Early Settlers of Sanford,
Florida:
Florida’s history is brought to life when we look at
the people who came to live there. By looking closely at the lives of early
Florida settlers, we can learn a great deal about why Florida is so successful
today. Early Florida settlers came with different ideas of how to approach
Florida’s landscape and resources, and many were faced with hardships and
struggles. The Florida frontier, though uniquely promising, was a dangerous
and difficult frontier to explore.
The very earliest Florida settlers were Native Americans.
They came to the Lake Monroe region of Florida primarily because of the proximity
to a navigable body of water. In the sixteenth century, Spanish conquistadors
came to Florida in search of gold. Spain claimed Florida as a colony; however
their claim did not last long. Britain had also arrived on America’s shores
and soon gained control over Florida. After the American Revolution, Spain
was again granted Florida as part of the Treaty of Paris. It was during this
period that settlement in Florida began increase immensely.
The familiar story of the white man’s claim in the New
World resulting in conflict with Native Americans rings true for the Seminole
tribes. The Seminoles were at odds with the British, and when Spain once
again held claim to Florida, the Seminoles were encouraged to settle there,
as they made an excellent buffer between Spanish Florida and the new United
States. As time went on, the conflict between whites and Native Americans
increased, and many early white settlers faced Indian raids as they encroached
further and further upon Indian territories. An example of these conflicts
is the story of when Seminole Indians attacked Mr. Willoughby Tillis’ family
in June of 1856. It was one of the last incidents of Seminole hostilities
in Florida.
Throughout this same period, white men began to settle
in Florida. During the American Revolution, the British government concocted
a plan to settle northern Loyalists in Nova Scotia and southern Loyalists
in East Florida. The plan was foiled when Britain ceded east and West Florida
to Spain in 1783, but by then, settlers from Georgia and the Carolinas had
already come in fairly large numbers and did not have any intention of leaving.
One reason for the southerner’s resistance to leave, were the favorable terms
the Spanish offered for acquiring property. Many of these early settlers
can be identified through the lists of Spanish land grants.
Another type of early Florida settler was the Negro slave.
Arriving at about the same time as white settlers, slaves found a safe haven
in Florida. Slave masters did not have any authority over them in Florida
territory, and the Seminole tribes also offered the slaves protection.
Early settlers had to rely on themselves for the simplest
necessities. Food, medicine, and clothing were not to be taken for granted,
as they had to be produced by the settlers, or if purchased, were expensive
and sometimes difficult to obtain. Most early Florida settlers engaged in
farming, logging, or ranching for profit. Farming for profit in Florida centered
around the citrus industry, however many settlers had farms simply for a
means of self-sufficiency. Many men flocked to Florida because of tourist
guides or advertisements.
Homes
Pioneer families were versatile when it came to building
homes. Two very popular types of homes were the log house, and the frame
house. These homes might be heated by a wood-burning range, which also served
double-duty as a cooking stove. The houses also had no screens in the windows,
but the beds were fitted with overhead canopies to which netting was hung
to keep the mosquitoes out.
Food
Early settlers wasted little of the precious resources
they had, including land, food, and other materials. In the citrus groves,
when the orange trees were young, farmers would plant crops of cow peas,
corn, sugarcane, and beans between the rows. When the groves of trees grew
larger, and there was too much shade, this crop rotation had to be abandoned.
Vegetables, sweet potatoes, seafood, such as fish, crabs,
and shrimp were common. Meat might include venison or bear, and occasionally
beef, but with no refrigeration, these items had to be used quickly and were
often divided among several families.
Sugar was obtained from the sugarcane grown in the fields,
and could made into syrup or candy. This sugar was unrefined, but worked
just fine. If families wanted the white, granulated sugar we are accustomed
to today, they had to purchase it at a store, and it was expensive and often
meant a trip into town and back.
Clothing
Clothing was made in the home, either from homemade yarn,
or if one could afford it, from store bought cloth. The Florida sun was as
hot a hundred and fifty years ago as it is today. Workers might get much
needed shade by wearing a hat made from palmetto buds. The buds were bleached,
cut into strips and then braided. These braids were then sewn together to
fashion the hat. Early settlers were quite resourceful and used Florida’s
unique resources to their best advantage.
Medicine
Early Florida settlers were subject to malaria, cholera,
and yellow fever outbreaks. Some parts of the state were worse than others.
Pensacola in particular was overcome from time to time by yellow fever epidemics,
and the effect on economic and social life was astounding. Medical science
had not yet determined the cause of yellow fever as a mosquito-borne disease,
and ignorance prevailed for many years leading to near hysteria at the height
of some outbreaks. Believing that yellow fever was carried with the wind,
or could be inhaled, state government set up quarantines and required residents
to carry yellow fever immunity cards. Treatment for these fevers included
bloodletting, purgatives such as calomel, castor oil, enemas, and blistering.
Quinine was a popular medicine used to combat malaria, and early settler
Martin Cross describes how he used quinine to cure himself of a two year
bout with malaria; “This drug [quinine] came in bottles about the size of
Vaseline bottles familiar to us now, containing two or two and one-half ounces.
I carried a bottle in my pocket, and took it throughout the day – placing
a quantity in a cigarette paper and dropping it down my throat as far back
as possible, washing it down with water – taking sometimes as much as forty
or fifty grains a day. It made me deaf as a post at the time, and turned
my hair white.” Clearly, home remedies often had brutal side effects, but
the alternatives were hardly acceptable either.
Weather and Climate
The weather was also a factor in the success or failure
of Florida’s early pioneers. Florida’s unique climate stems from its shape
and location. It is a narrow peninsula attached to a large body of land.
Because warm bodies of water surround the Florida peninsula, it is susceptible
to strong continental weather influences. These conditions “envelop” the
state, and if they occur during the winter season, can result in devastating
cold spells and freezes.
Florida’s early settlers; particularly those who were
involved in the citrus industry were given a crushing blow during “The Great
Freeze” of 1894-1895. This freeze was catastrophic to the citrus industry
in not only Sanford, but also the entire state. While the citrus groves moved
further south in some areas and returned to profit, the citrus industry in
Sanford never fully recovered. By the twentieth century, celery became the
new, prosperous field crop, earning Sanford the new title of “Celery City”.
Traditions
Early Florida settlers, whether they were crackers, negroes,
Native Americans, immigrants from other countries, all brought with them
traditions and aspects of their culture that likely made the Florida frontier
less daunting and more a home.
Kena Fries, a young Swedish girl, moved to the Lake Monroe
region with her family in about 1873. Her father was one of the many Swedes
who came to work in the citrus groves Henry S. Sanford had established near
Mellonville. Kena’s diary provides evidence of many of the typical chores
a young girl would have had to do, such as churning butter, milking cows,
and washing dishes. Kena’s life is filled with joy by the friends and experiences
in early Florida, and she describes going to friend’s houses to “pull candy”
and her school projects. Kena’s family brings with them many of the Swedish
traditions of celebrating May Day and the Namesake Days. The presents given
on these namesake days were often handmade. Although her father was a successful
man, working as Orange County surveyor, and was able to provide his family
with many luxuries not available to early settlers, the family still experienced
hardships such as illness. Kena and her sister, Eva fell ill with fevers
throughout her diary entries.
As a whole, Florida’s early settlers were brave and industrious.
They were proud of their home and land. A poem by Will Wallace Harney called;
“The Florida Pioneers” is a wonderful tribute to the Florida frontier and
the men, women, and children that gave so much to make Florida a part of
America. It is through their lives that Florida’s history comes alive. Sanford
is only one of many successful towns and cities in Florida. Without their
difficult work and struggle to survive, the quality of life in Florida today
would not be possible. We can by truly thankful for early settlers sacrifices
and labor, as it has brought us to where we are today.
+Poem: "The Florida
Pioneerss" by Will Wallace Herney
+Image: Florida Home
+Newspaper Clip: New York Times
+Yellow Fever Immunity Card (front)
+Yellow Fever Immunity
Card (back)
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