Was Florida a true member of the Old South and its rebel offspring or just a peripheral entity? This study looks at this seemingly simple question to probe the economic ties between Florida and her sister states of the lower South from 1850 to 1865. Clearly Florida was part and parcel of the Cotton Kingdom. The state had a reputation by 1860 as an agricultural power boasting large harvests in a lush tropical climate. This image was heralded in newspapers and journals across the lower South. The realities of poor transportation and inclement weather failed to make an impression on what quickly became the myth of Florida's riches. Residents clung to the idea of a fecund Florida ready to supply any needs, which buoyed confidence in the viability of their section as a separate nation. / Florida, the third state to secede, played a significant role in the short economic life of the Confederacy. The war years are considered at length and are the main focus of the dissertation. The conflict made state bays and inlets safe havens for blockade runners and a conduit for imported goods and exported staples like cotton. Florida was also a vital component in Confederate logistical planning and influenced the operations of rebel forces in other states. Salt and cattle, the peninsula's major contributions, augmented the rebel supply larder despite failures to live up to overly optimistic expectations based on pre-war perceptions. Union forces, aware of the material aid going to the rebels, waged a type of economic warfare in an effort to cut off the flow of supplies. As an economic member of the Confederacy Florida earned recognition as an important region, and one which can not be dismissed. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-10, Section: A, page: 3706. / Major Professor: John Hebron Moore. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1991.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_76513 |
| Contributors | Taylor, Robert Allan., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 398 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
Page generated in 0.002 seconds