58 GASPARILLA ISLAND March April 2019
that tended to the cattle, work was always a
struggle. They were either fighting off panthers,
wolves or bears, while keeping count of the herds
to make sure someone hadn’t stolen them from
you.
They did not get paid much and when they did,
they usually ended up raising cane in the small
cattle stations like Arcadia and Wauchula.
In 1821 the U.S. took possession of Florida and
by the 1830’s the trade routes were re-established
with Cuba. Charlotte Harbor was one of
the main points of export to Cuba. During this
time if you were working as a cowman and you
weren’t driving your herds to Charlotte Harbor
for export, you probably had to drive them all the
way as far as Savannah, Georgia or even
Charleston to get them sold. Then they would
The first organized cattle ranching operation began
in 1565 after the founding of St. Augustine.
The ranches were needed to feed the garrison and
the communities around the area. Around 1600, the
Spanish began to export cattle to Cuba and also
began to build relationships with the Native
Americans. The natives tended to the Spaniard’s
herds. This was the way it went until the 1700s, and
by then, there were almost 20,000 head of cattle in
Florida and more than 30 organized ranching
operations.
In the beginning of the 1700s, there were raids led
by the British and Creek Indians that crushed the
Florida cattle industry. The displaced herds became
wild again and eventually were gathered and kept by
the Seminoles, and appropriately enough, the
Seminole chief during this time was named
Cowkeeper.
Cowkeeper died in 1783. Until his death, he was
regarded as one of Florida’s largest producers of
cattle for most of the 1700s.
After Cowkeeper’s death, cattle rustling became
common practice between Americans, Europeans
and the Indians, so much so, that it was believed to
be what led up to the Seminole wars.
The 1800s were a struggle for everything and
everyone involved in the cattle industry, except for
the cattle themselves, they survived the harsh
environment, the heat and even the bugs. They
became immune to most diseases. As for the hands
Jacob Summerlin