind in the row-boat, for the steamer
goes slowly there, and he took advantage of short cuts.
The next morning was beautiful; all were up early,
and soon the car was seen at the shore cabin. Then two
or three negro laborers poled a large lighter out to the
steamer, and we were soon seated in the curious vehicle.
We met here a party of several tourist-sportsmen return-
ing from a fishing, turtling, hunting-trip on Indian River;
also on the lighter was a cargo of about eighty monster
sea-green turtles, their weight marked on their backs.
These were on their way to the leading hotels of the
North.
The
" Turtle-soup to-day was their final epitaph.
journey on this primitive sort of railroad
Was
w w
J
FLORIDA.
through a flat or slightly rolling country, timbered with
pine, palmetto, and oak, and it was enlivened by the car
getting off the track two or three times, caused by the
breaking of the old wooden rails. On such occasions the
male passengers would cheerfully assist the very good-
natured conductor to replace the car and hunt up and
lay a fresh rail. All were in good-humor, and seemed to
consider it a part of the business of the trip-a sort of
side-show entertainment. Titusville, eight miles from the
boat-landing on Salt Lake, was reached early in the fore-
noon, and we were at last on the Indian River. The
town, or settlement, is the county-seat of Brevard County,
and has about one hundred and fifty inhabitants. It con-
tains two very neat well-kept hotels (the Lund House and
the Titus House), two or three small stores or shops,
a warehouse, and about fifty dwelling-houses. The land
thereabout is flat, and appears to be rather poor, although
we saw excellent vegetables, and a great abundance of
flowers, growing in the gardens of its vicinity. Across
the river-it is really a sound, for it has no current, and
has a slight tidal action-about a mile wide here, is a strip
of land, and beyond this is the ocean. This strip of land
varies from a half-mile to two miles in width, alternates
in poorest
sand-tracts and richest hammocks,
where the
most prolific crops grow, and is alive with
without much looking, may be found bears,
wild-cats, panthers, and the wily lynx.
The town with its surroundings is quite
pearance. The Titus Hotel in particular is
may be called the tropical style-a large
with two long wings, all one story high,
sides of a square neatly laid out in a gar
the rooms opening off of the wide veranda
houses in a city block. The table at once
game. Here,
deer, cougars,
tropical in ap-
built- in what
main building
forming three
*den, and with
s like a row of
convinces the
guest
that he
is in a tropical
region, the meats being
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
principally oysters, clams, fish, shark-steaks, turtle-steaks,
etc., with many strange and familiar fruits and vegeta-
bles, all tropical, and fresh in January. Colonel H. T.
Titus is a noted character, once of great notoriety all over
the country, as the fiercest antagonist of old John Brown,
the Harper's Ferry Brown. These two, with their follow-
ers, had many desperate conflicts in the early days of
"bleeding Kansas" history. Colonel Titus is
helpless invalid, and, curiously enough, is an
missing partisan of the political party which
perately fought in its earlier history.*
Early the next forenoon, Dr. French, Mr.
now old, a
uncompro-
he so des-
Churchill,
and myself, embarked on the trim yacht Mist for a trip
to the sugar-plantation of Mr. Perry E. Wager, situated
on a lagoon on Banana Creek, six miles southeast of Titus-
ville. It was a delightful day, and the scenery was beau-
tiful, with clear waters and myriads of ducks and strange
birds-pelicans; storks, herons, etc.
About noon we arrived at the plantation, and as Mr.
Wager and the Doctor were old friends, we were all soon
discussing an abundant dinner, after which we walked
over the sugar-cane patch of ten acres. It was located
in a clearing of gigantic oaks, magnolias, etc., interspersed
with wild-orange trees laden with fruit, palmettoes, and
the like, and covered With great vines-a jungle-scene of
the most tropical kind. The soil was jet-black, and evi-
dently of great fertility. Mr. Wager remarked that the
bears and deer gave him much trouble by getting into
his cane, of which they are very fond. A walk through
the cane was something like a scramble through an Illinois
cornfield, only worse, because the cane-stalks were fifteen
to twenty feet tall, large as your wrist, and often curled
and bent,
making
it like climbing
through a
"snake"
* Since this was written Colonel Titus has died.
FLORIDA.
fence to proceed.
We cut three stalks of the cane, each
twenty-one feet long, and they had fifty-two, fifty-four,
and fifty-five joints respectively. The reader must bear in
mind that each joint represents an increased value of the
cane for sugar, and that on the famous sugar-plantations
of Louisiana a stalk ten feet in height, or even eight, with
fifteen joints, is regarded as something to boast of.
Here the planter is not obliged, by fear of frost, to cut
all the crop at one date, thus requiring a large, hastily
collected force and much expense; but he can employ
three or four hands, one at the mill, one at the sirup-
kettle, and two to cut and haul, and
can make sugar all the year round.
with this small force
Nor does the cane
require annual planting or cultivation, hoeing, etc., but
they cut the stalks close to the ground, strip off the leaves
(which are much like corn-blades), and thickly cover the
ground with them, thus keeping down the weeds, and
securing, as they decay, a rich compost. The roots soon
"rattoon," and no fresh planting is needed for ten or twen-
ty years.
The sirup of fresh cane is very sweet (to me it was
slightly sickish)-and how the bears, hogs, and darkeys
do love it It is very fattening, and a darkey on a sugar-
plantation is always noticeable for his fat, oily appearance.
Mr. Wager grinds his cane in a mill of three iron rollers,
worked by a mule, and boils the extracted juice into sirup
in a large, shallow kettle, the same as is used in making
maple-sugar. With the labor of three negroes, he is able
to net about sixteen hundred dollars from ten acres.
Returning to Titusville, we embarked next day on the
same yacht for a journey down the Indian River. It
was a hazy, soft, dreamy, delicious sort of day, and, as
the boat bowled along with a pleasant breeze, we qui-
etly and indolently enjoyed it. At noon we landed at the
home of Captain W. H. Sharpe, a very agreeable gentle-
TOUR
OF THE STA TE.
man from Georgia, with a Yankee wife, who entertained
us hospitably, and showed us his thrifty young orange-
grove and cane-field. After an excelle
Sharpe and Dr. Holmes, an Ohio gentle]
here, joined our
put on board
party; and, a bushel
we continued on our
Rock Ledge' late in the after
teresting day. Here we landed
proffered hospitalities of Mr. A.
several years ago from Mississ
found it, and in this charming
fine ho
zealous
all too
fields,
ural m
there.
on his
watchil
glitter
strain a
oon of
and ace
L- Hatc
nt dinner, Captain
man, now residing
of oranges being
journey, reaching
a wonderfully in-
epted the warmly
h. He came here
ippi, in search of health,
spot is rapidly creating a
me. He is an enthusiast about Florida, and is a
student of the culture of fruits and flowers. We
k an extensive stroll over his lawns gardens, and
and it was like a visit to a botanical or horticult-
useum, so great is the variety of plants growing
An evening long to be remembered was enjoyed
veranda; smoking, hearing of tropical Florida, and
ng the full moon rising across the waters, that
ed like silver, while the intervening lawn showed
1dv with aloes (or centurv-Dlants)i nalmettoes. oaks
... ..0 --U ... .
festooned with gray mosses,
Rock Ledge is twenty
two and a half from Lake
River steamers are taken, a
sonville, four hundred and
one hundred and sixty ox
steamers are the diminutiv
/, .-
and multitudinous flowers.
miles south of Titusville, and
Winder, where the St. John's
md freight is shipped to Jack-
twenty-three miles distant, or
1 an air-line. Of course the
e kind, such as I have before
described.
From Rock Ledge to New York is about seventy hours'
travel. The place derives its name from a formation of
coquina-rock along the shore there, and is a very pleas-
ant locality, with a good class of settlers, some forty in
all. But I think they have placed the price of their lands
too high. One hundred dollars per acre for a site on the
FLORIDA.
river
where
worth
but it
growth
It
guava.
like th
express
orange
is too high for
average
immigrant, especially
the land is uncleared and unimproved.
it-for the soil is undoubtedly rich-to
will bar out the industrious poor, and
Sof the region.
vas here I made my first attempt to eat a
I failed miserably then, but have since
e fruit, and think it excellent. As a
sed it, "It's like eating a strawberry
, large as a pear," only the seeds are lik(
It may be
the wealthy,
retard the
fresh-picked
e learned to
friend once
inside of an
e small shot.
Th
it
ba
e taste for this abund
must be acquired ;
cco, its acquisition is
The next morning
bmakfast-peculiar in t
plant fruit is like that for tobacco-
but, as is seldom the case with to-
never regretted.
Mrs. Hatch served us an excellent
his, that it consisted almost wholly
of various kinds of garden fruits and vegetables, cooked
in divers ways, to show what an Indian River table can
supply. We visited several homes in the neighborhood,
everywhere meeting agreeable people, and were shown
wonderful gardens. All agreed that snakes and such
things were rarely seen, and that flies, gnats, or mosqui-
. .
toes were not unusually troubles
Poultry, eggs, fish, oysters, turtles
plentiful for special mention. Am
visited the Spratt orange-grove, one
ida, with one thousand trees growing
founder, Mr. Spratt, came here abo
old man, and with but little means
menced clearing the land all by I
a grove hard to surpass. The land
and rich; the trees all very uniform
thrifty, and laden with noticeably fi
flavored fruit. That grove is sure
an income of several thousand d<
it is an evidence of what one pool
om
onj
\
e in the summer.
and ducks are too
g other places, we
F the finest in Flor-
on ten acres. The
ten years ago, an
r money. He com-
nself, and now has
I quite clean, level,
size and shape, and
ie-looking and richly-
to produce henceforth
dollars annually; and
r old man can do by
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
living a camping-out sort of life for a few years. Near
here also is a fine guava-preserving establishment, recently
built by some Massachusetts parties.
After an extended tour of this region-all much alike
in one respect1 that it presented beautiful scenery and was
deeply interesting-one pleasant morning again found us
at the little
lightered out
John's River
craft, but so
being utilize
fifteen, who
i landing on Salt Lake, and we were
t to another of those curious little uppe
steamers. This was the We-ki-wa, a
very small and so odd; every inch of '
d by the bright, active boy, a lad of a
acted as
steward, assistant
engineer,
soon
r St.
snug
;pace
Lbout
pilot,
dish-washer, table-waiter, chambermaid, and general-utility
man.
an Ohi
which
TheD
alligat
where
another
killing
dant a
crawli
T
here were but five or six passengers, among them
o gentleman, who had with hin
he kindly invited the Doctor
octor led off with a splendid
1 a fine sporting rifle,
and myself to try.
shot at a very large
or, pinning it permanently to the marshy bank
it was sunning itself. Later in the day he killed
r. I also had the ;satisfaction, such as it was, ,of
two alligators, big ones. They were very abmn-
ll day ; often ten or more could be seen slowly
ng into the water, where they keep their heads up,
staring at us, then, their curiosity satisfied, suddenly drop-
ping from sight.
Early the next morning we reached Enterprise, on Lake
Monroe, where we staid some time. Our party improved
the time by going ashore and visiting a famous sulphur-
spring on the estate of Count Frederick de Bary, a wealthy
New-Yorker. A fine residence, large orange-grove, pier,
and packing-house are here, the spacious grounds all hand-
somely fenced and improved in neat style, with every-
thing elegant and complete. The spring is circular in
form, about fifty feet in diameter, and is located in a
pretty nook. The water is green as the greenest paint,
*
1
FLORIDA.
and forms quite a good-sized brook.
It is sli
tastes strongly of sulphur, but is not unple
suming our journey, the boat was soon on he
the river with our friend, the Ohio man, at
which he managed with unexpected skill.
Landing was reached at noon, and here the I
left the boat. It was February 1st, and a
day. The spring, from which the landing tak
covers about an acre, is of very pure, clear
slightly sulphurous flavor, and deep blue in
ghtly
asant.
*r way
the
Blue
)octor
very
es its
watei
color
warm,
Re-
Sdown
wheel,
Spring
and I
warm
name,
r, of a
: it is
the fountain-head of quite a large stream that flows into
the St. John's. The adjacent grounds are slightly rolling,
and the general appearance is picturesque, offering a fine
site for a winter hotel.
and tempting, that we c
tired nook, we plunged
novelty of an open-air
a warm walk of about t
City, in Volusia County,
The
would
in
bath
two
and
water looked
n't resist, and,
and enjoyed
in midwinter
miles brought
we were soon
o cool, clear,
ending a re-
he agreeable
Afterward
is to Orange
in the cozy,
hospitable home of the Doctor, his own Florida abiding-
place.
Orange City was founded in 1876 by the Doctor and
a number of congenial spirits, mostly from Wisconsin.
Already a good deal of land has been cl
streets have been surveyed and opened in
and lots set off for business and residence p
churches, and shops. Several stores and
residences have been erected, new fences a
constantly being built, and the place is
having a population now of about three
is increasing every month. One hundred
groves, on about one thousand acres of lax
and new groves and gardens are being st:
in the vicinity. Here I met two younj
eared, roads and
every direction,
purposes, a school,
eighty or more
nd buildings are
rapidly growing,
hundred, which
and seventy-five
d, are in bloom,
arted everywhere
g men, brothers,
from New York City,
who came a short
time ago
v
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
their health, and now have one of the largest and finest
pineapple-fields in the State. The newsy South Florida
Times" is published here. The
spent in short tramps and drives
try. The third day, the Doctor,
Mr. Andrew Jackson, a jeweler
consmn,
selves i
country
trotted
people
wealthy, shrewd busin
a wagon, and started
. The
along b
being all
two following days were
in the surrounding coun-
with his son, myself, and
from Eau Claire, Wis-
ess-man, distributed our-
on a trip through the
roads were in good condition, and we
riskly, passing new homes everywhere, the
busily engaged in fencing, clearing, build-
ing, or setting out trees. At noon we arrived at De
Land, another enterprising colony, mostly from western
New York. The site was located in 1877 by Mr. H. A.
De Land, the celebrated soda-manufacturer of Fairport,
New York, and bears his name. The country here con-
sists of rolling, open pine-land, and is quite pretty and
home-like in appearance. A fine church and a first-class
schoolhouse, one of the best in the State, seve
and dwellings, had then been erected; and the
were all of noticeably substantial, comfortable
ral stores,
buildings
construc-
tion, while the house-grounds were cleared up and set
out with flowers and shrubs. The "Florida Agricultur-
ist" is published here. It has a large circulation, and is
considered standard authority on all subjects in its special
line.
From De Land we drove to Spring Garden, another
of the enterprising colonies of this favorite section. New
York and Illinois are mostly represented here. In 1872
Major George H. Norris, a native of western New York,
well known in Chicago, came here and purchased an im-
mense Spanish grant, and, having perfected his title, laid
out this pretty hamlet. A large amount of land has been
cleared in the vicinity, and wide streets have been opened
for miles, well fenced, and set out with orange-trees for
FLORIDA.
The "Spring Garden House," quite a cozy, home-
like, well-built hotel, is kept by Mr. E.
awake Chicago hotel-man. It stands i
grove, surrounded by a number of pre
for invalid guests. A landing-pier a
have been built at Spring Garden Lake,
where the St. John's River steamers land
gers. Quite a number of families have
and form an unusually select and refine
crimination being exercised in the sale
M. Turner, a wide-
n a large orange-
!tty hotel-cottages
nd packing- house
two miles distant,
goods and passen-
their homes here,
d community, dis-
t of lands. Their
homes are noticeably well constructed, and have an air of
settled improvement, surrounded by lawns, gardens, and
groves, grape-arbors, fences, etc. In the evening quite a
party of the residents met us at the hotel, and a very pleas-
ant, entertaining time was enjoyed. Accompanying the
Major to his hospitable residence near by, I had the pleas-
ure of feasting on a heaping dish of freshly-picked straw-
berries, and partaking of some excellent samples of orange-
wine.
The next morning we drove to the immense orange-
groves owned by Major Norris. He has 11,
mostly on hammock-lands, which are nearly all
in fact, he gathered last winter upward of 460,(
3,100 boxes! In time that grove will produce
yielding a princely revenue. The trees were
sour stumps budded with sweet fruit. The M
"In a few years I will show the visitor here
five miles long, lined with solid orange-groves all
and I think it quite likely that such a spectacle
be seen. At the house of Mr. B. F. Haynes we
ed on delicious bananas; and another resident
000 trees,
I bearing;
00, filling
e millions,
nearly all
[ajor said,
an avenue
the way,"
may then
were feast-
whom we
met was Professor Isaac Stone, who was for years United
States consul at Singapore. His wife, Mrs. Stone, is the
author of a standard work on India-" India and its
Princes."
shade.
TOUR OF THE STATE. 43
Orange City, De Land, and Spring Garden, are three
places that impressed me as favorably as any I have seen
in Florida. There are other places that are more inter-
esting for historical reminiscences or scenery, or for some
particular enterprise; and others may, very likely, become
I
THE BAANA.
larger and more active communities, like Sanford, Lees-
burg, and Charlotte Harbor; but those three places first
named will, I think, always be pretty, home-like, pros-
perous villages, of slow, steady, healthy growth and solid
prosperity. The region has a mean elevation of about
FLORIDA.
seventy feet above tide-water, and is noted for its health-
fulness.
From Spring Garden we returned to Orange City, vis-
iting Beresford, Volusia, and Starke's Landing, all on the
lake. They are merely little landing-places, with but three
or four families in the immediate neighborhood, but are
the foci of quite a goodly number of families living back
on the highlands. At Starke's Landing we visited the
famous old grove of Captain Starke, and saw hundreds
of noble orange-trees twenty-five to thirty-five years old,
scattered about irregularly over a grand old lawn. Some
of them are fully thirty feet high, and bear crops of from
two to ten thousand
grand old English est
of Lord Beresford.
ments are yet to be
oranges, and it certain
ing such rich fruit.
that had just been t
and showed no signs
oranges each. This was one of the
bates of the last century, the property
Remains of his extensive improve-
seen. Here we saw hogs feeding on
inly seemed a shame to see them eat-
Here also we saw an immense tree
ransplanted with its crop in full fruit,
of injury.
SAll that region is of hilly pine-land, with open growth
of trees and excellent soil, the exceptions of bad soil being
very few. And it undoubtedly is a very healthy section
,and quite free from insects, being high, well drained, pine-
timbered, and open to the pure sea-breeze all along its
eastern coast. Ormond, Port Orange, Daytona, and Smyr-
na, are all thrifty, enterprising, growing little hamlets, lo-
cated in the rich hammock-belt of land on the adjacent
ocean-coast, where they have the advantages of good soil
and both fresh and salt water; but the insects in the sum-
mer months make a residence there unpleasant except in
some specially favorable locations. Each has from ten
to fifty families of unusually agreeable, select people, the
nucleus of future pleasant communities. In fact, the peo-
ple of nearly all the villages and settlements throughout
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
Volusia County are of exactly the right sort of Northern
stock, and under their enterprising, law-abiding control,
the region is sure to become one of the most prosperous in
Florida.
The next morning we bade farewell to the good peo-
ple of Orange City, and again set out on our travels. At
Blue Spring Landing we took the steamer George M. Bird,
which in the course of the afternoon carried us to Sanford,
where we remained over the following day, a rainy Sun-
day. Sanford
important enou
repetition, will
Early on M
fine two-horse
and the adjacent country I hav
igh to have a chapter to itself;
say nothing about it here.
onday morning we resumed our
rig, accompanied by Mr. D. L.
'e considered
so, to
journey
Way,
of the "South Florida Journal," of Sanford. Our
was southwest from the St. John's, and for the firs
or six miles the ride was through a flat, uninteresting
try, which gradually rises and becomes fairly hilly.
monte was reached about noon, and we were invited
pleasant home of Mr. George E. Wilson, a young mar
came here from Maine several years ago, and noi
avoid
y in a
editor
route
t five
coun-
Alta-
to the
I wh
w hIs
a comfortable house, a large orange-grove, and a grocery,
a perfect sample of New England enterprise and thrift.
After an excellent dinner, we visited some fine gardens in
the neighborhood, and saw ample evidence of good soil
and energetic people. It is noted as a pleasant neighbor-
hood, the residents being generally cultured people from
the North, and the appearance of the country thereabout
is pleasing. It is quite likely that they will have railroad
communication with Sanford soon,.which will undoubtedly
make this a fine locality for either residence or occasional
resort.
Late in the afternoon we reached Apopka, where we re-
mained overnight. It is a small place, of about three hun-
dred inhabitants, mostly Southern natiires, and the cluster
46 FLORIDA.
of cheaply constructed buildings, all of plainest design, un-
painted and weather-beaten, closely huddled
together on
the narrow, short streets,
gives
appearance
much like the backwoods
Shamlets of Alabama, Geor-
gia, and the States of that
belt. The soil thereabout
is rolling pine and ham-
mock, and famous for its
it /I II
i
I I
:11
iit'iii1i'h"
.* il!
It -
1
Ii
'II i
li- i;'i
-I,
!l* .^I
'i
"! Ii
I 1;
,i
i *
fertility.
We visited
sev-
eral gardens and groves,
and saw none better any-
where else
It is an
in the State.
excellent
oranges,
region
sugar cane,
and vegetables, and is ex-
ceptionally healthy. The
country is everything that
could be desired, but there
is an evident lack of taste
and enterprise among the
inhabitants.
It is the cen-
ter of a good trade, being
the most pretentious town
in that region, has a good
average school, and will,
no doubt, soon have rail-.
way connection with the
St. John's at Sanford;
Three miles from the
town is Lake Apopka, a
superb body of water-an inland sea, about fifty miles in
circumference, surrounded by a large tract of hammock,
with a rolling black soil, densely covered with forests of
TOUR
hard-woods, etc.
OF THE STATE.
The richness of the soil in this hammock
is famous throughout the State.
Hon. T. G. Speer, State
Senator, is engaged in cutting a series of short canals that
will give water communication from Lakes Apopka, Dora,
Eustis, and Griffin, into the Ocklawaha, and so to Jackson-
ville. When this short canal (or a railroad outlet) shall
have been secured, this lake will soon be surrounded by a
large population.
The next morning we turned northward, and at noon
reached Zellwood, on little Lake Maggiore, where we ac-
cepted the cordial hospitalities of Colonel T. Elwood Zell,
who owns a fine estate and a beautiful home here, and
from whom the locality derives its name.
from Apopka to this place,
The country
which we traversed, was all
high, rolling pine-land, with frequent lakes and hammocks,
evidently very good soil.
The vicinity of Zellwood is very
attractive, with productive soil and agreeable scenery.
Colonel and his
charming wife are Philadelphians,
spend much of their time abroad, but make occasional win-
ter visits to their dainty home on this pretty spot.
It was quite dark when we arrived at Pendryville, on
Lake Eustis, where we found very comfortable accommo-
dations at Mr. A.
S. Pendry's home-the Ocklawaha Hotel.
Mr. Pendry is from Rochester, New York, and has select-
ed a very attractive location for his home.
He has cleared
a large tract of land, built a good hotel, fenced his lots,
and made many improvements.
pine-land
thereabout,
small
It is generally a rolling
lakes, and large tracts
of hammock bordering on Lake Eustis.
Undoubtedly a
healthy region of pleasing scenery, it will very likely be-
come in time quite a prosperous place.*
Here Mr.
Way
* This prediction has been verified much sooner than I could then have
suspected.
Visiting Pendryville in June, 1881, I was struck with astonish-
ment at the progress that had been made in the brief space of a year and
a half.
The Pendry farm has been laid. out in town-lots, which are rapidly
FLORIDA.
left us to return to his home in Sanford, greatly to our re-
gret, for he proved a most agreeable traveling companion.
gret, for he proved a most agreeable traveling companion.
He has
a fine, thrifty-looking
orange-grove,
prettily located
on two small lakes, visited by us shortly after leaving Zell-
wood.
remained
all day at Pendryville, driving about,
viewing the prospects, and forming a very favorable opin-
ion of the locality.
soon.
The right class of immigrants are set-
there, and a railroad is certain to tap that region very
The St. John's and Lake Eustis Railroad is now
within two miles of
the hotel.
After dinner next day,
we drove over to Fort Mason, on the opposite shore of
Lake Eustis.
On the route
we stopped at the home of the
Hon. J. M. Bryan, member of the Legislature, and he ac-
companied us to the town, which consists of a hotel, two
well-stocked stores, and
a cotton-press.
soil thereabout is rich, low hammock.
The country and
ere we met Sena-
being bought and built upon, numerous
orange-groves
have been set out in
the vicinity, population is pouring in with unprecedented rapidity, and the
bustle and stir of a prosperous growth are everywhere visible.
Owing
largely to the skillful and well-directed efforts of Mr. John A. Macdonald,
editor of the
"Florida New-Yorker,"
attention has been attracted to the
advantages of the locality; and in no portion of the State have I observed
more healthy and pleasing
fences,
vated.
signs of progress-such as neat and tasteful
substantial houses, and lands thoroughly cleared and carefully culti-
young
orange-groves,
too, looked exceptionally well, and
markably early returns have been obtained in some cases that were called
to my attention.
Moreover,
saw more
much more strikingly with its scenic attract
of the country, I was impressed
veness. Rolling hills and undu-
lasting slopes are the characteristic features of the
region,
bold bluffs front
the lakes on almost
every side,
and from certain points on the northern
shore of Lake Dora (about five miles from Pendryville) views are obtained
that are unlike anything seen elsewhere in Florida.
The lake itself nestles
at the foot of wooded bluffs over a hundred feet in height;
on the oppo-
site shore still higher hills lift boldly from the water; while farther away
still, beyond Lake Harris, at the distance of twenty-eight miles, a misty
line of heights
rises almost mountainously against the horizon.
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
tor T. G. Speer, who was engaged in constructing his
dredging-machine, and he explained his intention of cut-
ting a canal so as to connect the entire series of large
lakes in this famous lake-region. This improvement will
open up a vast amount of rich soil to transportation con-
veniences.
The country from this point to Leesburg is all a rolling
pine-land, in some places quite hilly, and contains innu-
merable small lakes and frequent tracts of rich hammocks,
in which we saw many wild groves of sour oranges grow-
ing, all laden with their deceptive golden fruit. The Doc-
tor pronounced it an excellent region, of rich soil; but
very few houses or improvements were seen. At one
of the few houses encountered on the route (a handsome,
new building, occupied by a family from Illinois), we
stopped and were shown a splendid large orange-grove,
yielding the owner an income of several thousand dol-
lars annually.
He had come here very poor,
cheaply and worked hard, and now is
Early in the afternoon we crossed
of the Ocklawaha, on a ferry worked
reaping his
the wild h<
by hauling
had lived
reward.
sad-waters
on a rope
stretched across on poles. The road on either side was,
for a long distance, through a dense jungle, and we were
glad to get well through it and reach our destination.
Leesburg, the county-seat of Sumter County, the home
of about two hundred people, is a quiet, contented, easy-
going, rather old-fashioned sort of a place, all the business
houses being low, plain, wooden buildings, mostly of one
story, ranged alohg one wide, sandy street. A good win-
ter hotel is badly needed, and would probably be a profit-
able investment. The town lies in the midst of a rather
flat pine and hammock country, the soil of which is nearly
all very rich. It has a good school and church, and an
orderly society, which includes only one lawyer, who does
not make a very large income, although they boast that
FLORIDA.
he can earn
same case.
and already
of navigatio
only outlet
a prosperous fu
the Peninsular
position insures
The whole
in looking abe
trade, garden a
next morning
on Lake Harri
double fees by arguing for both parties in the
The adjacent region is being rapidly taken up,
contains many settlers. This is the upper end
n on the Ocklawaha River, which furnishes the
of the region. Leesburg has, beyond doubt,
iture before it; within the year, probably,
Railroad will reach there, and its central
it a large and increasing trade.
of the day following our arrival was spent
out the town, gathering statistics of its
nd field crops, shipping facilities, etc. The
we
8, 1
accepted an invitation to enjoy
and at an early hour were on bo
trim and rapid yacht. The party included Mr. W
Fox, once of Chicago, now a prominent citizen of
burg; Mr. George Pratt, owner and editor of the "
burg Advance "; Mr. Jackson, owner of the yacht
cently of Cincinnati, now residing on Lake Eustis,
he has purchased a fine property ; and ourselves.
It was a beautiful day, with a pleasant breeze,
we bowled along over the clear waters of this love
(it is eight
ing style.
miles wid
The shore
I
ty, being high, with a rich,
with a heavy growth of
oaks, etc., evidently very fe
resque. We passed several
ten miles long) in exhi
here
dark
very
xrtile
fine e
a sail
ard a
illiam
Lees-
Lees-
it, re-
where
,and
y lake
ilarat-
has much natural beau-
soil, generally covered
large hard-wood trees,
as well as very pictu-
states, their lands neatly
cleared and fenced, substantial, cozy-appearing
surrounded by pretty gardens, flowers, and young
presenting perfect pictures as seen from our boat.
several places at which we stopped was that of
J. W. Marshall, a hearty, genial, intelligent ge
of the old school, who came here from South
shortly after the war, which so sadly impoveris
planters of that State.
houses,
groves,
Among
Colonel
ntleman
Carolina
bed the
Here he has established himself
I
TOUR OF THE STATE. 51
on a grand estate, containing several large orange-groves
of all varieties and ages, from the tender seedling grove
to the full bearing, and all remarkably thrifty and well
kept. The oldest grove, now in. full bearing, yielding im-
mense crops, is one of the finest we saw in all the State,
with the largest-sized trees and the heaviest crops.
The old Colonel showed us all over his extensive estate;
it has a rich soil, carefully cleared, a rolling, hilly surface,
and produces a great variety of plants and fruits, including
teas, coffees, etc., fully demonstrating the fact that every-
thing in the way of fruits, flowers, garden and field prod-
ucts, may be grown on the soil of this lake-region. Taking
us finally into his bearing grove and pausing at a large
tree, the low-hanging branches of which were laden with
easily plucked fruit, he gave us a complete course of in-
struction in the fascinating, divinely refreshing art ofj or-
ange-eating and how to do it." And his recipe, whne it
may not be of the highest degree of mincing daintiness-
the eating-soup-with-a-fork style-is an exceedingly enjoy-
able, practical method of getting the juice, the whole juice,
and nothing but the juice, out of an orange. Said he :
"Now, gentlemen, roll up your sleeves, remove your cuffs
high collars, etc., unbutton your vests and a few other
waist-buttons; take a sharp knife, pull a dark-shade, heavy
orange, peel it to the quick all around, leave no bitter rind,
shut your eyes and suck; don't bite-just suck."
The reader hardly needs to be assured that we obeyed
to the' letter. I think we each averaged about fifteen or-
anges in rapid succession-and in silence, sweet silence-
one steady draught of nectar pure and wholesome. Lack
of capacity alone compelled us, one by one, to regretfully
cease this luscious feast; and repairing to the house, we
were invited, after a short respite, to partake of a fine
dinner, well washed down with select brands from an evi-
dently well-stocked cellar. Soon after dinner we took our
FLORIDA.
departure from this hospitable home, the old Colonel de-
positing a huge basketful of oranges in our boat as a
remembrancer. We bade hi
hoping that his considerable sh
A long, circuitous sail was
we might view its beautiful
hotel in the evening. Early
our journey, and were soon we
m good-by with regret, all
adow may never be less.*
made around
shores, and we
next morning
U on our way t(
the lake that
reached the
we resumed
SSumterville,
west of Leesburg. The route lay through a rather flat,
uninteresting belt that appeared generally wet, and, in
tracts, marshy, a good sugar-cane region. We crossed one
broad body of water, which was much deeper than our
driver had counted upon, and, in consequence, we barely
escaped the unpleasant incident of a ducking.
In some
places the road passed through extensive hammocks, always
attractive. About five miles from Leesburg we reached
the stony belt of Central Florida, the only locality in all
the peninsula (except along the coasts and in some of the
northern counties) where we found stones. Here they
were plentiful, scattered about in all shapes and sizes, and
it gave us considerable satisfaction to hear the wheels click
along over them, with the music so familiar in more north-
ern regions.
It was noon (Sunday noon) when Sumterville was
reached, and our team turned back to its starting-point,
while we took quarters at the primitive hostelry that offers
scant accommodations to way-bound
ville is an old ante-bellum settlement,
cleared land-evidently a high level,
with a dark soil, which is undoubtedly
ductive. The hamlet contains two
backwoods sort of stores, and about
travelers. Sunrter-
with large tracts of
as it is not wet-
y very rich and pro-
.or three very rude
a dozen dwellings,
but has great expectations, that are quite likely to be ful-
Since our visit, Colonel Marshall has sold this grove for $28,000 cash.
OF THE STATE.
filled, as it is on the present State stage-line and I
States mail-route from Ocala to Tampa, and is on
rect line from Leesburg to the latter place, such as
road will desire to select. It is a good, healthy,
region, needing only settlers.
The next day several of the residents called
and we spent! the day, a warm one, in visiting a n
of gardens and fields and orange-groves in the vi
Everywhere the vegetables, crops, and fruits looked
growing
in great
abundance
little care.
United
the di-
a rail-
fertile
on us,
umber
cinity.
finely,
re also
drove to Lake Panasofkee,
surrounded with rich bla
for sugar-cane and all gar
this neighborhood are nume
so frequent in all parts of ]
in form, the sides quite stra
twenty-five to one hundred
seldom containing any, or 1
is the singular feature abou
to large lakes whose water
six miles distant, a large lake
ck hammock-land, the region
den and field crops. Also in
rous large "sinks" of the land,
Middle Florida, usually circular
Light and smooth, varying from
Sand more feet in depth, and
but little, water. This, indeed,
t them, for often
s are fifty feet
tom of the sink, yet none in the sink. It
thing had given way in the bowels of the
they are close
above the bot-
is as if some-
earth, and the
soil had fallen in; but th
outlets, for in no other
be accounted for.
The next morning we
ley must all
way can the
have subterranean
absence of water
the stage-coach, a
rattle-trap sort of an affair, and were soon on our way
to 13rooksville. It is a long ride through a decidedly
rolling country, mostly pine-land, with very little ham-
mock, and few lakes. The stone belt extends all through
this region, ending along the Withlacoochee River. It
closely resembles the piny-woods region in Michigan,
and the ride became very tedious and monotonous, ex-
cept that we saw any quantity of feathered and furred
game, rabbits, squirrels, quail, etc., and occasionally wild
TOUR
W
FLORIDA.
turkeys, large and shy.
bear also are plentiful.
The entire trip that
region, the only human
the road being four or
This is a range where deer and
day was through an unsettled
beings living anywhere along
five families of Florida natives,
the genuine, unadulterated "cracker "-the clay-eating,
gaunt, pale, tallowy, leather-skinned sort-stupid, stolid,
staring eyes, dead and lusterless; unkempt hair, generally
tow-colored; and such a shiftless, slouching manner! sim-
ply white savages-or living white mummies would, per-
haps, better indicate their dead-alive looks and actions.
Who, or what, these "crackers" are, from whom descend-
ed, of what nationality, or what becomes of them, is one
among the many unsolved mysteries in this State.
and shiftless, yet shy and vindictive, they are a
the pathway of civilization, settlement, and e
wherever they exist. Fortunately, however, they
few and rapidly decreasing in numbers, for they
exist near ci
we passed of
with low roo
or fireplaces;
floors; no ou
plants, except
supplies their
and the tops
wild fruits, f
clay eaten aE
Stupid
block in
enterprise
are very
can not
ilized settlements. The four or five cabins
these "crackers" were bare log structures,
fs, no doors or windows-merely openings-
no filling between the logs, and usually no
t-houses, wells, or fences ; and no gardens or
a sweet-potato patch. A near lake, or spring,
water; hogs, cattle, and game, their meat;
of cabbage-palmettoes, sweet-potatoes, and
orm almost their only diet; while pellets of
s a seasoning ingredient take the place of
needed sal
As the
we were s
tree close
t and pepper.
stage was slowly climbing
surprised to see four women,
by the roadside; all were of
a rise in the road,
seated on a fallen
precisely the same
size, with the same features, eyes, and hair, and a vacant,
stupid stare; each wore a light-colored, faded calico dress,
of plainest, scantiest possible make, quite clean (a surpris-
TOUR OF THE STATE.
ing fact), and large, plain, cotton sun-bonnets
55
each wore a
cheap,
bright-hued,
cotton handkerchief around her neck
-J-- =--=-:zr ---~~-
-
- -.- -~-.
IZ
'E53 :;*
f^ -r- $/ a?
A PAIX or "CLA ACKne
and they were all barefooted, carrying their low, thick-
soled shoes in their hands.
The dress and
kerchief
peared to be their only garments-no underwear whatever.
FLORIDA.
Our driver, a sociable sort
and chatted with this stran
learned that they were a
which was the climax of su
all appeared of the same
dance at a "cracker's," somi
they had already walked
woman-lovely, tender womr
miles to dance all night in a
ky-perfumed cracker males,
violin in the hands of an
with pine-knots; the feast o
tatoes, and likely a few vi
cheapest brown sugar, or si
bread." And, perhaps, that
two or three days and nights
and whisky is used up.
The "cracker," when res
of fellow from Ohio, stopped
ge feminine quartet, and we
mother and three daughters,
Irprise to us, for the four faces
age. They were going to a
e fifteen miles farther on, and
about five miles. Think of
an!-walking barefoot twenty
close cracker cabin, with whis-
to the scraping of a wheezy
old darkey; the scene lighted
f hog, hominy, beef, sweet-po-
illainous compounds of flour,
rup, and called cake or "risin'-
Scracker ball will be kept up
i. until all the stock of eatables
olved to give a dance, shoots
some game and carves a hog, finds a market and sells his
game for a little cash, lays in a stock of whisky, a little
flour, cheap sugar, sirup, tobacco, hominy, or grits, more
whisky, coffee, or cheap tea, goes home, sets the "wimmin-
folks" to baking, while he resolves himself into an invi-
tation committee, and sets out on his lean, lank, cracker
pony, and invites all the crackers for miles around to "cum
roundd" And they come. A fight generally .ends the
dance, and the best man wins the girl, for these dances are
usually prolific of "jinin" matches. It should be said,
however, per contra, that there is very little sexual immo-
rality at these half-civilized gatherings, for the mothers--
as in this case-are also on hand, and keep a sharp eye on
proceedings; while the men-the fathers-will shoot.
We passed on, and at noon crossed the Withlacoochee
River, at Hays's Ferry, where there are two or three cabins.
The river is here a wide, deep, dark-colored, swift-running
S
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
stream. A rope stretched from bank to bank was our
means of passage. Just across tte river we found the
cabin of a cracker, and here we were to get dinner. After
a long delay, we were called in and told to set by" ; but,
although the table was heaped with food (alleged to be),
yet I couldn't eat of it: sweet-potatoes in two styles-
baked and fried in slices-but less than half cooked in either
shape
bread, merely chunks of yellow, hot, steamy dough,
incased ii
for being
fat pork.
pretense
boil a fe
from its
i burned crusts; muddy coffee (plenty of gr
muddy, if the reader will excuse the pun)
There were eggs visible, however; so,
of not feeling well, I induced the cook to
w, and, having managed to strain off some
mud basis, worried through a luncheon.
housewife was of indolent, unI
slattern and unwholesome. S
them well, "That husband of
trip up in a mud-puddle, woul
lazy." And that loving wife re
"Yas, I 'spect that's so; he ar
like, sho' enuff, jes' no 'count.'
grinned as if a compliment had
Such villainous, disgusting
the tables of the low whites o
equaled. The ignorance amonj
necessary art is frightful. Liv
most without solicitation, Natui
and best of fruits and garden-
seldom have any sauces or fruit
healthy, flabby appeal
aid the driver, who
yours, if he should
pounds
; and
under
soft-
coffee
The
rance,
knew
ever
d lie and die there, he is so
plied, with a shallow smile:
3 mos' dreflte, or'nary, lazy-
SThe listening husband
been paid him.
cooking as that found on
f this region is surely un-
g the women of this very
ing in a region where, al-
re provides all the daintiest
vegetables, yet their tables
of any kind, except occa-
sionally dried apple-sauce, bought at the store; or else some
wretchedly made guava-jelly. Vegetables are seldom seen
on any tables, except those of the land-owner class, or of
Northern settlers occupying homes in the neighborhood.
No wonder the "crackers" look so unhealthy, or ate so
stupid, or that the men take to whisky, and like to fight so
FLORIDA.
vindictively. Anything that
agreeable to people fed on
engines are great civilizers o
beats anything as a civilizer
its beneficial effects among t
West.
Resuming our journey, tl
afternoon differed somewhat
involves a change must be
such wretched diet. Steam-
f nations, but good cooking
of individuals. I have seen
he very worst Indians of the
ie region passed over in the
from that of the forenoon,
being more hilly, and involving a constant going up and
down of more or less steep inclines. We were now out
of the stony belt, and the hammocks were more frequent.
No settlers were seen, and game was very abundant. Late
in the afternoon large tracts of cleared land began to be
seen, mostly neglected; and at supper-time we reached
Brooksville. Standing on the broad, level top of a high
bill, in the midst of many hills-the largest hills we saw
in any part of the State-Brooksville is one of the most
prettily located towns or settlements we saw in Florida,
being equaled only by Tallahassee. It is, in fact, the
most un-Florida-appearing place imaginable, with excel-
lent, rich, dark-brown soils, occasional stones and gravel,
first-class hard country roads in all directions; forests
of oaks, maple, beech, hickory, and all such hard-wood
growths, rail-fences, and far-viewing hills. All was like
Ohio, Wisconsin, New York'-the western part on the Erie
Railway-in fact, anywhere in a hilly but not rocky re-
gion. Even the houses, the old and the few (very few)
new ones, somehow do not look Florida-like.
This is one of the most desirable sections of the State.
Although not at all tropical in appearance, yet all the
products of the tropical as well as of the northern cli-
mates grow here. Cotton, cane, wheat, oats, bananas,
oranges, peaches, corn, guavas, figs, all thrive as well as in
any of their special regions. Here also we found grass,
a good sod, that seemed refreshing to walk on. Prior to
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
the war this was a region of large plantations and wealthy
planters.
doing e
molished,
to waste,
everywhe
Next
editor of
Doctor's.
ence of
miles dis1
All seem to have left, as their slaves left, aban-
verything. The houses decayed and were de-
fences were destroyed, broad fields have gone
and weeds, underbrush, and tangled vines have
re taken the place of cultivated crops.
morning we found Mr. Frederick L. Robertson,
the "Brooksville Crescent," an old friend of the
Horses were procured, and we rode to the resi-
State Senator H. T. Lykes, on Spring Hill, six
tant; then across the country, ten miles, to the
large estate of Mr. William Hope, where we found all
varieties of vegetables growing finely, and rode through
a field of several hundred acres of oats, spreading out
over the hills and valleys-Ohio, surely, except for the
season (it was February) I Good roads, numerous brooks,
hard-wood forests, broad fields (abandoned mostly), plenty
of game, was the result of our observations. The town
is the county-seat of Hernando County, and contains the
court-house-a large, new, wooden building, a good struct-
ure, but provokingly plain in design-three groceries, two
or three saloons, and about thirty dwellings, nearly all
small cottages, generally surrounded by small gardens, and
groves of orange and such trees. Everything looks old-
fashioned and of out-in-the-country style. Yet in lo-
cation and soil it is the gem of South Florida; and, if
a railroad should ever reach here-which is very likely,
for any road to Tampa will surely pass through Brooks-
ville-it
a thickly
Late
Tampa,
twilight.
now has
will very probably become, in tin
Settled, prosperous region.
in the afternoon we set out on
fifty miles distant. Fort Taylor
This place, once the site of a
but one house, surrounded by
ie, the center of
our journey to
was reached at
military camp,
a fine grove of
orange-trees.
About midnight we reached the hum-
FLORIDA.
ble cabin of the stage-station, where we obtained lodg-
ings which, though very rough, were acceptable after our
ride of twenty-six miles. The route had been through a
slightly rolling pine-wood region, with a dark soil of
average fertility, few lakes, no settlers, and very little
hammock.
Early next morning we were out looking about the
ranch, a plain little roughly
rounded by numerous out-hous
variety of tropical plants we
was a genuine curiosity, an o
a native of Maine, who came
vate of the Second Regiment
the Seminoles in 1835, and has
After a breakfast, abundant
resumed our journey, passing
in all respects to that traversed
ly and monotonous, rolling pine
no settlers, but abundance of
At noon we reached the
about fifty feet wide and
crossed it on a well-construd
river th
being a
soil and
and hoi
we wer<
afternoc
fatigued
been o0
e appearance of the
high, rolling, open
a heavy growth of
uses, gardens and g
e once more in a re
)n
i,
rer
pulling fo
con
es,
re
ld
to
U
structed building, sur-
and a garden, where a
thriving. The keeper
regular army veteran,
this country as a pri-
. S. Artillery to fight
remained here ever since.
but rudely prepared, we
through a region similar
on the previous day, lone-
r-land of average fertility,
game.
Hillsborough River, a stream
eight or ten feet deep, and
acted toll-bridge. Beyond the
country changes very much,
-hammock region, with fair
native wire-grass. Clearings
Tove
gion
we at last drove into
dusty, and hungry.
very sandy and pare
hr the tired horses;
glad when we
inviting-looking
halted at last i
hotel, that mud
s, began to appear, and
of settlers. Late in the
Tampa, very hot, much
The last few miles had
%hed roads, making hard
and we felt exceedingly
n front of a cool, quiet,
3h resembled a neat and
comfortable village dwelling.
We had completed a long
journey seldom
taken-a
*
OF THE STATE.
ride across the heart of South Florida from t
to the Gulf, a distance of about one hundred
miles in a direct line, but about two hundred
as traversed by us, with side-excursions to v
nent places.
Tampa is an old town, the name being
with the very earliest Spanish history of the
is well known as "a place in Florida" by
children throughout the country.
It is quaint and old-fashione4 in appearan<
about fifteen hundred inhabitants, and is situ;
he Atlantic
I and forty
d and fifty
'isit promi-
associated
State, and
all school-
ce, contains
ated at the
upper end
able regul
level and
for a big
average fe
generally
of Tampa Bay.
arity into squares,
clean,
place,
w to
good,
going from one
are pretentious,
but very
the town
the block
there is
-point to
but they
appearance, all standing i
having abundance of trop
It is laid out with consider-
with streets of usual width,
sandy. Having been designed
is much scattered, the houses
Sand, though the sidewalks are
much "cutting across-lots" in
another. Few of the dwellings
have a comfortable, home-like
n ample grounds, and nearly all
ical fruits, plants, flowers, shrubs
and vines, sea-shells, and the like, reminding the visitor
that he is in a tropical clime.
The public buildings-court-house, schools, churches,
and halls-are all well-built, fair-sized structures, quite
creditable to the remote little community. There-is no
large hotel of the customary hotel style, and such an es-
tablishment is greatly needed. The present accommoda-
tions for travelers are three small dwellings, neat, clean,
and well kept, but not roomy-mere boarding-houses, in
fact. The business-houses are all plain, village-like, low-
roofed, wooden structures, scattered irregularly along the
street leading to the wharf. They generally carry good
stocks, and a large business is transacted here.
The United States Government owns a large tract of
TOUR
FLORIDA.
land, forming a peninsula which reaches out into the
harbor. It is a lovely spot of about seventy-five acres,
quite like a park, with rolling surface, covered with good
sod of native grasses, while clumps of low-growth bushes
and gigantic oaks and hard-wood trees are scattered about.
The view, looking out over the harbor, is very beautiful.
The barracks, officers' quarters, cavalry-stables, hospital,
and other military buildings, are scattered about the
ground, and are all old, and have a neglected, dilapi-
dated appearance. No troops are permanently stationed
here now; but occasional detachments are sent here for
a few months for sanitary benefit. A walk over these
grounds is quite pleasant, and is one of the "proper
things for the visitor to do.
Large tracts of land in the suburbs have been cleared
of their pine-woods, laid out into long, wide avenues,
and named after Northern States, the plots comprising
ten or more acres each. Many of these lots have been
sold, and the purchasers have evidently spent much
money and time in improving them. The residences are
unusually well built, tastefully ornamented, and brightly
painted, while neat barns, out-houses, fences, sidewalks,
and the civilized improvements usual in Northern pro-
gressive communities, are everywhere seen-the reason,
perhaps, being that the settlers are
people. In spite of all this labor, ta
however, there is a very noticeable
houses, showing signs of abandonment.
The appearance of the greater
in the vicinity of Tampa is sandy,
ashy-gray color, that promises little
There are occasional tracts of dark,
are scarce, and very seldom for sale.
in that region lvint along the coast
''0b"' -a, C~ -
nearly all Northern
ate, and enterprise,
number
of vacant
portion of the soil.
with an unhealthy,
for productiveness.
rich soil, but these
There is good soil
and on the islands,
but in the immediate neighborhood of Tampa I think it
TOUR OF THE STATE.
is mostly poor, and nearly valueless for purposes of fruit
or vegetable culture.
The harbor contains numerous islands and is quite
pretty. It is alive with fish and ducks. We found the
Hon. T. K. Spencer, of the "Sunland Tribune," and en-
joyed an ageeable visit with him, looking about the
place. The Peninsular Railroad, now in process of con-
struction through the central region of Florida, will
doubtless soon place Tampa in direct connection with the
commercial centers of the East and North. This will
greatly benefit it, besides opening up to settlement a
large and at present nearly uninhabited region.
It was a beautiful morning when we took our de-
parture from Tai
that carried us dc
steamer Lizzie H
steamers (the "H
Orleans, Pensacol
and Havana. Th
well equipped, an
sengers were ray
lighter to the stern
the broad bay to
atee River, which
tion of the bay.
kinds, innumerable
out of the bright
watery pathway
sight of hundreds
out of the water ii
Late in the a
several miles to
to take on cargo
the settlement, o
ipa,
e
e
e
E;
going
aboard
wn the harbor to th
nderson, one of the
nderson Line") that
,St. Mark's, Cedar
boats of this line
the little steamer
e handsome ocean-
fine line of Gulf-
ply between New
Keys, Key West,
are large, roomy,
d well supplied. The freight and pas-
)idly transferred from the roomy old
amer, and we were soon steaming down
Manatee, thirty miles distant on Man-
flows into the extreme southern por-
Immense flocks of ducks of several
e porpoises, and countless fish leaping
waters, were constantly in sight. The
of certain shoals could be traced by the
of fish of the six-pound size leaping
n a rapid, direct line.
afternoon we passed up the broad
Manatee, where a short stop was
.There was no opportunity to
r to
exam
ine the soil thereabout
river
made
visit
, but
the dwellings located along the banks of the river were
FLORIDA.
mostly roomy and
deners were at tl
riety and excellent
The sun was a
the bay into the (
riant vegetation, t
the tropical-appeal
poises disporting i
ters of the Gulf, a]
neat-looking houses, and several gar-
e wharf with vegetables of large va-
Juality.
tting brilliantly as we passed out of
ulf; and the islands with their luxu-
e solitary, tall, white lighthouse, and
ng bar on which it stands, the por-
all directions, and the deep-blue wa-
made a scene beautiful to behold and
long to be remembered.
At sunrise the next morning we were entering the
lovely harbor of Cedar Keys, passing near a number of
pretty islands, among them Atsenna Otie Island, where
there is a large saw-mill and machine-shop owned by
Faber Brothers, of New York, giving employment to a
colony of thirty families, mostly Germans, engaged in
cutting and preparing the cedar-wood for the famous
Faber lead-pencils. At the wharves of the little seaport
and railroad terminus we
numerous sailing-vessels, gi
commercial enterprise.
The Doctor, Professor
of the Agricultural Burea
had met on the steamer),
found five large steamers and
ring it quite an appearance of
J. N. Comstock entomologistt
u at Washington, whom we
and I, enjoyed the day stroll-
ing about the streets and limited suburbs,
curious shell-mound-quite a hill, composed
all kinds,
scientific
acted by a
o resorted
ers a super
el, for the
ovation, is
ng visible.
such as are found
supposition that
race
here
b pof
scene
beaul
W
along that
this strange
of prehistoric dwellers
to feast on oysters, 4
sition onowhich to build
in all directions, as vie
tiful, the whole harbor
e met my old friend
visiting the
of sea-shells
coast. It is
mound was
i this region,
ams, etc. It
Large winter
wed from that
and the Gulf
Major Parsons
here, and had a very agreeable visit and a tramp about the
of
the
ere
wh
off
hot
hoi
ele
bei
town with him. His reminiscent
ing back over a period of forty
here from the North, a clerk in
apartment of the United States 2
Z. Taylor, are very interesting.
the Doctor dQzed, Professor Co
to the beach, where the tide was
a.
pulling out
line all the
repletion on
Cedar K
mercantile
and
from
river
little,
trade
evident
the so
that
if any
is sole
es of Cedar Keys, extend-
years since he first came
the Quartermaster's De-
Army, under old General
In the afternoon, while
stock and I went down
s out, and busied ourselves
oysters from the great quantities that solidly
shores of the bay, and feasting ourselves to
that luscious bihalve.
eys is a port of entry, and has several large
establishments, all carrying extensive stocks,
ly prosperous. Their patronage is derived
settlers all along the coast and many goodly
empty into the Gulf there. There is very
, good land on the adjacent mainland. The
ly the result of its railroad and shipping ad-
vantages. The buildings are mostly
substantial coquina-stone, and, with i
fact, there is only one street in the
shells, all white mortary in appearance,
an old Spanish seaport.
Early on the morning after our arri
on our
handsome
Transit
ated
crosse
ville,
busy,
given
pretty
care,
an
s t
W
constructed of the
ts main street (in
place) paved with
it much resembles
rival, we were again
travels-the final stage-seated in one of the
e coaches of the Atlantic, Gulf and West India
Company Railroad, better known in its abbrevi-
d more convenient form of the "Transit," that
be State from Cedar Keys to Fernandina. Gaines-
aldo, Santa F6, Starke, and Lawtey, all thrifty,
growing, enterprising places, of which a<
elsewhere, were passed. Waldo is an
place, and the inhabitants show much
of which they may well feel proud, and
they deserve much credit. Near the depot is
tie park, fenced nicely; the grounds all about
accounts are
especially
taste and
for which
a neat lit-
the pretty
TOUR
OF THE STATE.
FLORIDA.
town are clean and grassy as a lawn
pot is a band-stand of neat design, at
; also, near the de-
the base of a ship-
shape, mast-rigged flag-staff, the gift of a jolly old sea-
captain resident. The dwellings, mostly of cottage style,
are neat, tasty, trim, and clean, of generally good design,
surrounded by lawns of grasses and flowers, gardens of
fruits and vegetables, all showing careful labor and at-
tention. The soil thereabout is fertile, and the people
are energetic and industrious. Waldo is a pretty spot, a
good place for either health-seekers or wealth-seekers.
Early in the afternoon we reached Jacksonville, and
the "Tour of Florida with Hon. Seth French, Commis-
sioner of Immigration," was ended.
CHAPTER IV.
A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
IT was the middle of March when Captain Samuel
Fairbanks, Assistant Commissioner of Immigration, set
out on an official pilgrimage through the northern sec-
tion of the State, in search of information for the use of
his. bureau. The Captain was peculiarly well adapted for
his official position, and especially to investigate this por-
tion of the State, which had in all its parts become fa-
miliar to him, through a residence of over forty years.
He came originally from central New York, and there
are many other people here from that favorite section of
the Empire State.
The writer
tain Fairbanks
lightful time, 1
ing traveling c
anecdotes, and
The previously
accepted a cordial invitation to join Cap-
on the proposed trip, and enjoyed a de-
For the Captain was
companion, full of in
reminiscences of the
described iournev
U Si
of the State had given me a fine
wilder and more remote regions,
gave me an opportunity to learn o
a pleasant, entertain-
Iteresting information,
State and the people.
in the other portions
opportunity to see the
and the present trip
,f the older and more
populous sections. Our route lay through the counties of
all the northern and western portions of the State, where,
in the "piping times of peace," the ante-war days, the
true era of Southern prosperity, the planters of Florida
lived and nourished and waxed wealthy. In .those days
I
FLORIDA.
Cotton was
plantations
the charm
great crops
other bale,
the current
the days of
gion with
King, and the broad rolling acres of the vast
that covered the hills and beautiful valleys of
ng
of
an
sayj
f its
the
largest yields
sea-island varie
We left Ja
ida Central Ra
seat of Suwan
and Mobile R2
speeding throu
certainly, it wa
region were everywhere white v
the snowy staple. Every acre
I every bale meant another nig
ing in regard to it. This was alw
Transfer to American rule, a fa
cotton-planters; here were obt
per acre, of the best quality (ti
ty), and the earliest in market.
cksonville late one afternoon, by
ilroad, changing at Live Oak (th
ee County) to the Jacksonville,
railroad. The early morning hours
gh Ohio, Wisconsi
as not Florida in
a rich, brown, clayey soil,
grass, just like the North
noon we arrived at Quinc
County, and took the stag
one and a half mile distant
over hills and through fine
solid r
ern Sti
y, the
e from
ith their
meant an-
ger," was
rays, from
vorite re-
ained the
ie famous
the Flor-
e county,
Pensacola
found us
n, or central New York;
appearance-hilly, with
oads, rocks, and fields of
rates. Early in the fore-
county-seat of Gadsden
the depot to the town,
by a road which winds prettily
forests.
Quincy is a quaint, old-fashioned town, Southern in
appearance (not, however, of the dingy, miserable, "crack-
er" style), a representative type of once-flourishing in-
dustry. It has a large, park-like, well-fenced square, with
the court-house standing in the center, one of the old
Southern regulation kind of square four-roomed-on-two-
floors buildings. Huge oaks and similar trees shade the
park, and around it or adjacent to it are the city build-
ings, jail, etc., with plain and rather faded brick stores, the
usual number of offices, pumps and water-trough, and the
universal Southern hitching-rail on high posts, with al-
ways a number of saddle mules and horses attached. Over
all is an impalpable but unmistakable mantle of mildewy
A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
decay, of neglect rapidly verging on dilapidation. Such
is the general appearance of the business portion of
Quincy.
The suburbs make an impression altogether more favor-
able. The residences here are mostly large, well-built
structures, with handsome house-grounds, gardens, lawns,
out-houses, shkde-trees, sidewalks, etc.-in all respects, ex-
cept that of a
bling the usual
cultural center
our visit was 1
and gardens of
the doors and
occupied, croqi
few semi-tropical products, closely resem-
thrifty appearance of a steady, old, agri-
in the North. The weather at the time of
ovely (it was March 10th); fruits, flowers,
thrifty vegetables were everywhere visible;
windows stood wide open, verandas were
uet-parties dotted
the lawns; and "
Pirates of Penzance," and other latest music, wa
where heard floating through the open windows, f
keys of skillfully played pianos. At the hands
dence of Postmaster Davidson, we were shown
the finest specimens of the exquisitely beautiful,
hued, feathery pampas-grass that I ever saw, and
.s ev
rom
me i
some of
golden-
it grows
in many other gardens thereabout.
The views across the country in all directions are fine,
ranging over broad fields, hills, valleys, hard-wood forests,
orchards, good fences, and roomy residences-in all a
beautiful region exhibiting unmistakable signs of agricult-
ural prosperity. Nowhere does live-stock grow better.
In the near future, when the old (but worthy) class of
men and women shall have passed away with their ante-
bellum ideas of business, crops, social "ranks," educa-
tion, slave-labor, and their bitter memories of the war,
with its defeated hopes and its "lost cause"-when this
race, with such memories in their hearts, shall be gone,
and the young generation of their offspring, filled with
new ideas, new aspirations, new hopes, shall be in full
control, then, I believe, Quincy and all the other towns
70 FLORIDA.
of that fair, fertile region will be among the pleasantest
garden-spots in all America. At present the goodly people
are "brooding upon memories."
Chattahoochee, the present terminus of the Jackson-
ville, Pensacola and Mobile Railroad, is merely a little
hamlet on the Chattahoochee River, close to the Alabama
line, and has stage connection with Marianna, the county-
'1mw on mH Escnua~ BIn.B, inlB PBnSACOLA.
seat of Jackson County, another of those old-style, quiet
inland towns, a description of one of which answers for
all. The State Insane Asylum is located at Chattahoo-
cliee, a roomy old structure, clean, and having an air of
comfort and adaptation to its purpose, and containing
about thirty inmates. The river, in that region, is quite
a large, respectable stream, the outlet of an extensive back
THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
country-once the water-wa
the Gulf-port of Appalachic<
is very fine, and the atm
clear. This is attributed to
of the Gulf, and is always
"Gulf-breezes."
From Maranna, a long
us to Pensacola. The ride
but not really monotonous,
6y of an immense traffic-to
ola. The scenery thereabout
osphere noticeably soft and
the fact that it is due north
rs tempered by the famous
ride by stage-coach brought
was tedious and fatiguing,
for the scenery was very at-
tractive, except in occasional tracts. Vernon, Euchee
Anna, and Milton, passed en route, are all three county-
seats, and are small, drowsy-looking towns, old-fashioned,
and in all respects typical specimens of the better class
of representative Southern- county-seats. A square, an
old-fashioned tavern, a court-house, and a few shops, may
be said to compose each and all of them.
On every side, in all that region, including Gadsden
and adjoining counties, were seen large old plantations,
and roomy, old, Southern-style planters' residences, giving
evidence of a long-settled region, that had suddenly been
arrested in its growth, and was in a state of suspended
animation. Yet it is a good country, and has, in fact, a
steady growth, though it is of a kind not strikingly per-
ceptible, being in crops and products, instead of houses,
factories, and such town improvements, that are more
likely to catch the attention.
The great, crying need of all that portion of the State
is a railroad, and the series of causes that have pre-
vented the completion of the Jacksonville, Pensacola and
Mobile Railroad are disgraceful to all concerned. All
the parties-the moneyed cliques, railroad-wreckers, law-
yers, and agents-that have for years defeated the con-
struction of that road across this fine region to its natu-
ral terminus at Pensacola, deserve the honest execrations
of all who reside there; for they have greatly damaged
4
A TRIP
FLORIDA.
and retarded the
growth and
prosperity of
what
ought
to be one of the most flourishing sections of Florida.*
Pensacola
is a charming
g city,
clean, nicely laid
BEEN=
STrnr-ScaNs IN PKNAcOOLA.
with great shade-trees, handsome homes,
rally of good architectural taste, with
bors, gardens, etc. The navy-yard and f
their garrisons and official staffs of both
service, give it an animated appearance
the houses gen-
pretty lawns, ar-
ortifications, with
branches of the
: and the officers
and their families contribute very much to the high jepu-
tation for culture and refinement enjoyed by the society
there.
The city has a large commerce, and is one of the
most important lumber-shipping ports in the United States.
In respect to attractions for tourists and visitors, Pen-
sacola is one of the most important places in Florida; and,
Since the above was written, the courts have, after many years of
tedious and costly litigation, awarded the railroad to its rightful owners,
the Dutch company, who, it is understood, will at once complete the line
across the State as originally contemplated.
A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA. 73
instead of attempting a detailed description of my own, I
will quote the following passages from a well-written and
tastefully printed local hand-book :
The splendid Bay of Pensacola, unrivaled for its beau-
ty, depth, and security, was discovered by Pamfilo de Nar-
vaez, in 1525q Various adventurers gave it different names,
as Port de Ancluse and St. Mary's Bay, but that of Pensa-
cola, which prevailed, was the true name among the Ind-
VIEW OF BAY FOOM SHOT PAK, NAVY-YARD.
ians, the natives of the country. The first settlement was
made by the Spaniards, in 1686. The first Governor was
Andr6 Arivola, who constructed a small fort, called San
Carlos,.and erected a church upon the present site of Fort
Barrancas. The French took Pensacola in 1719 ; the Span-
iards retook it, and the French again took it in the same
FL ORIDA.
year and kept it until 1722, when it was restored to Spain.
In the mean time, Pensacola had been removed to the west
end of Santa Rosa Island, near the present site of Fort
Pickens, where the Spaniards constructed a fort, which af-
terward was improved by the English General Haldemand.
The settlement remained on the island until 1754, when, the
town being partly inundated, the site was removed to the
magnificent location which it now occupies. Pensacola was
ceded to the English in 1763, by whom it was laid off in
regular form in 1765. The town surrendered
ish arms in 1781. On the 7th of November, 1
Andrew Jackson, with the American army,
town, when the English fleet in the bay destroy
San Carlos (at Barrancas) and Santa Rosa.
By consulting the map of Pensacola and
*.1 1** St i ft
to the Span-
814, General
entered the
red the forts,
its surround-
wings, the reader will observe the network or water-courses,
bays, and bayous centering at that city. The water is clear,
bright, and beautiful. Surf-bathing upon Santa Rosa beach,
as enjoyable as language can express, the salt-water bathing
in the bath-houses of the bay, and bathing in fresh water
as clear as crystal, can all be had within a distance of seven
miles. The Perdido Bay is one of the loveliest sheets of
water in the State, rivaled by the Escambia Bay, with its
bluffs and ever-moving fleets. Any attempt to particular-
ize becomes confusing, as the special beauties and attrac-
tions of the different bays and bayous are remembered.
Escambi; River is the Ocklawaha' of West Florida. The
stranger who wishes to enjoy a short trip will be 3lesase
as the steamer plows through the broad, placid waters of
Escambia Bay, and then delighted with the luxuriance of
the tropical growth as the vessel winds its way up the nar-
row and tortuous channel of Escambia River to Molino.
At this point the excursionist can take the train and return
by rail to Pensacola.
"The fresh-water fishing is superb. The waters liter-
ally swarm with all kinds of fish, notably trout, black bass;
and pike. All varieties of perch abound, including a spe-
cial kind, a very game fish, called bream. It is not unusual
for a good angler to pull out fifty to sixty of these fish in
an hour, weighing from a half to one pound. Both in salt
and fresh water, fishing is carried on with pleasure and
profit the entire year. In the bay and bayous every descrip-
w
P
b
-
A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA. 75
tion of salt-water fish abounds, and, in the season, fifty cents
will purchase half a dozen Spanish mackerel of the size for
which the epicure pays seventy-five cents for one half in the
BPEOZrm S OF PENsACOLA F=n
restaurants of New York City. These fish, and the salt-
water trout, give special excitement to those who love a
contest with a very game fish. No one can claim to have
seen what fishing is until he has visited the snapper banks
off Santa Rosa Island. There the famous red snapper can
be caught, two at a time, weighing from five pounds to
sixty, as rapidly as the line is thrown in. The limit to the
quantity catchable is commensurate with the physical en-
durance of the catcher.
"The pleasure of boating at Pensacola is not confined
to fishing or idly rolling on the mighty wave, or smoothly
plowing the placid waters; but added to these charms are
the numerous places in the vicinity to go to. The stranger
FLORIDA.
who may visit it will not wonder at finding first on this list
Santa Rosa Island. Upon its beach, mid-day, in its over-
flowing brilliancy, makes the beholder feel as if, according
to Milton, 'another morn had risen on mid-noon.' The
sunset comes with a splendor and glory unknown to more
northern climes. Santa Rosa Island is a sand-key of
the Gulf, forty miles long, and varying in breadth from a
Ruins or FowR McRH, wrmr ForT PCioC nm THm DwruAcz.
fifth of a mile to over a mile across; it is the breakwater
of Pensacola Harbor, and receives the shock of the rolling
seas of the Gulf of Mexico, which often break against it in
fury, while the waters of the bay within are still as a mill-
pond, and scarce a ripple washes the beach of the city front,
seven miles away, though the water at the city is as salt as
that n the center of the Gulf. The sea-beach of the island
is a gently sloping expanse of white sand, back and forth
A TRIP
TOH NORTH FLORID.
THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
on which the advancing and receding waves will glide for
hundreds of feet. You can stand where no water is one
moment, and the next be struggling waist-deep against a
surging wave that is climbing up the strand. This beach
is the incubator of the great turtles of the Gulf. Its grad-
ual incline, the easily excavated sand beyond, and the warm
southern exposure, adapt it to their approach, the making
of nests, and, hatching of their eggs. So they resort to it
for this purpose, and in due time the young turtles are
hatched, unless the eggs are captured by the various creat-
ures, biped and quadruped, who seek them in the season.
From Pensacola over to the island is about seven miles,
and as the land-breeze of the night sets fair across the bay,
it is a pleasant trip of moonlight nights to run over on a
sail-boat, land on the bay-shore, walk across the island,
FOrt BAnuCAS.
shows on the sand where the
along, and, following this up
the highest waves, the nest is
a half feet below the surface
which is not a third of a mile
wide opposite the city, and
seek for 'turtle-crawls' on the
Gulf-beach, or bathe luxuri-
ously in the surf. The crawl'
under-shell has been dragged
to a point above the wash of
found, usually about two and
e. A single nest will contain
78 FLORIDA.
from one huridred to three hundred eggs. At Sabine Pass,
on Santa Rosa Island, alligators are found by the ten thou-
sand, and are killed in large numbers by hunters who fre-
quent the place.
"While on the island, very few visitors fail to find an
interest in collecting shells and sea-beans. Then comes a
visit to Fort Pickens. This grand and historic old edifice,
though denuded of a portion of the iron dogs of war that
used to bay, not 'deep-mouthed welcome home,' but roars
of defiance, still possesses a multitude of pleasant and in-
teresting sights and objects that make a visit there both
profitable and agreeable. Across the bay is the navy-yard,
and just west of the navy-yard is Fort Barrancas. Both
are beautiful, and will interest the most indifferent. Added
to the novelties to be seen is the delightful society enjoyed
by all who know the hospitable and intelligent officers of
both the garrisons. Below Barrancas is the Pensacola
Lighthouse."
An interesting and agreeable route from Pensacola to
Tallahassee is via one of the popular Henderson line of
steamers to St. Mark's, and thence by the railroad. The
pleasures of a Gulf trip are detailed at length in another
chapter. St. Mark's is a very ancient port, one of the set-
tlements made by the original Spanish explorers of Flor-
ida. Shortly after its settlement a large stone fort and
pier were built; but they were long ago permitted to de-
cay, and were finally destroyed by the settlers desiring the
cut rock for their own uses. It is now a deserted village,
only two or three small and unpretentious buildings mark-
ing this famous spot, romantic in historical events, beauti-
ful in scenery, and once a busy mart, the second seaport
in all the United States to boast of a railroad terminus.
From here to Tallahassee, twenty-one miles distant, runs a
railroad, built in 1835-'36. This was, in its early days, a
very busy little road, the outlet of all the productive cot-
ton region lying inland. At that time the planters lived in
princely style, fairly rolling in wealth; for those were the
A TRIP
THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
halcyon days of the slave-owning cotton-planters, and this
was their paradise. The road is now almost disused,
trains only passing over it twice a week, on "steamer-
day," connecting with the
Tallahassee, the capital
the flowery South," is one
America. It' is built upon
face of a high hill, surroun
hills and deep valleys, for it
and lakes. It is laid out i
which is its principal busin
weekly Henderson steamers.
of the State, "the floral city of
of the loveliest places in all
the broad, gently rolling sur-
ded on all sides by other lovely
I is in a region of hills, valleys,
n squares, with Main Street-
less street-lined mostly on one
side with plain, old-fashioned brick stores for a distance of
four blocks. This street is fairly level and wide. All the
other streets are charmingly irregular and uneven-in fact,
many are quite declivitous-and are lined with grand, old,
mammoth-sized magnolias, oaks, maples, elms, and other
magnificent shade-trees. Broad, roomy, open squares are
frequent, all shady, park-like, and inviting.
At one end of the city stands the State-House, a large
and very plain brick structure, painted a light color, with a
front and rear portico, having each six great two-story col-
umns. It stands in a spacious square on the crest of the
hill, and can be seen from a long distance. The grounds
are laid out with winding paths and lawns, shaded by
many grand old magnolias, oaks, and the like, and the air
is redolent with perfume from the many flowers always
blooming there.
It is an unpretentious old city, with an air of village-
like rustic simplicity; no factories (except one cotton-
mill); all is quiet, country life. The residence avenues
are mostly lined with cozy little cottages, and comfortable,
roomy, substantial mansions of the good old-time style of
architecture, and all are surrounded by neatly fenced lawns
and gardens, almost all having quite ample grounds, well
kept-and flowers, flowers, flowers! Everywhere in the
FLORIDA.
greatest
in their
who see
ment of
for the 1
The
from th
abundance are flowers.
lovely h
m to have
nature, th
beautiful.
suburbs
e streets
A most
creditable pride
ome-grounds is exhibited by t
a friendly rivalry in this beal
at is expressive'of culture and
Tallahassee is truly a "floral
are everywhere lovely, and
or house-tops-especially the
he citiz
dutiful o
a fine t
" city.
the vi
roof of
State-House-are
exceedingly fine.
The surrounding
coun-
try is a vast r
like clusters of
large plantation
forests-in all,
of nature, such
Here we rer
old, tavern-like
about the surro
out to "Goodw
Hopkins, sever
well worth vis
dence of how
life. Erected i
ranged around
dry, cook-hous
etc., etc. ; ani
laid out in par
merable strange
a party of us
and long lake,
sembles Cayug
bluffs, all clear
ing down to th<
Captain C.
whose company
ange of hills, valleys, brooks, lakes, park-
large trees, broad, well-cultivated fields,
n dwellings and cotton-gins, and distant
a remarkably beautiful natural panorama
as is seen nowhere else in Florida.
gained several delightful days at the quaint,
" City Hotel," enjoying numerous drives
funding country. One beautiful day I rode
ood," the grand old estate of Major Arvah
al miles out of town. This residence was
siting, because it affords a striking evi-
elegantly the old-time planters enjoyed
n 1844, it comprises numerous buildings
a large square in the rear, used for laun-
e, milk-house, saddle and harness house,
I the spacious surrounding grounds are
rk-like style, with paths, lawns, and innu-
e plants, ferns, and flowers. Another day
went on a trip to Lake Jackson, a large
six miles from the city. It closely re-
a Lake in New York, surrounded by high
ed,
Sw
E.
y I
and everywhere the broad fields reach-
ater's edge.
Dyke, our escort on this trip, and in
enjoyed many other rides and trips,
besides evenings at his elegant home, is one of the most
notable residents of Florida. A native of New Hamp-
ens,
ma-
aste
ews
the
w -
A TRIP
THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
shire,
where he long
ago learned, the
printer's
trade, he
came to this State
in the
In 184
editor:
paper,
out a
in all
tor of
printer
7
al
w
si1
th
in
office of "Th
he had work
chair, and in
ihich he has e'
ngle Ifailure to
at long period
1839, and
e Floridia
d his way
that year
ver since
"go to p
time.
at once found a
n," established in
up from the case t
assumed control o
so ably conducted,
ress" regularly each
Besides being the
'job"
1828.
o the
f the
with-
week
Nes-
Florida editors, he has for many years been State's
; and his office, close by the State-House, is a
favorite consultation-room for all State officials, who, as
a rule, have always placed implicit confidence in his
opinions and advice. He is undoubtedly the best in-
formed upon all matters, political and legal, pertaining
to Florida, as a Territory and as a State, of any one
living. For upward of forty years he has been the in-
timate friend, confidant, or adviser of nearly all public
officials. Knowing all the secret and unwritten history
of the State, his stock of historical and personal remi-
niscences is very great, and, if "written up," would make
a volume at once interesting and instructive.
One of the pleasantest resorts in the capital at the
time of our visit was the official apartments of Governor
W. H. Bloxham, then Secretary of State. An unusually
genial, off-hand, sociable gentleman, utterly free from
ostentation, he is the favorite of all the State officials,
and of a large circle of life-long, intimate friends. Gov-
ernor Bloxham is a native of Florida, and is the first
gentleman elected to that position who has been able to
boast of such
within sight o
ernor; and his
ing in the mid
dred carefully
a distinction.
f the capital, w
comfortable old
He was
here he
home ne
born
now
ar th
very nearly
sits as Gov-
e city, stand-
st of an immense plantation of several hun-
cleared and cultivated acres, is one of the
genuine, old-style cotton-plantations of the most hospita-
FLORIDA.
ble sort. In the electoral campaign of 1880 he was chosen
Governor, and it was unquestionably a good choice, for he
is heart and hand in favor of any and all proper efforts to
aid the cause of education, of immigration, and develop-
ment of the State by railroads and similar improvements.
He is, in particular, a warm friend of the public-school sys-
tem, and greatly admires the Northern
for their earnest efforts in this cause.
extending liberal aid to immigration,
ida the home of at least one million
with a network of railroads and canal
crat, he is not a "Bourbon," but is one
in the initial secession movement, and
with the result. So far as he can con
peculiarly retrogressive elements that
influence in the political councils of
be sure that the rights and interests
be protected.
An exceedingly pleasant circle of
in Tallah
Associate
Wescott,
ass
J
of
Foster, the
has lived h
Jacksonvill
New York
army, and
resident he
i
e
see are
justices,
f the Si
ir Clerk.
ere man
. Jud1
Chief-Just
R. B. V
ipreme Co
Judge i
y years, a
re Van V
ice E. M.
an Valken
)urt ; also
Randall is
nd has an
alkenburg
and Western States
He also believes in
hoping to see' Flor-
people, and covered
s. A stanch Demo-
who did not believe
is heartily satisfied
trol or influence the
as yet exert much
this State, all may
of new-comers will
gentlemen to be met
Randall and his
burg and T. D.
Mr. Charles H.
from Milwaukee,
elegant home in
is from western
,was a distinguished General in the Union
Minister to Japan. He is also a long-time
re, is warmly attached to the State, and owns
a very fine estate on the St. John's River just opposite
Jacksonville. Judge Wescott is a resident of Tallahassee,
where he dispenses an elegant hospitality. These gentle-
men are profoundly respected by all, irrespective of polit-
ical creeds, and are of great benefit to the State as an
encouragement to immigration. They are an unimpeach-
able guarantee that life and property are and shall be
A TRIP
THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
safe in this State, and that lawless desperadoism of
semi-political character-the "Mississ
be permitted or tolerated. The fact
born gentlemen are members of th<
the State is a greater aid to the ci
than may be supposed, even by the
best-disposed native resident.
Near the city stands the famous
ippi
that
e Su
cause
mos
plan"-will not
these Northern-
preme Court of
of immigration
t observing and
Murat estate,
once
the property of Prince Achille Murat, brother-in-law of
the first Napoleon, members of whose family are buried
in the beautiful city cemetery. The estate is finely lo-
cated, and the building-site is unsurpassed, but the house
now standing upon it is quite plain and unpretentious.
Another local "lion" is the noted Wakulla Spring, which
I reached by a pleasant drive of sixteen miles. The
spring lies in a rather flat, uninteresting, pine-wooded
region, near several cultivated cotton-plantations. It is
nearly circular in shape, about four hundred feet in di-
ameter, and the shores are densely wooded to the water's
edge. A rude landing has been constructed, and an old
darkey is always present with his boat to row the visitor
about the glassily smooth surface of the pond. The sides
are very nearly perpendicular, and are composed of smooth
and solid rock. Sixty-six feet below the surface of the
water is the first or upper level, a broad, shelving surface
of clean rock; and through this is a large, irregularly cir-
cular opening apparently about one hundred feet in diame-
ter, through which can be seen the lower level or bottom
of this wonderful spring, a total depth of one hundred
and nine feet. The rock that forms the upper level is
evidently not very thick, for in one place there is a per-
fectly round opening about three feet in diameter, through
which can be plainly seen the second bottom, fifty-five feet
farther below. It is a great, thin fringe of rock, like a
crust, with a vast opening a little to one side of its center.
FLORIDA.
The water is so marvelously
look pale in comparison wi
gravel and bits of tin one
plainly on the bottom. C(
and some very small, could
about in the distant depths.
rocks are of the most inten:
occasional phosphorescent fl
fitfully, producing a weird
is neither a ripple nor a m
vet here is a stream that co
blue that indigo would
ith it, and so clear that small
inch square could all be seen
unless fish, some quite large
d also be seen lazily floating
While the water is blue, the
sely brilliant green, over which
ashes of shimmering light play
and phantasmal effect. There
otion observable in the water,
mes pouring up from the bow-
earth and forms a river (t
wide and four feet deep.
the spring that Ponce de
r and discoverer, romantically
the long-sought
"Fountain of Youth."
stitious soldiers seem to have
their interpreters or the Indian
convey the information that i
healthy water, that had a benefit
therein. He and his followers
now stands, sought out the W
it up to this spring, into whi
It need hardly be said that the
younger; and the lives of ma
at once sacrificed to appease
They found, or could see on
a
complex
,who
t was
ial effe
, being
kulla
ich the'
y came
1e Wakulla River)
Leon, the Spanish
ly supposed to be
He and his super-
tely misunderstood
probably meant to
a spring of clear,
ct upon the bather
where St. Mark's
tiver and followed
y eagerly plunged.
out cleaner, but no
ny innocent savages were
their disappointed anger.
the distant bottom, the
skeletons of two gigantic mastodons, their flesh all gone,
but their bare bones perfect and white, their great curl-
ing tusks interlocked, evidently fallen in and drowned
while engaged in a terrific combat on the brink. There
the bones lay until, in 1835, Professor King, of Phila-
delphia, engaged several men, some of whom are now
living in Tallahassee, to recover them. This was success-
fully accomplished, and they were shipped on board a
els of the
sixty feet
This is
adventurer
)
A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
schooner, to
but, unfortui
off Cape Ha
finally lost fo
Returning
our party v
spring, and
terious "sini
These sinks
in diameter
with smooth
or have but
be placed
lately, the
itteras, and
ir ever.
Sho
isite<
also
ks"
are
in the museum in Philadelphia,
vessel was lost at sea, in a gale
these interesting skeletons were
me from our visit to this
d another. smaller but
examined a number of
that are found in that
mostly circular in form,
and fifty to one hundred
,sides, like great wells,
little water in their deep
an
onl
bot
romantic spring,
very interesting
the many mys-
Wakulla region.
about fifty feet
d fifty feet deep,
ly they are dry,
toms, while large
lakes or rivers may be but a few hundred feet di
with their waters nearly level with the surface o
ground. The wonder is, how there can be such
ference between the levels of the waters in the lak
in the sink; how the water of the lake fails to ge
the sink, and where the waters of the sink come
and go to. These sinks are found in all portions of
ida, and are a remarkable and characteristic feature
peninsula.
In Wakulla County is a vast jungle of trees,
water, and marsh, that has never yet been fully exi
Neither the United States nor the State Governmel
ever attempted to survey it (in fac
a geological survey of this State).
gentlemen in Tallahassee have, on
tempted to penetrate its depths, b
except at much expense. As far a
found a strange country of volcano
where were seen great masses of
extent, all cracked and ragged
great depth. Traces of gold, lead,
are said to have been discovered
instant,
,f the
a dif-
;e and
t into
from
Flor-
of the
vines,
)lored.
nt has
t, there has never been
Several adventurous
Various occasions, at-
ut found it impossible
Ls they penetrated, they
iic appearance. Every-
rocks, often an acre in
as if upheaved from a
copper, silver, and iron
: and abundant traces
of petroleum are found there, and in numerous other lo-
FLORIDA.
calities in that region. It is in this impenetrable
that the famous "Florida volcano" is supposed
ist, for a column of light, hazy smoke or vapor
(and has been for years) seen rising from some
of it, and provokes the conundrum, "What is it ?"
Among other strange freaks of nature in that
is Lost C
dently pl
that is bh
Mark's R
in span,
written
would be
thorough
by the S.
reek,
ungin
Attom
iver,
over
about
where a large
g downward
less. Also thb
about seventy
which people
the natural
deeply interesting
scientific survey of
tate
authorities
stream
into the
e Natur
feet in
pass.
curiosity
and of
this Sta
but, with
jungle
to ex-
may be
portion
region
Amol
nent
that
the 1
well-
tiful
suddenly ends, evi-
earth, in an abyss
al Bridge across St.
width and the same
A volume could be
ies of Florida that
scientific value. A
te should be ordered
the present
class of
able tax-reducers, it is a futile hope to expect any such
measure to be authorized.
The people of Tallahassee have a beautiful custom of
holding a fair, early each spring, that
from anything in the way of the fair
elsewhere in the South. It is a floral
spacious fair-grounds, open to all, but
or quite all the exhibits are made by tl
The exhibits are vegetables, fruits, and
flowers. As might be conjectured, the
ors, and patrons generally, are the ladie
interest and pride in this exhibition, so
so pleasant, and so indicative of refine
ure. I attended the fair of 1880, held
Hall was a beautiful sight, with a p
flowers, of all varieties, kinds, forms, col
probably differs
exhibitions held
fair, held at their
of course nearly
ie Tallahasseeans.
flowers, especially
managers, exhibit-
s, who take great
distinctively local,
d taste and cult-
in March. Floral
refuse
display
ors, and perfumes,
all artistically arranged and exhibited to the best advan-
tage.
Nowhere, it may be said in conclusion, is there a
more refined and cultured society than in Tallahassee.
A TRIP
THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
Among them are many descendants of the most promi-
nent and aristocratic old families of America, with names
that recall old colonial, Revolutionary, and 1812 days in
the battle-fields and in State councils; and their large,
well-attended schools, numerous, handsome churches, beau-
tiful homes and surroundings, all attest to the high stand-
ard of the bept society of Tallahassee.
From Tallahassee to Jacksonville the traveler passes
over the Jacksonville, Pensacola and Mobile to
Oak, and thence via the Savannah, Florida and V
ern Railroad. The other important towns in this sec
besides those mentioned, may be briefly dealt with.
Monticello, in Jefferson County, thirty-three miles
of Tallahassee. is the terminus of a branch railroad a
five miles long, and
thousand inhabitants.
a weekly newspaper,
nations, Episcopalian
tist. The climate is
Live
Test-
tion,
east
bout
is a flourishing town of some two
It contains two hotels, good schools,
and churches of the several denomi-
, Presbyterian, Methodist, and Bap-
almost identical with that of Talla-
hassee, and the adjacent country is very similar in appear-
ance to that which surrounds the capital. Near Monticello
is the Lipona plantation, where Murat resided for some
time while in Florida; and in the vicinity is Lake Mic-
cosukee, whose banks figure
ground of De Soto, and as t
between General Jackson and
Madison is a pretty town
habitants, situated on the rai
Tallahassee. It is the capital
on a plain near a small lake
Baptist, and Methodist church
near by, and in the county
I
'1
in history as the camping-
he scene of a bloody battle
;he Miccosukee Indians.
of about eight hundred in-
way, fifty-five miles east of
of Madison County, is built
and contains Presbyterian,
hes.
are
The Suwanee River is.
Lakes Rachel, Francis,
Mary, and Cherry.
Live Oak, the county-seat of Suwanee County, is at
the junction of the Jacksonville, Pensacola and Mobile
FLORIDA.
and the Savannah, Florida and Western Railways, and is
the half-way point between Tallahassee and Jacksonville.
The surrounding country is pine-woods with sandy soil,
which looks poor, but which, with a little manure and
good cultivation, produces excellent crops. There are a
number of market-gardens in the vicinity, and great quan-
titles of vegetables are
ern markets.
ground, and c
A live weekly
here, the scho
several denomi
ings and a
south of the
or wooden r
the little vill
Houston
road, and is
the town are
S
h
nu
ta
ail
The to
contains
newspa
'ols are
nations,
mber ol
own (co
wav) is
.
shi
in
abo
per,
goc
wit
[
I
pped from this point to North-
spreads over a good deal of
ut eight hundred inhabitants.
"The Bulletin," is published
)d, and there are churches of
h some respectable store-build-
Pleasant residences.
nnected with it by a
Five miles
"tram-road,"
Padlock, and four miles north is
age of Rixford.
lies six miles east of
surrounded by a good f
some fine springs, and
eral beautiful lakes
fish. Wellborn, tw
larger place, and a
settlers who have c
Iowa. There are sc
and in the neighb
lakes teeming with
famous Suwance W
ated on the banks o
containing an
elve miles east
among its popul
'ome thither fro
)me fine hammo
orhoo
fish.
'hite
f the
Lake City, the most
is on the railroad about
It is a prosperous and
d are Lak
Live Oak, on the rail-
arming country. Near
in the vicinity are sev-
abundance of excellent
of Live Oak, is a much
nation are a number of
im Indiana, Illinois, and
ck-lands near the town,
:e Wellborn and other
Only eight miles away are
Sulphur Springs, attractively I
Suwanee River.
important place in this reg
fifty miles west of Jackson
substantially built town of
ion,
ville.
some
twenty-five hundred inhabitants, with a number of brick
stores, well-kept hotels, seven or eight churches, good
schools, tasteful private residences, and a large trade in
vegetables and other products of the surrounding coun-
A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
try, including lumber and turpentine.
Its climate, being
drier than that of Jacksonville, is thought to be more fa-
vorable to those consumptives who are in advanced stages
of the disease, and the place is a favorite winter retreat
for such invalids.
its name.
Lakes almost surround the town, hence
Three miles south is Alligator Lake, which has
no visible outlet.
In the wet season it is three or four
miles
across,
but in winter it retires
into a deep
hole, and the former bottom is transformed into a grassy
meadow.
The following
g description of Suwanee County is from
a letter written by Mr. N.
C. Rippey to the Tallahassee
" Floridian.
quote
it because
is applicable
all this
portion
of the State, and
contains
information
of value to immigrants:
"The county lies in a big
bend of the Suwanee River,
or at least the river forms the boundary-line 'on three sides.
There is a high ridge extending across the county east and
west, or nearly so, near the center north and south, some
four miles or so in width.
It is covered with the finest
growth of pine-timber in the county. In it is an abundance
of stone, in ledges and in bowlders. It is of a gray color,
very soft; can be easily cut with a knife or saw, and, on
being exposed to the air for some time, it becomes as hard
and durable as granite, and makes a very fine material for
building purposes.
The country north of the ridge is pine-woods with sandy
soil. Here and there are to be found tracts of hammock-
lands, varying in size from a few acres to several hundred.
These lands contain a rich, loamy soil, and a great variety
of excellent hard- wood timber, suitable for all kinds of
building and manufacturing purposes. There are a number
of beautiful lakes scattered over the country, containing an
abundance of excellent fish. There are numerous springs,
some of them white sulphur, famed for their medical vir-
tues. There are branches or creeks gushing out of the
earth, and after flowing a few miles entirely disappear.
The country south of 'The Ridge' is more rolling and fer-
FLORIDA.
tile, and is underlaid with limestone that frequently comes
within a few inches of the surface. There are no lakes or
streams of running
natural wells tha
the hand of man
nearly so, varying
or more in diam
more to the edge
in the largest; ti
a number of caves
g water. There are a great number
t appear as though they were cut
through solid rock; they are round,
in size from a few inches to forty f
eter, and from a few feet to forty
of the water; fish are frequently fou
he water is clear and cool. There :
of considerable size, but they have nev-
er been explored to see how far they extend under the
earth.
"The pine-lands produce about fifteen bushels of corn
per acre. A little manure and good culti
more than double that; cotton, about a b
sometimes three; upland rice, from forty
per acre; oats and rye are raised in consid
but I was unable to learn the yield per
does well, and is a very profitable crop; a
fine vegetables are raised and shipped to N
vation will yield
ale to two acres,
to sixty bushels
erable quantities,
acre; sugar-cane
great variety of
)rthern markets;
there are a number of small vineyards in the county, and
some excellent wine is made from the grapes; there are
quite a number of small orange-groves, and, strange to say,
they are nearly all planted by the hands of women; it is a
fine country for peaches and pears. The people are just
beginning to find out what a great variety of fruits and
vegetables they can raise, and everybody seems determined
to have an orchard of all kinds of fruit. 'Turpentining'
has become quite an industry, and there are several large
turpentine farms in the county that are reported to be very
profitable.
"The Suwanee River is navigable for small steamboats
to the crossing of the Jacksonville, Pensacola and Mobile
Railroad, and for large steamers to Rowland's Bluff, near
the south
has rocky
be seen al
The
which 4,1
from the
county th
east corner of the county. The river frequently
bluffs and bottoms, and many fine springs are to
ong the banks, and some rich lands.
population of the county in 1880 was 7,379, of
[66 were white and 3,213 were black. Judging
number of immigrants that have gone into the
is past fall and winter, the white population must
now be about five thousand."
D
A TRIP THROUGH NORTH FLORIDA.
Dr. D. G. Brinton says:
Florida is dry and equable.
"The climate of this part of
Many invalids would find it
a very pleasant and beneficial change from the seacoast or
the river-side, and immigrants would do well to visit it.
Game and fish are abundant, and the sportsman need never
be at a loss for occupation."
CHAPTER
JACKSONVILLE, FERNANDINA, AND ST. AUGUSTINE.
JACKSONVILLE, the commercial metropolis and social
center of the State, is likely to be the first point at which
the visitor to Florida will make anything of a stay-the
place where he will get his first impressions of the "Land
of Flowers." It-is a handsome and prosperous-looking city,
covering a good deal of ground, and, particularly during
the winter season, when all the hotels are thrown open to
the thronging guests, it presents an animated and pictu-
resque appearance that is quite exceptional at the South.
The streets are remarkably wide, and are nearly all shaded
by long rows of mammoth live-oaks, forming arcades of
embowering green in winter as well as in summer. Good
sidewalks of brick or planks contribute greatly to the
comfort of pedestrians, but the streets themselves are too
sandy for rapid or pleasant driving, and are "heavy" for
all vehicles.
Bay Street
runs parallel t4
a distance of
stores, offices,
several of the
corner of Bay
and in it, besi
is the United
is the principal business thoroughfare, and
o and one block distant from the river. For
about a mile it is lined on both sides with
and other mercantile buildings, including
leading hotels. The Astor Building, at the
and Hogan Streets, is the finest in the city,
ides several stores and a number of offices,
States Signal-Service station. Horse-cars,
connecting the railroad-depots, run along Bay Street, up
JACKSONVILLE.
Catherine to
Duval Street to the St. James Hotel, down
IIogan Street and back to the starting-point, making a
very convenient circuit.
On the river at the foot of Ocean
I.;--S-;~
STREET-SCENE IN JACKSONVILLIL
Street is a fine public market, and there is a smaller one up-
town at the corner of Hogan and Church Streets.
Many
of the shops make a specialty of "Florida curiosities" (the
majority of them manufactured
in New
York), and con-
FLORIDA.
nected with that of Damon Greenleaf, on Bay Street, is a
"Museumenagerie," which will prove interesting to vis-
itors, and the admission to which is free.
There is in the city a quite remarkable number of hand-
some residences, and with very few exceptions they are
surrounded by ample grounds laid out in tasteful gardens
and lawns. Sometimes these gardens are perfect little
parks, and the fruits, flowers, and shrubs all indicate a
semi-tropical region. The society of Jacksonville is uni-
versally admitted to be unusually select, cultured, and re-
fined ; and the reasons are not far to seek. Many of the
most prominent citizens have been drawn thither from all
parts of the country on account of its climatic advantages,
and are in general the picked men of their several locali-
ties. At any gathering of the best society there will be
found gentlemen who have occupied high positions in all
portions of the United States, and in nearly all professions
and occupations-in the army, the navy, the judicial, the
political, literary, artistic, and commercial world. As ex-
amples, I may mention that General Spinner, he of the
famous greenback autograph, owns a beautiful home here,
whither he has retired to enjoy the well-deserved comforts
of an honored old age ; and that Judge Thomas Settle, of
the United States Circuit Court, the original of Judge
Denton in "The Fool's Errand," has another fine residence.
During the winter season the great hotels (the St. James,
the Windsor, the Carleton, the National, etc.) are thronged
with wealthy tourists from all parts of the world, and the
place has then all the gayety and animation of a leading
summer resort at the North.
Situated on the left bank of the St. John's, at the point
where that noble river makes a sharp bend to the east, thel
city presents a very attractive appearance from the water)
and from its higher points commands a pleasingoutlook
upon the stream and its low-lying opposite shore. Its situ-
FERNANDINA.
ation is a very favorable one
is very extensive, particularly
of which gives employment
mills. Nearly all the railro
State center at Jacksonville,
fruit and early -vegetables, as
are shipped thence to Norther
With what are known as
for commerce, and its trade
y in lumber, the preparation
to a
,ad an
and
well
n and
the "
number of large saw-
d steamer lines of the
immense quantities of
as of cotton and sugar,
foreign ports.
modern conveniences"
the city
excellent
artesian
is well suj
system of
wells, and
effective system of
organized an
lating library
byterian, Me
public halls,
all parts of
of 1880, the
t
d in s
and a
hodist,
applied.
It is lighted with gas, has an
water-works drawing the water
has recently been provided wit
sewers. The public schools are
successful operation; there are a c
free reading-room; Episcopalian,
Baptist, and Catholic churches; b
from
h an
well
ircu-
Pres-
anks,
newspapers, and telegraphic connection with
the United States. According to the census
resident population was 14,500, and the rate
of growth has been and is very rapid. When Florida shall
have achieved what now appears to be her "manifest des-
tiny," Jacksonville will be one of the great commercial
and industrial centers of the country.
FERNANDINA.-This picturesque old city, one of the
most interesting in Florida, lies on the Atlantic coast, about
fifty miles northeast of Jacksonville, close to the Georgia
line, being the northernmost point in the State. It is built
on the west shore of Amelia Island, overlooking a broad
bay which affords the finest harbor on the coast south of
the Chesapeake Bay, and which gives it important commer-
cial advantages. Vessels drawing twenty feet of water can
cross the bar at high tide, and the largest ships can un-
load at the wharves. The Mallory Line of Direct Florida
Steamers has its southern terminus at Fernandina, and the
steamers of the Charleston and Savannah lines call here on
5
FLORIDA.
their way to and from Jacksonville.
portant railroads of
India Transit Railrc
southwest across th(
nandina and Jackson
fords a short air-line
such advantages, it i
Fernandina is large
of fruits and veget;
ways for shipment ni
trade in
One of the most im-
Florida-the Atlantic, Gulf and West
,ad begins at Fernandina and runs
SState to Cedar Keys; and the Fer-
iville Railroad, recently completed, af-
route between these two cities. With
s not surprising that the commerce of
and increasing. Immense quantities
tables are brought thither by the rail-
orth; and there is an important export
lumber, cotton, and su
Fernandina was founded by the Spaniards in 1632, and
has an interesting history, over which, however, I have not
time to linger. It is now a busy and prosperous place of
about two thousand inhabitants, whose numbers are largely
augmented
on a broad
bay, show
streets are
well ,kept,
oaks, magn
portion of
by visitors during
plain that rises
ig to fine adva
laid out at right
and
olias,
the
but the largest
Egmont Hotel
Mansion and Ri
are everywl
and
city
and
is on
ddell
being crowded during
beautiful, the houses
structed, and nearly
laid out in lawns and
luxuriance of flowen
orange-groves are fo
Egmont House is an
similar
contain
finest
g the winter season.
gently from the sh
ntage from the ha:
angles, are wide an
here densely shaded
evergreen trees. T
s some substantial
buildings are the h
It is built
ores of the
rbor. The
d generally
with great
'he business
structures;
hotels. The
e of the finest in the South, and the
Houses are spacious and well kept, all
g the season. The suburbs are very
being for the most part tastefully con-
always surrounded by ample grounds
I gardens, and covered with a tropical
s and shrubbery. Quite a number of
und in the vicinity, and opposite the
interesting grove of palmettoes.
Crossing the island in a direction due east from the
city, an attractive drive two miles long leads to the famous
Amelia Island Beach, one of the finest in America, and af-
I
^
i
C
-t4
4sbr
Db
A l
- -_ -_
bi
A CLumT or PALxuanW
FLORIDA.
fording an unsurpassed beach-drive
beach is as smooth, as hard, and as
during the season it presents an
its long lines of carriages and othe:
charming ride may be enjoyed to F
old fortification situated on the extr
the island.
But of all the attractions of Fer
ity the chiefest is "Dungeness," o0
eral Nathanael Greene, of Revoluti
the property of General W. G. V
estate was gr
Georgia, in r
South, and is
hour's sail fr4
berland Island
the Florida l
about a mile
broad Atlanti
which, ,at the
anted to General Gr(
recognition of his spl
situated or
om Fernand
I lies along
ine, and is
in average
c, and on
distance of
1
i
Cumberl
na in a
the coast
some eig
width.
of twenty
level as
enlivening
r equipag4
ort Clinc
eme north
miles. The
a floor; and
sight, with
es. Another
i, a romantic
lern point of
nandina and its vicin-
nce the home of Gen-
ionary fame, and now
i. Davis. This noble
3ene by the State of
endid services to the
and Island, about an
small steamer. Cum-
of Georgia, close to
hteen miles long by
On one side lies the
the other is the sound, across
about a mile, is the mainland.
Dungehess, so named by General Greene's wife, is situ-
ated at the southern end of the island, and includes
about one third of its total area. The magnificent man-
sion was burned in the early part of the civil war, but the
ruins still stand firm as a rock, the massive old coquina-
stone walls having actually been hardened by the fire.
In the quaint old burying-ground, some distance from the
house, lie a number of the relatives of General Greene and
his wife; and here is the tomb of "Light-Horse Harry"
Lee, father of General Robert E. Lee.
On a charming morning in January, 1880, I visited
Dungeness, and spent a couple of hours in wandering
about the beautiful grounds, with their curious old gar-
dens and fruit-groves. It was my second visit to the
place, and I felt that I could exist there as a modern
I
ST. AUGUSTINE.
Robinson Crusoe, if need be, and never tire of its love-
lines.
h wide
ks and
td vines
e water
( walks
ich teeming garden
fields; such noble
magnolias; such a
; such broad, wind
to the house-park;
; puch a glorious se
s such brilliant flowers;
groves of grand old live-
tropical luxuriance of tan-
ing avenues, leading from
such delightfully perplex-
!a-beach, the twin of that
on Amelia Island; such oysters, lining the sound-shore
in millions; such game and fish; and such a clear, pure
air-no, never could I tire of Dungeness !-dreamy, ro-
mantic, delicious, entrancing old Dungeness !
ST. AUGUSTINE.-The visitor to St. Augustine may en-
joy the consciousness that the spot on which he then stands
has behind it a longer stretch of authentic history than any
other within the limits of the United States. It is, indeed,
the oldest European settlement in our country, having been
founded by the Spaniards under Menendez in 1565, forty-
two years prior to the settlement of Jamestown in Virginia,
and fifty-five years before the landing of the Pilgims at
Plymouth Rock. Its history has been checkered and ro-
mantic in the highest degree; it was from the very first a
place of considerable note, and the theatre of interesting
events; and it still possesses a curious aspect and flavor of
antiquity. Coming to it from bustling, active, Northern-
like Jacksonville or Fernandina, one is conscious of a com-
plete and sudden change of time and place-as if the brief
ride on steamer and railway had produced magic results,
and landed him in some quaint, old, dead-alive Spanish town
of the middle ages. The large influx of wealthy settlers
from the North has greatly altered the character of the
place within the past few years; but the smart modern vil-
las still have the air of foreign intruders, and the quaint,
romantic old city retains at once its individuality and its
unlikeness to anything else in America.
FLORIDA.
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2L
STREET IN ST. AUGUSTINE.
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