Miami During the Civil War - FIU Digital Collections

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Dry land along the lower southeast coast consisted of a narrow
coastal ridge, six and one-half miles wide, wedged between the Everglades
and the Atlantic Ocean. Stretching west to east across this
ridge from the Glades to the Atlantic was a river known as the Miami
River. The source of this clear freshwater river was in the Glades and
it emptied into the Atlantic at Biscayne Bay. The nucleus of the
pioneer community of Miami was here where the river met the bay,
its isolation making it a virtual island.
Despite the presence of freshwater, the land was unsuited for
conventional agriculture. Shallow soil covered a dense shelf of oolitic
limestone and the highest spots were covered by pine woodlands and
palmetto shrubs with mangrove hammocks close to the shore. Huge
swarms of mosquitoes, from which smoke pots and nets offered only
partial relief, infested the area. Overall it was a harsh and challenging
environment.
Lack of transportation compounded the geographic isolation of
early Miami. No railroads, roads or trails connected South Florida
with the remainder of the state. Most travelers arrived by boat from
Key West, Miami's outlet to the world. About 140 nautical miles
from Miami, Key West was a fair sized port city in 1860 and the
second largest town in Florida. It was culturally a southern city with
a population of 2,862 people, including 451 slaves and 160 free
blacks. 3 Before the war a schooner, the Joshua Skinner, made one
round-trip a month from Key West. The vessel left Key West on the
eighth of the month and sailed from Miami on the 25th. It carried
mail, freight, and an infrequent passenger. 4
The only way to get to Miami by land was to walk the beach
along the wild and unsettled east coast. The only inhabitants between
Miami and Jupiter Lighthouse, about 80 miles north, lived at Fort
Lauderdale. 5 Travelers from Miami had to walk the beach for another
25 miles north of the Jupiter Lighthouse to reach a small cluster of
homes at St. Lucie Inlet on Indian River. The closest community was
another 35 miles north. 6 It took "barefoot mailmen" three days to
cover the route between Miami and Jupiter. Among the most unique
mail carriers in American history, these intrepid pioneers went barefoot
to keep their shoes dry while walking on the hardest part of the
beach where the water washed and the footing was best. They carried
mail from St. Augustine 315 miles to Miami and back. A blazing sun
as well as panthers, alligators, bears, and sharks in the inlets made
this a dangerous and sometimes fatal trek. 7 Because of its inaccessibility,
few people visited Miami, and the loneliness was oppressive. 8