The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1888-09-28
FLORIDA AS A SUGAR STATE.
=, Was Done in This Business Forty Years
Ago.


.,hl;shed near Kissimmee by the st.
hand SugarCompany, are being frequent
.0oken of as the beginning of the
.ar industry in Florida. This is an
Knowing that, iii the years gone
Ma;or Robert Gamble, of Tallahassee,
a owned and operated immense sugar
.,tations and sugar works in Manatee
n0tv we requested that he furnish us
~ history of his sugar planting and
..0facturng for publication in the
ncp,TloN FLoRIDIAN. In compliance
~ our request he contributes the fol-
wing;
n Borea, Esq
nrAR SIR: am in the receipt of yours
,ur "A. in which you request me to
~on for YOUR IMMIGRATION FLOR
nv the history of my sugar planting
,bs Nanatee river. | will endeavor to
mOlv as neatly as | can with your
isbes.
IN 1914 | carried ten of my negro men
tho river and commenced operations :;
NOS inst at the close Of the seven
ors war with the Seminoles, SO that
,ar living in stockade for that length
time mon the extreme frontiers of
;ddp Florida, | found myself again
.;rr mon the frontier, there being no
hte face between me and the Ever
.des At this time most of the rich
Dds on The Manatee were in the hands
mon who about the end of the war
[.;Ipd themselves of an Act of Congress
rled the earned Occupation Law"
ader this law every armed man who
Eupied a quarter section under the pro-
s;Ons of this act for five consecutive
ars erecting house and putting into
(ltiyation during that period five acres
land. would on proof Of compliance
Eth the conditions of his permit " re-
i've from the Government deed to his
% acres. Upon ray arrival | found the
luse hammock tenanted by intelligent
en-. nearly all mechanics of great skill.
bere were blacksmiths, boiler makers,
Drkers in iron in the higher branches of
art, cabinet makers, carpenters, brick
vers. &c, &C., and by availlng my
Il of the services Of these men, was
abled to overcome, when | commenced
erection of my buildings, what other
se, in country so entirely cut off and
mote from the resources of civilization
build have proved almost insuperable OBJ
bcles. There were no settlements in
interior; the nearest town, then
Ere village, was Tampa, some forty
les to the north, and it only accessible
water, there being no roads. Our only
mmunication with the outer world was
a small sloop Of about - tons which
built for us by one Of artisans above
uded to. This boat once in a month
six weeks, piled to the port Of Saint
rks bringing US our letters and papers,
all supplies Of provisions and other
tiers, and carrying the few passengers
% passed between these points.
The following year carried down an
dltional force and a small quantity of
pc seed and continued from year to year
Increase the laborers. The labor of clear
these lands and fitting them for Guilt
lon exceeded any Of my past expert
Pc In clearing the primeval forests of
ddle Florida In addition to the re-
yal Of the dense forest growth it was
'essary to carry out an extensive sys-
p Of drainage.
These Manatee lands, in the ages past,
lstltuted the ancient bed of the river or
ner an estuary or arm of the Bay of
npa, the Manatee river entering it at
eastern bound. An upheaval of the
phtry northward raised this bed from
ancient sea level about ten degrees so
the waters We're thrown more to the
IN, where the soil was nothing but
Inc topography of these lands was
peculiar, the base being limestone,
enmposed upon which were various
us OF mari. and upon this a strata of
colate coored argillaceous soil, filled
nnely attrlterated fossil bone of the
uatee, and also many entire ribs of this
mai completely petrifed; this consti-
y The true soil, but upon this was the
zee soil, sand and vegetable matter.
substratum of limestone was de-
sed in innumerable places, forming
JUS Or ponds varying from one-fourth
10 SIX or eight acres. During the
season the ponds were filled and
gradually depleted by evaporation
Ig the succeeding dry season. The
~ these ponds was rich unctuous
approaching to clay in its texture,
Ne all the lands which lay between
9 and above their high water mark,
Tue usual light gray soil, with the
Soiate soil described above. Between
rich lands and the river, on the
was small sand prairie, acting as
"a and effectually preventing the es
OF the heavy rainfall of our rainy
vQ Ruun,n1. = ho M