Discovering the Civil War in Florida

Paul Taylor

By Lydia Filzen

Although Florida's Civil War history was only "a sideshow of the big show," many historical sites and monuments commemorate the state's involvement in the conflict.

Florida was the third state to secede from the Union, showing little reluctance to throw in its lot in with the Confederacy. At the 1861 outbreak of the war, Florida was the least populated of all the Southern states with only 140,000 people, a limited railroad system, little agriculture and no modern industry. With little development and a vast indefensible coastline, the Confederacy considered it expendable, and transferred the fifteen thousand troops the state contributed to other regions.

The Union moved into the coastal areas quickly, expediting the blockade of the Confederate States. Many people with Confederate ties evacuated the area east of the St. Johns River and along the west coast, moving into the middle regions such as Gainesville, Ocala, Lake City and Tallahassee. While Union troops secured St. Augustine, Fernandina Beach, and rolled back and forth through Jacksonville, Confederate cavalry roved the inland part of the state, beating back Union raiders.

Discovering the Civil War in Florida is an overview that explores the battlefields and places of historical interest throughout Florida. Author Paul Taylor devotes a chapter to each part of the state, starting in the Panhandle, working east to Northeast Florida, and south from Cedar Key to Key West. Each chapter summarizes the military history of that area and includes accounts written by participants. Then he describes sites that can still be explored, such as state parks and monuments. Illustrations, both modern and historical, are liberally sprinkled through the text.

In northeast Florida, Gainesville, Jacksonville (including Amelia Island and Fernandina), Olustee, St. Augustine and Palatka rate their own chapters. Jacksonville, Amelia Island and St. Augustine were under Union control during most of the war. Gainesville, Olustee and Palatka were sites of significant engagements.

The largest battle in Florida occurred at Olustee, near Lake City, when Confederates defeated a Union expedition from Jacksonville toward Lake City. Three months later, Confederate cavalry under Captain J. J. Dickison captured and sank a gunboat on the St. Johns River just south of Palatka. The author covers these events and others with enough detail to satisfy a history buff, while avoiding information overload.

Paul Taylor, an adopted Floridian, did the footwork and shares his explorations in this interesting introduction to a much-neglected part of Florida's history. Discovering the Civil War in Florida, published by Pineapple Press is available in hardcover at bookstores for $24.95.

Lydia Filzen is an Orange Park author writing as Lydia Hawke. Her novels, Firetrail, (soon to be a feature motion picture) Perfect Disguise, and Silent Witness, are available through www.lydiahawke.us.