It is said the term “Cracker” comes from the cracking of the whip Florida cow hunters used to herd cattle. Florida was the first cattle producing state in America — not Texas, not Missouri – Florida. In the early 1500s Spanish conquistadors landed on the shores of Florida and attempted to colonize the area. They were thwarted and attacked by Native Americans. The colonists abandoned their quest, leaving behind horses, hogs and Andalusian cattle they had brought by ship: this was the first livestock in North America.
“Florida Crackers” by Frederick Remington
The Florida livestock bred and ran wild for centuries. Prior to the Civil War, a rugged brand of individual settled along Florida’s central corridor. They relied on bullwhips to flush cows out of the palmetto scrub. They used 10-to-12-foot-long whips made of braided leather. The snaps of these whips would break the sound barrier making a loud CRACK. Thus these early settlers became known as Cracker Cowmen, Cow Hunters, or Florida Crackers. They provided food for the Confederate soldiers during the Civil War and also rounded up cattle for shipment to Cuba. The Cubans loved Florida beef and paid for the cattle with gold doubloons. Today the term Cracker is used to refer to anyone who is a true native Floridian.
At this year’s Cracker Fair there will be classic country music by John Tuff and Friends, historical songwriter James Hawkins will be returning to our stage and we are looking forward to be introducing a few new artists as well. There will also be a Cracker whip demonstration, local food, a lemon dessert baking contest, kid’s games and all sorts of crafts and fun for all. Come one, come all: Saturday, February 8th from 10 to 4 at Dearborn Plaza (AKA Pioneer Park) on Dearborn Street. Admission is free.
A Litard Knot Floater
The storm was a “litard knot floater.” Mike Miller (with Florida Backroads Travel.com) quotes his friend Howard who is a Florida Cracker. A Cracker is a true Native Floridian. Mike says Crackers have a language of their own. He explains, “a ‘litard’ is a fat pine knot used like kindling to start fires. A fat pine knot is very heavy, and it takes a lot of water to make it float.”
Most Floridians say the term Cracker comes from the cracking of the whip Florida cow hunters used to herd cattle.
Physicists Alain Goriely and Tyler McMillen at the University of Arizona explain: “The crack of a whip comes from a loop traveling along the whip, gaining speed until it reaches the speed of sound and creates a sonic boom. Even though some parts of the whip travel at greater speeds, it is the loop itself that generates the sonic boom.”
For the past sixteen years Englewood has been celebrating the Crackers and Old Florida with a Cracker Fair. This year the tradition continues. We hope there will be fair skies and no “litard knot floaters!”
Gene Murtha, President of the Punta Gorda History Center and Margaret Bogartus, President of the Punta Gorda Historical Society gave a power point presentation about the dedicated efforts and wonderful successes made in the name of historic preservation in Charlotte County.
They discussed the history of the beautifully preserved Train Depot as well as the Woman’s Club which opened in 1925 and was at one time the area’s first community library. They also talked about History Park, a unique collection of historic buildings with a past including the Maxwell Price House. Price was an architect best known for designing the Punta Gorda jail house, just to name a few.
December 12th 7:00 PM at the Historic Green Street Church
From “fish ranches” to phosphate shipping; from the “Grand Plan” with Grand Hotels to Boom and Bust and Boom again – learn about one of Southwest Florida’s first planned communities: Boca Grande on Gasparilla Island.
Betsy Fugate Joiner, director of the Boca Grande Historical Society, will share some stories about her life growing up in Boca Grande. She is a 3rd generation member of the Fugate Family of Boca Grande (you may know of Fugate’s Drug Store and Delmar Fugate’s Pink Elelphant). She is also a 4th generation Florida Cracker. Her father was actually born on Banyan Street in 1912. Her mother, Margaret was a teacher at Boca Grande High School, beginning in 1939 and then moved to Lemon Bay School in 1963 as Librarian and Spanish teacher when the school closed.
In addition, Betsy is Chair of the Boca Grande History Byte program which is held each season in February on Wednesday mornings at the Johann Fust Library. The “Byte” program began with Sallie Van Italie’s idea in 2009 about having people share their stories in an informal setting.
Betsy is also General Manager at PJ’s Seagrille in Boca Grande, located inside the Historic San Marco Theatre Building.
Also speaking will be Pat Agles, Director of the Boca Grande Historical Society who will give a presentation on how the Society came about and where they are today. Pat, a founding member of the Boca Grande Historical Society, was owner of Galleria of Boca Grande from 1993-2005. She is Director of Product Development and licensing for the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village and is also Chair of the docent program at St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral Basilica in Santa Fe, NM. There she is a Team Member/Artist for the restoration of the Cathedral’s interior murals for a Celebration with the King of Spain.
We also expect a visit from Karen Grace, BGHS President. Karen & husband Jim are past owners of the historic Temptation Restaurant.
A Bit About the Boca Grande Historical Society:
“Four couples began the BGHS in 1995. It was the sesquicentennial of our state. To announce our founding, we had a fun historical/hysterical skit at the railroad depot on the train tracks. After a crowd gathered, we announced the news and the society was born. We operated for awhile in the Van Itallies kitchen. The island was growing quickly and we knew the importance of collecting stories/oral histories and photographs before these treasures disappeared.
“We are still active in the business of collecting these priceless histories and making them more easily available for viewing to our community. We invite all to come for a visit or perhaps a docent led walking/golf cart tour of our historic village of Boca Grande.”
Carol Leonard from Coastal Wildlife Club, Turtle Patrol will be sharing her experiences with turtles, as well as important information on how the public can help the turtle population. She will also answer audience questions.
Carol has degrees in Zoology and Marine Science Education and is a retired Lemon Bay High School teacher. She is a past President of the Florida Marine Science Education Assoc.
Author, speaker, international traveler, ship captain and retired business Owner D L Havlin will be our Guest Speaker
Tuesday, March 28th at 7pm at the Historic Green Street Church.
“My books are stories about life; about how great and how testing it can be. Writing at my ‘mature’ age is an advantage when discussing living; I’ve experienced it and don’t have to utilize conjecture. History is often my brick-mason for it can provide a building in which my story can live and breathe. Writing fantasy, sci-fi, or other work requiring that there be no reality fences, I cede to the young author where the lack of restricting rationale is beneficial.”
DL currently lives in southwest Florida with his wife Jeanelle, his golden retriever Sandy, and cat Oreo. He loves the outdoors (fishing is his passion), music, football, and cooking.
The title of Carol’s presentation is “Florida Folklore with a Lemon Bay Twist” that will educate and entertain the audience with tales of Florida Crackers, Seminole Indian traditions and the history of the lemon Bay area.
Carol Mahler is a professional storyteller who serves as the coordinator of the Desota County Historical Society’s Reseach Library and Museum.
The program is free and light refreshments will be served.
More about Carol:
Carol Mahler has served as humanities scholar, discussion leader, and project director for programs, funded by the Florida Humanities Council and other organizations, focusing on literature and Florida history. (Her nieces and nephews know that she reads every word of a museum exhibit.) She has taught writing and literature classes in schools, colleges, parks, recreation centers, churches, a prison, and other locations. Her poems have been published in various magazines, and her poetry collection, “How Do I Follow?”, was published in 2012 by the Peace River Press. She writes an occasional “History Mystery” column as well as other articles for the weekly “Arcadian” newspaper (published in Arcadia, Florida), plus she writes and edits articles, newsletters, and books for the DeSoto County Historical Society. Her children’s book, “Adventures in the Charlotte Harbor Watershed,” published by the Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program, is annually distributed to students in the third, fourth, or fifth grade in seven counties
ENGLEWOOD, Fla. – Family and friends of Nancy Jean Airey gathered Saturday afternoon (July 9, 2016) at the Green Street Church, the site of many of the stage productions of her plays, to pay tribute to Airey, a prolific writer, musician, historian, community organizer, mentor to local authors, webmaster to non-profits and friend to a number of causes which, much like she herself was to the Englewood community, near and dear to her heart.
The gathering featured those wishing to express their thoughts at the passing of a stalwart Englewood resident, in word as well as song, from the wide array of organizations and people whose lives she enriched by her lifetime of good deeds and contributions to the culture of this sleepy seaside town, including those from Englewood Pioneer Days, the Suncoast Writers Guild (together with “Englewood’s Little “Band” of Writers who performed works from one of her plays), Lemon Bay Historical Society, and Friends of the Elsie Quirk Library.
Guitarist and vocalist Linda Lou Lewis of the aforementioned Little Band described what it was like to work with Airey in mixing music into her stage plays, adding that Jean Airey was “the best collaborative partner I ever had.” Roy Ault of the Writers Guild gave a heartfelt thank you to the woman who helped him to become a published author, while Kari Burgess spoke of her adventures in acting with Jean as the director of material that she herself also authored.
Jean Airey with Carolyn Pope Anderson at the Lemon Bay Historical Society’s Green Street Church Museum.
Erick Phelps, coordinator of the Englewood Pioneer Days parade, of which Jean Airey was an integral part, said that one of the things about her that he will miss most was her “principled focus on what needed to be done” for the Englewood community, including events such as Pioneer Days, the organizers of which, according to Phelps, had to recruit three people to take over the work she did for the committee.
Her widower, William Airey, told yet another revealing story about his late wife, who years earlier had organized a fund raiser for the Heart Association (featuring comedian Paul Lind) at which heart surgeons from around the country gathered, and how Jean, an avid reader with an ever-present thirst for knowledge, had studied so much about heart surgery that he half expected her to someday be called upon do a little bit of surgery herself. Even while noting that his late wife would not approve of such a fuss being made over her, he thanked the gathered assembly on her behalf, and let each and everyone know that she very much appreciated what they themselves had contributed to the Englewood community she so loved.
Jean’s book is on sale at Lemon Bay Historical Society events.
In addition to working with the Writers Guild, Historical Society, Elsie Quirk Library, and Pioneer Days, Jean Airey has also been associated, in one capacity or another, with the annual Cracker Fair, Lemon Bay Playhouse, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, and EARS, among many other groups, individuals and causes.
Jean Airey was a contributor to Englewood Edge, occasionally under her byline but most often anonymously promoting the Historical Society activities and Pioneer Days.
