The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1909-05-14
'Hf TRIBUNE
PRIZE WINNER
81. Lucie County; It's History,
Resources and Possibilities"
bURTffN IN CONTEST
-dees Award First Prize to the following
Essay, Written by William Hunter, a
Public School Pupil in I 9th Grade

Isl. Luce, the Youngest county in
state of Florida, is situated midway
the Atlantic coast and is bounded by
feyard county on the north, by the
flantic ocean on the east, by Dade
lnty on the south. by Lake Okeecho-
e on the south and west and by Osce-
county on the west. The ar.famed
Han River extends through the en-
e length of the county, parallel with
e Atlantic ocean.
St. Lucie county came into existence
the first day of July 1905, being
eated from the southern end of old
kevard county, by the state legisla-
Re of that year. 1t has length of
but forty seven miles and an average
dth of about forty miles, and its
pulaton, including residents from al
it every state in the union, is about
yen thousand.
Fort Pierce, the county seat, is the
ncipal town, having population of
arly two thousand, and being a d.
lion point of the Florida East Coast
lilway.
Most important among the other
pns are Jensen, White City and Sc
6tian, other and smaller towns are
len, Ankona, Eldred, st. Lucie, Vik-
Vero, Quay, Wabasso, Roseland,
ntie and Fort Drum.
Principal among the many and varied
ustres of the county is pineapple
ture, this being the principal resource
10. From twelve TO thirteen hInd-
carloads of the delicious, ar-famed
1an River pineapples are shipped
Rry and the income from without
state is over a half million dollars
I'm this one industry alone. Pineap-
IS were first cultivated at Eden by
ptain 7. E. Richards, Father of the
beapple Industry" in the year 1876,
owing to lack of transportation
Utilities, were not grown to any eX-
1t until after 1890, when the old line
Indian River steamboats, was estab-
bed. The fruit was transferred at
usville to the old Jacksonville, Tam
& Key West railway, by which it
IS conveyed to Jacksonville, thence
the northern markets.
IN 1894 the industry had increased
such an extent that it was almost
possible for the steamer line to
hdle the traffic, but in the fall of
1t year the Florida East Coast Rail
y was extended through this section
TRANSFORMATION troubles were over.
is railroad has the reputation of
ing its shippers the best and quick
service in the State today.
he winter of lS94-5 brought the big
eze, that killed all of the orange
yves of the upper part of the state.
pineapple fields were also appar-
Ely killed, but the next year b. ought
rop Of fruit, from the plants which
sprouted from the roots of the froz-
pines and thus proves the stability
this most resOurceful industry and
Pved that freeze severe enough to
all the orange trees, to the tips of
roots, meant the loss of only one
p of pineapples.
pther fruits grown with profit in the
MY are oranges, grapefruit, tanger-
bananas, kumquats, guavas,
Ppavs, lines, avocado pears and
ngoes. The annual revenue from
orange and grapefruit crop alone is
put $780, 900.
7. Lucie county has some of the fin
land for general farming purposes,
the state, and the income from mar
gardening fully equals that obtained
IN orange culture. Most easily cul-
tied of the vegetables grown on the
ms IN the interior are tomatoes,
? beans, peppers, eggplant, lettuce,
pms, celery, Irish potatoes, sweet
atoeS, and Okra or gumbO. Sugar
e, though not cultivated to any ex-
grows wild and will for years con-
Y. reproducing itself from the Stub
or old stalks, without any care
atever.
thousands of cattle, sheep and hogs
re on the ranges in the western part
ne county, and from these the East
lst Cattle Company supplies meat to
nDers OF towns for $50 miles along
coast.
hirty fisheries, employing some
ee hundred men, are the source OF
$780, 900 revenue annually.
ne appropriate name of"The Sports
s Paradise" has been applied to
section. Tarpon, mackerel, king
blue fish, channel bass and Sleeps
q abound in the waters of the river
me ocean and these furnish ample
;ment to those seeking pleasure
5e rod and reel, while in the
ck' 'ntry, such game as quail, wild
keNg'er, wild cats, otter and bear
quite nerous.
One if ftant resource, though very
zen neORed in the past, is coming
. noti Us is our pine timber. Al
PSF al ate. d supplies of lumber,
sStlestY ST.,val stores will, n.the