Subj: [FLJACKSO] families migrate from SC to the area of Jackson County
Date: 08/21/2000 10:57:10 PM Central Daylight Time
From: [email protected]
My new found cousin Ken Toole ([email protected]) asked the question and I could
not answer him. Might one of our historians on the list have the answer? Duke
were are you?...Betty
Why did so many families migrate from SC to the area of Jackson County within
such a short time?
1850 time frame......
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Subj: Re: [FLJACKSO] families migrate from SC to the area of Jackson County 1850's
Date: 08/22/2000 12:44:39 AM Central Daylight Time
From: [email protected] (Richard White)
My explanation is rather general... The Second Seminole War was over and
there was a abundant supply of cheap land in Florida. Also, the basics
of "law and order" were perceived to be in place once Florida became a
state in 1845.
According to a census taken in 1838 in conjunction with statehood
efforts, the population of Florida was 48,223: including 21,132 slaves
and 958 free blacks. (Note: that's a black population of 46% and a
*free* black population of almost 2%.)
In 1845 the Florida population was 70,000, and it was 140,424 in 1860,
40% of whom were slaves. That was a 45% population increase in only 7
years between 1838 and 1845, and a 191% increase in the 22 years between
1838 and 1860. Most of those folks weren't being born in Florida and
they had to come from somewhere. I believe that most of that
"somewhere" lay between North Carolina and Georgia.
Source of population facts: Michael Gannon, _Florida: A Short History_,
University of Florida Press, 1993.
The antebellum Florida economy was based on cotton and forest products
in Middle Florida. The term Middle Florida meant different things at
different times, but it must be taken into account that essentially what
had been West Florida under Spain became the state of Alabama. I
believe that the term Middle Florida generally meant the area from
Escambia County to the Suwannee River. That was the area that included
most of the cotton and slaves. The South Florida economy, such as it
was, was based on cattle.
That's my stab at an answer. I'm interested in seeing others, and am
particularly interested in anything anyone has to say about the bounds
of Middle Florida in this period.
RW
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Subj: Immigration from SC to FL and Middle FL
Date: 08/22/2000
I am responding to the question about South Carolinians moving to Florida and the discussion about Middle Florida which evolved out of it.
The question about South Carolina can be broken down into two parts. Why did they move to Florida? and Why did they come from South Carolina? I think Richard has answered the first question as well as it is going to be answered. With respect to the second, there could have been events occurring in South Carolina at various times which prompted people to move in greater numbers than at other times. But South Carolina was a very populated state, and would have provided a large number of immigrants for that reason alone. Moreover, in the south there were two more or less distinct routes immigrants took to the west. One was through North Carolina and Tennessee to northern Alabama and Mississippi, and the other was through South Carolina and Georgia into southern Alabama and Mississippi. Some of those on the latter route spilled over into Florida, but only a trivial number compared to those that went to or stayed in Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi. Florida was pretty inhospitable until mosquito control and air conditioning. I expect that years from now people will look back at the enormous immigration into Florida during the 2nd half of the 20th Century, and ask why so many people from New York moved to Florida at that time?
Sorry that I don't know enough to give a better answer about the immigration pattern. Maybe I can do a little better on Middle Florida, at least with respect to its origin. Richard's discussion of Middle Florida is quite timely as far as I am concerned. I am preparing to launch a new web site dedicated to Middle Florida, so I may as well throw my opinion into the ring.
I agree with Richard about "Middle Florida" meaning different things at different times. For my purposes, I am using the term to mean the court district established in 1824 by the Territorial Council of Florida. As far as I know, the concept of dividing up Florida was originated by the British in 1763 at the end of the French-Indian War (and its European counterpart, the Seven Years War). In good European tradition, the war was concluded with a territory swap fest. England got all French and Spanish territory in America east of the Mississippi River (except New Orleans). This permitted King George to extend the boundaries of Georgia westward to the Mississippi River. Everything south of there was divided at the Apalachicola River into the two British provinces of East Florida and West Florida.
The American Revolution ended in 1783 with another territory swap fest, and Spain got both East Florida and West Florida. It continued to govern them as separate colonies, as England had done. By the time America purchased the Floridas from Spain, half of West Florida had already been wrestled from Spain through some complicated and controversial maneuvers and annexed to the states of Alabama and Mississippi and Louisiana. East Florida was still Spanish, and so was that part of West Florida that extended from the Apalachicola River to the Perdido River. In 1821, America took possession of the parts of Florida that had remained Spanish, and the two Floridas were combined and split into two counties. Escambia County extended from the Perdido River to the Suwannee River, and St. Johns County from the Suwannee to the Atlantic Ocean. But the concept of East Florida and West Florida was too well entrenched to be replaced by mere county names.
Tallahassee was proclaimed the capital of the territory in 1824. Between the attraction of government related business and the superior cotton growing land, the population near Tallahassee and on either side grew much faster than the rest of the territory. Because of this, or in anticipation of it, a third court district was established in 1824 for Middle Florida. There no doubt were other considerations, too. I doubt the residents of East Florida wanted to see the Territorial capital located in West Florida. Middle Florida was extracted wholly from West Florida. Its boundaries extended from the Apalachicola River to the Suwannee River, leaving everything west of the Apalachicola River to be West Florida.
I am not prepared to discuss the further evolution of Middle Florida, but I have reason to believe that its geographic boundaries were later altered at least once, and at one time included Jackson County. But for me and my web site, "Middle Florida" is going to be the counties between the Apalachicola River and the Suwannee River.
Duke Vickrey
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Subj: Re: [FLJACKSO] families migrate from SC to the area of Jackson County 1850's
Date: 08/22/2000 9:46:41 AM Central Daylight Time
From: [email protected]
The incentive to move from the longer settled land of South Carolina to
the relatively "new" area of Florida is clear. Now to try to find the
relationship between these groups or familles that made this migration all
within such a specific time span. Communication in the first half of the
19th century was not what it is today, yet the circumstances of these peoples
stories being so similar, I wonder what transpired in the South Carolina
region that lead up to this. Was there some sort of promotional program in
the local media? Had someone preceded this movement into the Jackson Co.
area and returned to some acclaim? What was the extent of the limited
communication between areas in the rural South (etc., telegraph, mail
service)? Someone's journal from that time would be invaluable. The
responses to this line of inquiry have been more than I could have hoped for.
Let's hear some more.
I am very new to this list and am looking forward to more contact with all of
you,
Kenneth D. Toole
Flagstaff, AZ
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Subj: Re: [FLJACKSO] families migrate from SC to the area of Jackson County 1850's
Date: 08/22/2000 10:19:55 AM Central Daylight Time
From: [email protected] (K Clark)
In our family history, the migration had to do with the turpentining and
forestry industry, it was being quickly depleted in North and South
Carolina, so a migration started from there into GA, AL, and FL.
In doing research on our family, whole communities picked up and moved which
is why you may find in your own research, the same families in the same
areas from state to state. I found it quite interesting to learn this.
Kim
Kansas City, MO
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Subj: [FLJACKSO] Migration to Florida
Date: 08/22/2000 12:40:32 PM Central Daylight Time
From: [email protected]
What better advertisement than thousands and thousands of soldiers who
had become very familiar with the area during the three Seminole wars.
Land was also a lot cheaper in Florida and a lot better than the worn
out and exploited land in some of the other states.
Mella in Tx
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Subj: Re: [FLJACKSO] families migrate from SC to the area of Jackson County 1850's
Date: 08/22/2000 11:00:30 PM Central Daylight Time
From: [email protected] (Barry White)
Something not to be over-looked about people moving from South Carolina
-to- Florida and into Alabama, in the early to mid 1800's is that a lot
of men who fought with Andrew Jackson as volunteers from the states of
SC., NC., and VA., during the War of 1812, and were also with Jackson
later on his quest to oust all Native Americans from the states of Ala.
and Fla., had passed through these area's of Alabama and northern and
middle Florida during this time. It is natural to think that with "some"
[and I emphasize the word some] of the Indian problems taken care of,
that it is natural thing to do. To start anew, especially for younger
couples and people who were ready for a new beginning and a fresh start.
A place where land could be obtained for just a few cents an acre. Where
the soil was considered virgin soil, and would sustain a good crop of
cotton or other crops, or citrus. I'm not saying this was the only way,
but I'm sure news passed on by word of mouth as these men returned home,
or whatever. I don't claim to be an expert, but this is just a thought I
had that is very probably valid. I am interested in what others have to
say. What do you think? Respectfully, Barry White