Cortez Prospered Through the Early Par Through Cortez Prospered

Home , Fishing village

ophe:

ey and

edfish,

oss the

. Just be- . Just

, go across

ere looking ere

. Not the first . Not

t of the 20th

oe season and,

n 1912, a brick

es had destroyed

ough Longboat

ea again in 1953.

oups throughout

k until the mullet

Finest Kind: Finest

accept financial as-

’t

ely end fishing in the bays.

om the waters of Sarasota

ishop’s Harbor, be there on the be there Harbor, ishop’s

.”

ey, provided miles and miles of provided ey,

. Fish houses, netspreads and fish houses, netspreads . Fish

ed tide outbreaks in historyed tide outbreaks decimated

the Manatee River, past Terra Ceia and McGill’s Bay, Ceia and McGill’s Terra past River, the Manatee

wasn’t only the threat from sea that impacted the fishing only the threat wasn’t

ish houses were built, homes erected and docks con- built, homes erected ish houses were

ishers left the sea to seek other wor

The immigrants had found what they w

As Green quoted Earl Guthrie in quoted Earl Guthrie As Green

Cortez prospered through the early par through Cortez prospered

At that time, the North Carolina natives found their natives Carolina At that time, the North

“

The village rebuilt, only to face another catastr The village rebuilt,

“It was so bad you could leave Cortez was so bad you on the flood “It

The ways of the water again confounded villagers in 1947,

inest Kind:

ass lay the Gulf of Mexico, which had huge schools of of Mexico, ass lay the Gulf

ond Anna Maria and with easy access thr ond Anna Maria

sland and Longboat K

village to be heaven. As Ben Green writes in his book As Ben Green village to be heaven. F

for: Sarasota Bay, sheltered from the Gulf by Anna Maria by the Gulf from sheltered Bay, for: Sarasota I fishing grounds that were teeming with mullet, r that were fishing grounds trout, bluefish, snook, sheepshead and flounder y P mullet running along its beaches during r in the spring, a wealth of mackerel and kingfish.” of mackerel in the spring, a wealth

structed, and the little village flourished. I schoolhouse was built.

century. Gasoline-powered engines greatly enhanced the engines greatly Gasoline-powered century. range of fishers, and as the state boomed, so too did Cortez. However, a hurricane on October 23, 1921, de- a hurricane on October Cortez. However, stroyed the Cortez waterfront with 75-mph winds and stroyed 10-foot seas in the bay camps were destroyed, but the hardy villagers rode out villagers rode but the hardy destroyed, camps were the storm in the old schoolhouse and no one perished.

the stock market crash in 1929, coupled with a mysteri- ous disappearance of mullet fr Ba

tide, go across Palma Sola Bay and right on acr Bay Sola Palma tide, go across mouth of mouth of past Joe’s Island, right on up to B Island, past Joe’s high water, turn around and come back the same way high water, to Anna Maria and down the Gulf side of Longboat K the Gulf and down to Anna Maria back to Cortez and never see the first mullet jump back to Cortez and never one, day after day after day

again reappeared in 1938-39. (During the financially in 1938-39. (During again reappeared wracked years of the Depression, Cortez became noted as of the Depression, wracked years the only place in the U.S. that didn sistance from the federal government.) sistance from

when one of the worst r fishing. The tiny microorganism visited the ar The tiny microorganism fishing.

village. By 1967, development along the shor village. By acres and acres of mangroves, a vital nursery habitat and food of mangroves, and acres acres source for mullet. That year, legislation was proposed to ban legislation was proposed That year, source for mullet. commercial fishing in Manatee County within 1,700 feet of fishing in Manatee commercial shore — a move that would effectiv — a move shore Cortez fishers banded together with other gr the state and defeated the legislation, but the die was cast, and developers continued to gnaw on the outskir of Cortez, attempting to transform the village into a huge housing subdivision.

es.

e cre-

th.

uba to

hotos 1

eled up and

e of the sea,

ed stocks of

ey of commer-

Where a dozen Where

panish explorer to

vive. Development vive.

king waterfront.

e than 500 people located at

ere caught at a haul.” ere

Then, fish were shipped on ice Then, fish were

oe were kench-cured, or rubbed oe were

ulfords, Guthries, Taylors, Lewises, Taylors, Guthries, ulfords,

oad was constructed between Tampa oad was constructed between

aria in Bay Front Park. Front aria in Bay

t of the state. However, some nameless t of the state. However,

ariners coming upon the village of

offshore, today only one still exists (P offshore,

Cortez can glimpse a historic fishing water-

CORTEZ: A Working Waterfront CORTEZ: A Working

front in crisis. Once one of the largest fishing in crisis. Once front

villages in Florida, Cortez and its waterfront villages in Florida,

today are only a shadow of their former selv only a shadow today are

Where once scores of net-drying once scores shacks stood on Where

1879, a U.S. Fish Commission official trav 1879, a U.S. Fish

Cortez is a village of mor

The mullet and its r

The village was not named until 1896, when the post

pilings just pilings just

damses, Garners, Joneses, Culbreths, Bells, McDonalds, Bells, Culbreths, Joneses, damses, Garners,

radenton in Manatee County. It was settled in the 1880s It County. radenton in Manatee

the great conquistador Hernando Cortez,” even though conquistador Hernando the great

[1940] and 2 [1990s], pages 72 and 73). bustling fish houses once teemed with the far today only a handful still fight to sur pressure increased populations targeting fix increased pressure fish and legislative changes in fishing techniques hav ated major changes in the wor

the north end of Sarasota Bay, seven miles west of miles west seven Bay, the north end of Sarasota B by North Carolina fishers who came south seeking mul- by North let. At that time, the village was comprised of about 16 extended families: F A Capos, Greens, Coarseys, Moras, Carvers and Drymonds. Coarseys, Moras, Capos, Greens,

down the west coast of Florida conducting a sur coast of Florida the west down cial fishing. Of Cortez, he wrote, “Mullet is the fish most largely Cortez,cial fishing. Of he wrote, “Mullet taken, and 10,000 pounds w

with salt and dried in the sun, then shipped to C be sold, until a railr and Bradenton in 1884. and Bradenton to markets in Atlanta, Jacksonville and points nor Jacksonville to markets in Atlanta,

office was built. Ironically, villagers decided to call their office was built. Ironically, community “DeSoto,” after the first S community “DeSoto,” set foot in this par postal clerk in Washington, rumored to have discovered rumored Washington, postal clerk in two other “DeSotos” in Florida, named the village after in Florida, two other “DeSotos” “ Cortez never came near Florida. Cortez never

Cortez fishermen pulling in their nets off Anna M tez

lorida

egistry of

ough the Florida Commu- ough the Florida

vival of the village of Cor vival

king waterfront community. king waterfront

than 100 Cortez homes, businesses and water-

een, Ben, “Finest Kind: A Celebration of a F een, Ben, “Finest

This will assist in the sur

istoric Places, protecting them from destruction. Mana- them from istoric Places, protecting

ishing Village,” ishing Village,” 1985.

front areas have now been placed on the U.S. R have now areas front H tee County and the state, thr nities Trust, have agreed to purchase the old school house to purchase have agreed Trust, nities and turn it into a community center

as a traditional wor

References

y a

eap

lorida

village’s

oe season

oe at what for

y nets other than en-

eeks between Thanks- eeks between

Cortez fishing village.

ket took place in the 1970s

oe to Taiwan and Japan, where it where and Japan, Taiwan oe to

tez.

This has reduced mullet landings and This has reduced

A change in the mullet mar

That wave of prosperity ended in 1995, when a F of prosperity That wave

Albion Inn in Cortez Albion Inn in the 1920s, a popular winter resort. It is now It winter resort. a Coast Guard station. a Coast Guard

when Asian interests began to buy mullet r when Asian interests Cortez were astronomical prices. Some fishers would r astronomical prices. Some Cortez were huge profits for fishing only in the w huge profits giving and Christmas — traditionally prime r — and then selling the r was considered a high-priced delicacy was considered

Constitutional amendment was placed on the ballot b petition of Florida citizens. Voters approved a ban on approved Voters citizens. petition of Florida gillnet fishing within state waters; mullet, the mainstay, now may only be caught b now mainstay, tanglement gill nets. affected the economic viability of small-scale fishers and fishing villages like Cor

illage

Ben Green

across the sky. across

lorida Fishing

and crystalline

of nature’s most of nature’s

—Finest Kind: —Finest

distant galaxies,

looming ice-cold

is one of the freest

white sand beaches

who have seen such who have

for his daily labors:

blue of the horizon;

untouched by them.

A Celebration of a

earing up to heaven;

There are few people are There

spectacular sights ar

ay stretching towards ay stretching

the normal backdrop

the Cortez fisherman

people on earth. Some

framed by the brillant

wonders and remained

billowy cumulus clouds billowy

...

and at night, the Milky 72

Photo 1

Aerial view of Cortez in 1940s 73

Photo 2

Aerial view of Cortez in 1990s