America's Swamp: James E. Ingraham

The James E. Ingraham Papers provide the viewpoint of a businessman who spent most of his career working in Florida for the railroad tycoons, Henry Flagler and Henry Plant. The effect that Flagler and Plant had on the development of Florida cannot be overstated, as they sought to acquire as much land as possible for expansion of their rail lines and resort cities being developed along the two Florida coasts. As part of Ingraham’s work for the Plant railroad, he conducted a survey through the Everglades from Ft. Myers to Miami in 1892. The collection includes correspondence and photographs pertaining to the Everglades, as well as Ingraham’s manuscripts regarding the Flagler and Plant railroads and their role in developing South Florida.