The Florida Historical

COVER RAF cadet-pilots and citizens of Arcadia at a reception in front of the Arcadia House in June 1941. Arcadians gave the Britons a rousing welcome when they arrived by train on their way to Carlstrom Field where they were to receive training from Amer- ican instructors. Photograph courtesy of the U.S. Air Force. The Florida Historical FLORIDA HISTORICAL SOCIETY Volume LXXIV, Number 2 Fall 1995 The Florida Historical Quarterly (ISSN 0015-4113) is published quarterly by the Flor- ida Historical Society, University of South Florida, 4202 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, FL 33620, and is printed by E.O. Painter Printing Co., DeLeon Springs, FL. Second- class postage paid at Tampa, FL, and at additional mailing office. POSTMASTER Send address changes to the Florida Historical Quarterly P.O. Box 290197, Tampa, FL 33687-0197 Copyright 1995 by the Florida Historical Society, Tampa, Florida. THE FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY Jerrell H. Shofner, Interim Editor Samuel Proctor, Editor Emeritus Shannon Lee Moore, Editorial Assistant EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Raymond O. Arsenault, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg William S. Coker, University of West Florida David R. Colburn, University of Florida James B. Crooks, University of North Florida Kathleen Deagan, University of Florida Wayne Flynt, Auburn University Michael V. Gannon, University of Florida Maxine D. Jones, Florida State University Harry A. Kersey, Jr., Florida Atlantic University Jane Landers, Vanderbilt University Eugene Lyon, Flagler College John K. Mahon, University of Florida Raymond A. Mohl, Florida Atlantic University Gary R. Mormino, University of South Florida Theda Perdue, University of Kentucky Gerald E. Poyo, St. Mary’s University Joe M. Richardson, Florida State University William W. Rogers, Florida State University Daniel L. Schafer, University of North Florida Correspondence concerning contribution, books for review, and all editorial matters should be addressed to the Editor, Florida Historical Quarterly, Department of History, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816-1350. The Quarterly is interested in articles and documents pertaining to the history of Florida. Sources, style, footnote form, originality of material and interpretation, clarity of thought, and interest of readers are considered. All copy, including footnotes, should be double spaced. Footnotes are to be numbered consecutively in the text and assembled at the end of the article. Particular attention should be given to following the footnote style of the Quarterly. THE AUTHOR SHOULD SUBMIT AN ORIGINAL AND A PHOTOCOPY, RETAINING A COPY FOR SECURITY. Authors are asked to submit articles in IBM WordPerfect 5.0 or 5.1; please include both a hardcopy and a diskette. The Florida Historical Society and the editor of the Florida Historical Quarterly accept no responsibility for statements made or opinions held by authors. The Quarterly reviews books dealing with all aspects of Florida history. Books to be reviewed should be sent to the editor together with price and information on how they may be ordered. Table of Contents DISFRANCHISEMENT, WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE AND THE FAILURE OF FLORIDA’S GRANDFATHER CLAUSE Tracey E. Danese 117 A BOTANICAL MYSTERY THE ELUSIVE TRAIL OF THE DATIL PEPPER TO ST. AUGUSTINE Jean Andrews 132 DANIEL NEWNAN: A NEGLECTED FIGURE IN FLORIDA HISTORY John K. Mahon 148 DEFENDING AMERICA BY AIDING THE ALLIES: THE BRITISH STUDENT PILOTS AT ARCADIA AND CLEWISTON, 1941-1945 Thomas D. Greenhaw 154 HURSTON GOES TO WAR: THE ARMY SIGNAL CORPS IN SAINT AUGUSTINE Gordon Patterson 166 NOTES AND DOCUMENTS DEMISE OF THE POJOY AND BOMTO John H. Hann 184 BOOK REVIEWS ......................................................................... 201 BOOK NOTES ............................................................................ 235 HISTORY NEWS . 241 ANNUAL MEETING . 245 BOOK REVIEWS DADE’S LAST COMMAND, by Frank Laumer reviewed by William M. Goza BLOCKADERS, REFUGEES, & CONTRABANDS: CIVIL WAR ON FLORIDA’S GULF COAST, 1861-1865, by George E. Buker reviewed by William Warren Rogers REBEL STOREHOUSE: FLORIDA IN THE CONFEDERATE ECONOMY, by Robert A. Taylor reviewed by Anthony Iacono THE CONFEDERADOS: OLD SOUTH IMMIGRANTS IN BRAZIL, edited by Cyrus B. Dawsey and James M. Dawsey reviewed by José B. Fernández ESSAYS ON CUBAN HISTORY: HISTORIOGRAPHY AND RESEARCH, by Louis a Pérez, Jr. reviewed by Thomas M. Leonard THE CHEROKEES AND CHRISTIANITY, 1794-1870, by William G. McLoughlin; edited by Walter H. Conser, Jr. reviewed by John K. Mahon THE CONFEDERATE REPUBLIC: A REVOLUTION AGAINST POLITICS, by George C. Rable reviewed by John M. Belohlavek WAR IN KENTUCKY: FROM SHILOH TO PERRYVILLE, by James Lee McDonough reviewed by James I. Robertson, Jr. THE THIRD DAY AT GETIYSBURG & BEYOND, edited by Gary W. Gallagher reviewed by James Lee McDonough MEDICAL HISTORIES OF CONFEDERATE GENERALS, by Jack D. Welsh, M.D. reviewed by William M. Straight, M.D. GULLAH STATESMAN: ROBERT SMALLS FROM SLAVERY TO CONGRESS, 1839-1915, by Ed- ward A. Miller, Jr. reviewed by Joe M. Richardson THE JOHN COUPER FAMILY AT CANNON’S POINT, by T. Reed Ferguson reviewed by Hutch Johnson IRON AND STEEL: CLASS, RACE, AND COMMUNITY IN BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA, 1875- 1920, by Henry M. McKiven, Jr. reviewed by James J. Horgan THE CIO, 1935-1955, by Robert H. Zieger reviewed by George Norris Green ARMED WITH THE CONSTITUTION: JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES IN ALABAMA AND THE U.S. SUPREME COURT, 1939-1946, by Merlin Owen Newton reviewed by John J. Guthrie, Jr. SEX, RACE, AND SCIENCE: EUGENICS IN THE DEEP SOUTH, by Edward J. Larson reviewed by Wayne Flynt HIDDEN HISTORIES OF WOMEN IN THE NEW SOUTH, edited by Virginia Bernhard, et. al. reviewed by Patricia G. Dillon DAUGHTERS OF CANAAN: A SAGA OF SOUTHERN WOMEN, by- Margaret Ripley Wolfe reviewed by Shirley A. Leckie THE SOUTH THROUGH TIME: A HISTORY OF AN AMERICAN REGION, by John B. Boles reviewed by Suzanne Marshall AMERICA IN EUROPEAN CONSCIOUSNESS, 1493-1750, edited by Karen Ordahl Kupper- man reviewed by Michael N. Corey Disfranchisement, Women’s Suffrage and the Failure of the Florida Grandfather Clause by TRACY E. DANESE ollowing the adoption of the Constitution of 1885, Florida F joined its sister southern states in enacting a series of election laws aimed at disfranchising black voters. This statutory labyrinth, with the Democratic party’s white primary system as its centerpiece, had all but excluded the state’s African-American citizens from the political arena by 1913. Although virtually complete in its practical effects, that process legally operated only in the primary elections. African-American males remained technically eligible to vote in general elections if their poll taxes were paid. In the same period, women’s suffrage was intruding on the existing political structure from another direction with a momentum that clearly portended ultimate success. Although both movements focused on the most fundamental dynamic of American politics, the right to vote, each ran to its historical conclusion on essentially separate courses. Yet, for a brief period between 1915 and 1916, the two converged in a confusing and almost forgotten episode of Florida political history. The convergence of efforts to complete the disfranchisement of black citizens with the inexorable momentum of women’s suffrage presented the 1915 Florida Legislature with a political di- lemma. If women were granted the vote, it would undoubtedly be “state action” subject to the 15th Amendment of the Constitution. That provision precluded any differentiation in granting the franchise to women. If black women received the franchise as a result of the suffrage movement, its extension to black males was inevita- ble unless permissible restrictions based on something other than race could be devised. Florida looked to other southern states for direction. The solu- tion which appeared most suitable was in place in several of them. In the parlance of disfranchisement, it was known as the “grandfather clause.” Although complex in wording, the proposal was sim- ple both in operation and purpose. In general, potential voters would be subject to rigid literacy and property ownership qualifica- Tracy E. Danese is a doctoral student in history, Florida State University. [117] 118 FLORIDA HISTORICAL QUARTERLY tions. That combination would exclude the vast majority of blacks from voting, but would also eliminate a substantial number of whites. To preserve the broadest possible white franchise, an exemption was contrived based on lineal descent from a person qual- ified to vote prior to ratification of the 15th Amendment. Few, if any, southern blacks could qualify for the exemption. Such clauses were intended to circumvent the 15th Amendment’s proscription of race as a franchise determinant. To that end, House Joint Reso- lution No. 82 was introduced early in the 1915 regular session of the Florida legislature.1 The blatantly discriminatory purpose of the measure rendered it constitutionally suspect on its face. Never- theless, the legislature belatedly proceeded to add it to the state’s array of disfranchisement mechanisms. As the Florida measure made its way through the legislative process, an almost identical provision from Oklahoma was under constitutional challenge in the U.S. Supreme Court. The Legislature passed HJR No. 82 by a wide majority, but the voters overwhelmingly defeated it in the 1916 general election. How do we account for such a disjunction between the voters and their elected representatives? The outcome did not

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