Losing Home: Why Rural Northwest Florida Needs to Be Saved Zena S
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Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2013 Losing Home: Why Rural Northwest Florida Needs to Be Saved Zena S. Riley-Taylor Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES LOSING HOME: WHY RURAL NORTHWEST FLORIDA NEEDS TO BE SAVED By ZENA S. RILEY-TAYLOR A Thesis submitted to the American and Florida Studies Program in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Degree Awarded: Spring Semester, 2013 Zena S. Riley-Taylor defended this thesis on April 1, 2013. The members of the supervisory committee were: Neil Jumonville Professor Directing Thesis Frederick Davis Committee Member Jennifer Koslow Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the thesis has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii Dedicated to Zandt and all the little ones to come after us…may there be enough left of the rural life for you to enjoy; and to the memory of my grandmothers, Mattie Brackin Reeves and Pearlie Mae Riley…two of the hardest-working women I have ever known (whom I never once heard complain) iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to acknowledge and thank my committee: Dr. Neil Jumonville for taking me on in the middle of this—thanks for your patience, guidance, and constructive criticism; Dr. Frederick (Fritz) Davis, and Dr. Jennifer Koslow. Also, Dr. Elna Green, my former chair; Dr. James P. (Jim) Jones, who intimidated me a bit, but I am still in awe of his lecturing style (and teaching for over 50 years!); and Dr. John Fenstermaker for seeing that “twinkle in my eye” and allowing my entry into the American and Florida Studies program. Thank you to all of the hard-working state employees at the Florida Department of Transportation, especially those who have asked about this project and supported my studies along the way. A special thank you to Mary Anne Koos, my Bicycle/Pedestrian mentor; Dave Blodgett, for sending me the Lines South article about the railroads; Amanda Marshall; and my lunch pals, BB, Lynn, and Howie (for the continual prodding to finish). At the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, my thanks to Robin Birdsong for the referral on Luray, Virginia. In looking back over my complete academic life, I must acknowledge the wonderful teachers that I have had since August 1985. To name a few…Mrs. Lorna Raper, the late Lynvol Wilkerson, Mrs. Daisy Wilkerson, Mrs. Linda Martin, Mrs. Roberta Grantham. A special thank you to Mrs. Dianne Smith, my Senior English teacher at Holmes County High School, who had faith in my writing ability and inspired me to set higher goals. Teachers are so important and don’t get many thank you’s—so here is a really big one. Thank you to all of my extended family and friends, but especially related to this work: Aunt P and Uncle Henry (for hopscotch in the dirt road, the dream of owning land, and the many times I sought advice from you both), and Uncle Red (fishing trips on the Choctawhatchee and “making memories”)—which is all part of the rural life; iv Aunt Agnes and Uncle Wayne (for a home away from home in Tallahassee); Carmen (for believing I could finish this). To Granny Reeves, thank you for helping raise us, for your love, and stories of days on the farm. I love you and miss you like crazy. Thank you to my sisters, Jenna and Brannigan, for a wonderful childhood of phenomenal playmates and memories; even though I am the big sister, I am so proud of you two for your accomplishments and you both continue to inspire me. I am so happy that we will have three little boys to raise together; love to Richard, Atticus, Yancy, and Jetzen (coming soon!). To Mama and Daddy—where do I begin? Thank you for being my first teachers and my best teachers, for telling me that I could when I said I couldn’t, for practicing for the spelling bees, for coming to my games, for coaching my games, and especially for the family trips in “Old Faithful,” a.k.a. the van, all over the country—I believe this is where my love of history began—and thank you for patiently waiting while I read every plaque at the museums. Most of all, thank you for your involvement, love, and support in a world when so many children don’t have anyone to care. To the Creator, for giving us nature and the land, if we only know what to do with it. And finally, to my wonderful husband, Brandon, for passionately caring about this topic as much as I do, walking this journey with me, making me laugh, and enhancing my strengths while covering my weaknesses—thank you for being the man and best friend that I waited so many years to find, and to my little Zandt, for being the most inspirational and beautiful thing in my life—you both are my life. I hope that someday you will read this and I will have made you proud. You gave me the push I needed to complete this effort. Thank God for you. v TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures ............................................................................................................................... vii Abstract ........................................................................................................................................ viii PREFACE ........................................................................................................................................1 1. INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................3 2. FARMING, FAMILY, FREEDOM: WHAT THE LAND MEANT TO EARLY AMERICAN SETTLERS .....................................................................................................11 Homesteads, Plantations, and Indians ...................................................................................16 “From the Fields to the Factories” and the Movement Toward Southern Independence .....24 3. TREES, TRACKS, AND TOURISM: THE CHANGING OF THE LAND POST CIVIL- WAR ......................................................................................................................................27 Florida “Develops” and Divides into North and South ........................................................41 4. SMALL VS. SPRAWL: RURAL LAND’S VALUE IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY ............................................................................................................................56 Panhandle Assets: Environment, Rural Character, Agrarian Heritage ..................................67 5. MANAGING GROWTH: WORKING TO SAVE THE PANHANDLE’S RURAL PLACES AND QUALITY OF LIFE ....................................................................................89 Rural Conservation and Land-Use Planning .........................................................................94 Downtown Revitalization and Historic Preservation ..........................................................104 6. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................109 EPILOGUE ..................................................................................................................................113 APPENDIX ..................................................................................................................................117 A. PERMISSION LETTERS ...................................................................................................117 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................122 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .......................................................................................................137 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1-1 Map of Northwest Florida Counties and Cities ............................................................10 Figure 3-1 Hyer-Knowles Planing Mill Chimney, Pensacola, Florida ..........................................32 Figure 3-2 Hyer-Knowles informational plaque, Pensacola, Florida ............................................33 Figure 3-3 Galt City Advertisement, circa 1885 ............................................................................53 Figure 3-4a Jefferson County, Florida, Advertisement (Front), 1887 ...........................................54 Figure 3-4b Jefferson County, Florida, Advertisement (Back), 1887 ...........................................55 Figure 4-1 2010 Census Florida Population Density .....................................................................60 Figure 4-2 Shipes-Holley House prior to move and restoration ....................................................82 Figure 4-3 Shipes-Holley House after move to park, prior to restoration .....................................83 Figure 4-4 Shipes-Holley House after move to park and restoration, Front ..................................83 Figure 4-5 Shipes-Holley House after move to park and restoration, Rear ...................................84 Figure 4-6 “Cowboy pushing a baby carriage through the corral-Bonifay, Florida,” 1949 ..........88 vii ABSTRACT Land use in Florida has seen many changes since it became an American territory in 1821. But while land use can be a categorical term for classifying property, it can also take on a more valuable meaning. When the land was originally opened up for frontier settlers and wealthy planters to farm in the early years, it usually meant family