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History of the Cracker Trail |
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In 1521 when Spaniard Ponce de Leon returned to Florida he brought horses and 7 Andalusian cattle (ancestors of the Texas Longhorn). He, and other Spanish explorers turned Florida into America's oldest cattle-raising state.
St. Augustine missionaries who raised beef also fought off Indian raids, bears, gators, snakes and the occasional panther. Inspite of cattle fever, malaria, ticks, storms, swamps, mosquitoes and other challenges, before 1700 there were cattle ranches across Florida.
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Florida was open range. If cattle were not branded or earmarked, any man good with a rope or that could drive them into corral could round up what unmarked cattle he could. By the 1800's the Seminole nation possessed extensive herds of cattle.
Cattle were gathered by "cowhunters", cowboys using 10'-12' whips made of braided leather, making snapping sounds in the air made a loud crack that kept the cattle moving and earned the cowboys the nickname of "crackers".
Most of the "Cracker" cowhunters used herd dogs. |
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The Cracker Trail runs from just East of Bradenton, and ends in Ft. Pierce, a total distance of approximately 120 miles. This trail was used to move cattle and, occasionally, horses to the sea ports where they would be shipped to Cuba and other locations.
During the Civil War, Florida became a chief supplier of cattle to the Confereracy, both for meat and leather. |
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By the 1880's, cow camps were located in every section of the state.
Raising cattle is still one of the biggest businesses in the state. Florida's ranchers raise the third largest number of cattle of any state East of the Mississippi. |
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