The Florida Cowboy - Desoto to Six Gun Territory

Amazingly, even Six Gun Territory never really gave the Florida cowboy his due. From the days of Juan Ponce and Hernando Desoto when the first horses set foot on the sandy beaches of Florida, a real legacy of adventure and toil began in this state that continues even to this day. Spanish cattle as well were the first to be established among the scrub oak and palmettos of Florida with the quality of their breeding like that of the horse, being respected now as it was then. And as for the Florida cowboy himself, or 'cowman' as they're more freqently called here than out west, their legacy is every bit as wild and romantic as their western counterpart although mysteriously overlooked by most writers, movie producers and yes even our own favorite pre-Disney World cowboy themed park - Six Gun Territory Really though, even those old gunfights we enjoyed so much at Six Gun were not unknown in Florida back when the Ashley Gang came ridin' into town. Indians as well were as much a part of the Florida frontier as out west with their continued presence in the state today a testament to their courage and defiance through the most costly U.S. campaign ever waged against Native Americans. They too share a history with those men and women who have made a living in Florida from the business of riding horses and raising cattle and though for a time the Seminoles were stripped of that heritage, they have now reclaimed it and are as strong in the cattle industry in Florida as ever. The history of the Florida Cowman is also unique in that they not only shared many of the same hardships and challenges endured by the western cowboy such as cattle rustling and other types of rattlesnakes but also the rough Florida landscape with its swamps, mosqitoes and even the occasional hurricane. Until only recently, even the western cowboy no longer stirred the imagination the way it once had with the final shootout at Six Gun Territory not just the loss of a small theme park to a giant one, but more the theme itself being played out like an old Colorado mine. It's been a good while since those westerns being cranked out by the dozen were made though, and with True Grit currently in theaters, perhaps a new interest in the American cowboy will emerge. If it does, maybe this time Hollywood will turn an eye toward Florida and the rough and rowdy southern cracker will finally get his crack at 3D TV. Hold on to your Florida cowboy whips folks, 'cause Six Gun Territory may just be fixin' to rise again! (Desoto didn't know when to quit either did he).

Florahome, Florida

Long before the day Flora Sipprell honored this community with her name and Flora's home in Florida became Florahome, this small piece of Florida history was called home by the Native Americans. They were the first to explore the swamp and hear the screech of the owl and make camp beneath the oak. The swamp, drained by others who came long after those first residence had lost all but their Timucuan name, was for a time settled only by a few hardy individuals tough enough to be called Crackers. The Cracker name was actually said to have come from the sound of the whips used by the early cow hunters or 'Florida cowboys' as they drove their herds through the rough Florida terrain. It has since become a sort of blanket label for those of us born here in Florida or for others who have lived here so long they think they were. But at least in Florahome and other out of the way places like it in Florida, the sound of the Cracker whip can still be heard on occasion wielded by those who's blood is pure enough to deserve the title. As time passed, train tracks were put down from Macon Georgia to Palatka, Florida, and what was now called Florahome was discovered and explored by people from places much farther away than the usual Georgia, Alabama or the Carolinas. It's been said that a good time could be had in Florahome in those days when the train station and the hotels were in operation. Fires however were common back then and with the loss of the train station in 1923, lost as well was much of the business it brought to the area. Today, Florahome, like so many places is a mixture of old and new - where the train once came through, a new bike path promises to bring still more new faces to the neighborhood, and maybe that's as it should be. While some may have just moved here, others have family roots as deep as one of Florahome's tall Magnolias, but if you do live here, you or your ancestors at one time were the new face in Florida and like that first Native American to set foot on this land, heard the screech of the owl and camped beneath the oak decided to make this place we call Florahome, Florida 'home'.




Also on Florahome USA:
The Florahome, Florida History Page