The History of Florida

THE HISTORY OF FLORIDA

At first glance, Florida appears to be a state with little history, but behind the state’s modern veneer lies a long and rich past, molded by many different nationalities and cultures. Until the 16th century, Florida supported a large indigenous population. Many of its tribes had complex political and religious systems that demonstrated a high degree of social organization.

However, after Ponce de León first sighted “La Florida” in 1513, Spanish colonization quickly decimated the Indians through warfare and disease.

French explorers troubled the Spanish initially, but a real threat to their control came only much later. In 1742 English colonists from Georgia defeated the Spanish, and thus acquired Florida through the Treaty of Paris in 1763. Florida was returned to Spain in 1783, but numerous boundary disputes and the War of 1812 soon followed; Andrew Jackson captured Pensacola from the British in

1819, and the official US occupation took place in 1821. American attempts to remove the Seminoles

from Florida led to conflicts that lasted for over 65 years. Soon after the Seminole Wars came the Civil War, by the end of which, in 1865, the state was in ruins. But Florida soon recovered. Entrepreneurs like Henry Flagler built a network of railroads and luxurious hotels that attracted wealthy tourists from the north. Tourism flourished during the early 20th century and by 1950 had become Florida’s top industry. As the state opened up, agriculture expanded and migrants flooded in.

The recession of the 1920s and 1930s was only a short hiatus in the state’s growth, and between 1940 and 1990 the population increased six fold. Today, Florida is home to a sizeable Hispanic community, with a strong Cuban presence as well as many other ethnic groups. Economic inequalities have led to social problems and the state’s relentless urbanization has put

a severe strain on the environment, but Florida is still booming.

Prehistoric Florida

Florida was once part of the volcanic chain that formed the Caribbean islands. This eroded over millions of years and was sub- merged. When the land finally reemerged, Florida was connected to North America.

Humans first arrived in Florida after the last Ice Age and formed distinct tribes. Some developed from nomadic hunter-gatherer societies to ones with permanent settlements along Florida’s bountiful rivers and rich seaboard. A high degree of religious and political organization was common to many groups by around AD 1000 and was manifested especially in the building of burial and temple mounds.

FLORIDA’S PREHISTORIC TRIBES

Agriculture and burial mounds, traits shared with groups elsewhere in the southeast US, were associated with the Timucua and other tribes in north Florida. Southern tribes, such as the Calusa and Tequesta, left a legacy of wood carvings and midden mounds, which indicate a diet based on fish and shellfish.

Spanish Florida

After Juan Ponce de León first sighted Florida in 1513, several Spanish conquistadors attempted unsuccessfully to find gold and colonize the region. The French were the first to establish a fort in 1564, but it was soon destroyed by the Spanish: the Gulf Stream carried Spanish treasure ships from other New World colonies past Florida’s coast, and it was vital that “La Florida” not fall into enemy hands. The Spanish introduced Christianity, horses, and cattle. European diseases, in addition to the brutality of the conquistadors, decimated local Indian populations. Britain, eager to expand her American colonies, led several raids into Florida in the 1700s, in an attempt to supplant Spanish rule.

The Fight for Florida

A plentiful supply of hides and furs, and the opportunity to expand the plantation system, attracted the British to Florida. After taking control in 1763, they divided the colony in two.

Florida was subsidized by Britain and so stayed loyal during the American Revolution. However,

Spain regained West Florida in 1781 and then East Florida was handed back two years later.

American slaves fled to Florida creating antagonism between Spain and the US. This was exacerbated by Indian raids to the north and an Indian alliance with the runaway slaves. General Andrew Jackson invaded Spanish Florida, captured Pensacola, and even occupied West Florida, thus provoking the First Seminole War.

Antebellum Florida

After Florida became part of the US in 1821, American settlement proceeded apace, and the plantation system was firmly established in north Florida. The settlers wanted good land, so the Federal government tried to remove all Indians to west of the Mississippi; resulting conflicts developed into the Second and Third Seminole Wars. After Abraham Lincoln, an opponent of slavery, was elected president in 1860, Florida became the third state to secede from the Union. During the ensuing Civil War it saw little action; Florida’s chief role was to supply food to the Confederates, especially beef and salt.

Florida’s Golden Age

After the Civil War Florida’s economy was devastated, but its fine climate and small population meant it was a land ripe for investment. The railroad barons Henry Flagler and

Henry Plant forged their lines down the east and west coasts of Florida during the late 1880s and ’90s, and tourists followed in increasing numbers, stimulating the economy. A diverse agricultural base also sheltered Florida from the depression of the 1890s that ravaged other cotton-producing states. Fortunes were made and fine mansions were built. Blacks were less fortunate; most lost the right to vote, Ku Klux Klan violence grew, and segregation was the norm.

Boom, Bust, and Recovery

Like the rest of the US, Florida saw times of both rapid growth and depression during the first half of the 20th century. Excited by the rampant development during the 1920s land boom, northerners poured in, many as “Tin Can Tourists” in their Model T Fords. Then, in 1926, three years before the Wall Street Crash, a real estate slump ruined many in the state. But economic recovery came earlier than in the rest of the US, with the growth of tourism and the introduction of federal schemes; many unemployed fled to Florida from the north looking for work. During and after World War II, the state continued to prosper; in the 1950s it was boosted by the launch of the NASA space program.

The Sixties and Beyond

Since 1960, Florida has flourished. Tourism has expanded at an unprecedented rate, and countless hotels have been built to cater to all budgets. Theme parks like Walt Disney World and the Kennedy

Space Center, home to NASA’s space program, have brought both worldwide fame and crowds of visitors to the Sunshine State. The population has also grown rapidly, through migration from within the US and from abroad; modern Florida is home to many ethnic groups. African-Americans were helped by the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s, but today there is tension between them and the large Hispanic community, which includes the biggest Cuban population outside Cuba. The negative effects of development have led to increased steps to protect natural resources: conservation has become a major issue.