Cattle Industry

Florida Today 20
Florida Frontiers “Florida Cattle”
Ben Brotemarkle

Even where urban sprawl has enveloped large portions of the Florida landscape, Florida cattle are never too far from view. Traveling the major interstates, highways, and particularly rural roads throughout the state, herds of cattle can be seen grazing on even small patches of land. White birds called cattle egrets often stand on or near the cows, eating ticks, flies, and other insects attracted to the large mammals.

Cattle first came to Florida with the Spanish.

After Ponce de Léon gave our state its name in 1513, he returned eight years later to establish a colony in Southwest Florida. The Calusa Indians, known for their colorful ceremonial masks and intricate wood carvings, attacked Ponce and his entourage, repelling the settlement attempt. Ponce later died from wounds he received in the attack.

As he was forced to flee the Calusa, Ponce de Léon abandoned a herd of Andalusian cattle he had brought to help feed his colonists. Those animals are believed to be the first domesticated cattle in North America.

When the Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto came to Southwest Florida in 1539, he also brought herds of cattle with him. As de Soto moved north through the center of the state, many of the cows strayed and were left behind.

Some of the abandoned Spanish cows roamed free, while others were bred and domesticated by Native Americans in Florida.

As pioneer settlers came to Florida in the mid-1800s, establishing a cattle industry here seemed prudent.

During the Civil War, Florida became the primary supplier of beef to the Confederate Army. Jacob Summerlin, known as the “King of the Crackers,” was one of the most successful cattlemen in the state. Many families still active in Florida’s cattle industry can trace their roots back to men who raised cattle during the Civil War, including Jack Yates, Henry Overstreet, George W. Bronson, and Isaac Lanier.

The Central Florida town of Kissimmee was a focal point for the state’s thriving cattle industry even before the war, and it remains so today.

The railroad came to Kissimmee in 1882, expanding cattle exportation. The citrus industry and tourism benefited from the railroad as well. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, steamboat traffic on the Kissimmee River also aided the local cattle industry. In the early twentieth century, Kissimmee cattlemen overcame livestock parasites such as stomach worms and the Texas fever tick.

The Florida ranchers successfully bred the Spanish cow descendants with Brahman, Angus, and Hereford stock.

The Florida Cattlemen’s Association was formed in Kissimmee in 1934. The group addresses cattle industry concerns such as promoting the sale of Florida-grown meat and fighting what they see as adverse legislation.

In 1938, the Kissimmee Livestock Auction Market was established to sell cattle on a weekly basis. An arena was constructed next to the Auction Market, where the first Silver Spurs Rodeo was held in 1944.

It is estimated that about one thousand people attended the first Silver Spurs Rodeo. The modern facility used today seats ten thousand.

The traditions of performing the Quadrille on Horseback and other rodeo skills are passed from one generation to the next in Kissimmee. On “Rodeo Day,” students in Osceola County get the day off from school to allow participation in the event.

The town of Kissimmee is best known today as the next-door-neighbor of Disney World. Highway 192 in Kissimmee is a seemingly endless series of hotels, T-shirt shops, discount malls, and themed restaurants.

Just beyond the neon and chaser lights of Highway 192, the cattle industry is alive and well in this historic community.

The 133^rd Silver Spurs Rodeo was held June 6 and 7. The National Barrel Horse Association Florida State Finals are June 19-22 at the Silver Spurs Arena.

For more information on the cattle industry in Florida, past and present, visit the Osceola County Welcome Center and History Museum at 750 N. Bass Road in Kissimmee.

Dr. Ben Brotemarkle is executive director of the Florida Historical Society and host of the radio program “Florida Frontiers." The show can also be heard online at myfloridahistory.org.

Moses Barber had simply had enough of his cattle going missing. He believed that David Mizell and his friends were periodically stealing from his herd. His rage reached a point where Barber publically declared that if David Mizell set foot on his property again, he would be shot.

On February 21, 1870, David Mizell became the first casualty of the Barber-Mizell Family Feud. He was shot and killed on Barber property near Holopaw, Florida, in Osceola County.

Moses Barber first settled in North Florida in the 1830s. As the Seminoles were pushed to the south, Barber expanded his cattle operation into Central Florida. Some members of the Barber family built homes on the south end of the cattle run, near Fort Christmas. By the time the Civil War began in 1860, Moses Barber was a prominent and successful cattleman.

During the Civil War, Florida was the primary supplier of beef to the Confederate Army, and the Barber family had one of the largest cattle businesses in the state. Once the war was over, some of Barber’s fellow cowmen were taking part in the Reconstruction government, which he saw as a betrayal.

David Mizell, who had fought for the Confederate Army, was named sheriff and tax collector of Orange County after the war. Moses Barber refused to pay what he believed were unfair taxes to the U.S. government. Mizell responded by taking some of Barber’s cattle to compensate for the unpaid debt. Tensions between the Barber family and the Mizell family escalated during the late 1860s, with other cattle families taking one side of the argument or the other.

Moses Barber believed that Mizell family friend George Bass had stolen some of his cattle, and confronted him about it. The Mizells controlled the sheriff’s office and the courts, so Barber and members of his family were charged with “false imprisonment” for holding Bass against his will. After decades of lawlessness on Florida’s frontier, Mizells charged Barbers with a series of crimes including arson, polygamy, and tax evasion. At the heart of the dispute was control over Florida’s cattle industry.

David Mizell ignored Moses Barber’s warning to stay off his land. Mizell, his son Will, and his brother Morgan ventured onto Barber property. As they crossed Bull Creek on their horses, shots were fired from behind some bushes, and David Mizell was killed.

As he lay dying, David Mizell asked that his death not be avenged. His brother John had other plans.

John Randolf Mizell, David’s brother, was the first judge of Orange County. Despite his position, Judge Mizell wanted swift justice for the men he was convinced were behind his brother’s death. Within weeks, Moses Barber’s son Isaac was shot and killed, allegedly while trying to escape arrest and Moses Jr. was drowned by vigilantes. Barber family friends William Yates and Lyell Padgett were shot and killed as fleeing suspects.

William Bronson, a family friend of the Mizells, was reportedly shot by Burrell Yates, a friend and relative of the Barbers. Allegedly, Yates was trying to prevent Bronson from burning evidence that would incriminate the Mizells and their associates in the wrongful deaths of the Barbers.

According to Barber family history, a total of thirteen Barber men were killed by the Mizell family during the Barber-Mizell Family Feud of 1870, but this claim can not be verified by public records.

No one is sure what happened to Moses Barber during and after the feud. Some records indicate that he died in 1870, while others have him alive and living in Texas in 1877.

Remnants of this colorful chapter of Florida history remain today. The Mizell family homestead is located in what is now Harry P. Leu Botanical Garden in Winter Park. The oldest grave in the small family cemetery there belongs to David Mizell. The Yates family homestead, originally located on Taylor Creek, has been relocated to Fort Christmas Historic Park. Needham Yates and William Yates were both killed in the Barber-Mizell Family Feud. The rural Volusia County town of Barberville was founded by James D. Barber, a descendent of Moses Barber.

Today, the Barber and Mizell families have merged through marriage. Several generations have blood from both sides of this bitter dispute.

For more information on the Barber-Mizell Family Feud of 1870, read the historical novel Florida’s Frontier: The Way Hit Wuz by Mary Ida Bass Barber Shearhart.

Dr. Ben Brotemarkle is producer and host of “Florida Frontiers: The Weekly Radio Magazine of the Florida Historical Society.”  The show can also be heard online at myfloridahistory.org.