page_title: James McKay Sr.
section_title: Civil War
hierarchical_section_title: James McKay Sr. / Tampa / Civil War
caption_attribution_description: English: Viewing Tampa, Florida at dusk from the McKay Bay Greenway and Nature Trail
context_page_description: James McKay Sr. was a cattleman, ship captain, and the sixth mayor of Tampa, Florida. McKay is memorialized with a bronze bust on the Tampa Riverwalk, along with other historical figures prominent in the History of Tampa. He was a slaveowner before the Civil War who put them to work at his lumber mill in the [[Hillsborough River.
context_section_description: During the Civil War McKay used his ships to run the Union naval blockade and brought guns, ammunition, foodstuffs and other merchandise for the Confederate army and civilians.
  In late 1861, the Union navy set up a blockade near the mouth of Tampa Bay as part of the overall Anaconda Plan, which sought to squeeze the Confederacy off from outside sources of money and supplies. Local blockade runners continued to slip out undetected to the Gulf of Mexico. Most notable (though not most successful) among these was McKay who delivered Florida cattle and citrus to Spanish Cuba in exchange for gold and supplies before being captured and imprisoned by Union forces. McKay Bay, the portion of Tampa Bay adjoining the port, is named in his honor.
  On October 14, 1861, McKay was caught. He and his and vessel were seized and he was imprisoned in Key West until March 1862 when he took an oath of allegiance to the United States.
  In 1863, McKay was appointed Commissary Agent for the 5th District of Florida by Confederate Major Pleasant W. White. He stymied Confederate army attempts to ship beef, employing a series of excuses.
caption: McKay Bay
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