Miami During the Civil War - FIU Digital Collections

Miami During the Civil War 57
Butler where he died. He had served as a hospital stewart. 83 George
Lewis, who Rose Wagner revered, never returned to Miami. Those
who knew him believed he had been shipwrecked. Benjamin Tiner,
Lewis' former slave, lived with the Wagners until his death in 1869.
Lewis' nephew left home during the war and moved to the west coast
of Florida. The Frow family returned to Key Biscayne after the war.
Simeon's son Joe, his brother, John, and their families operated the
lighthouse during its final dozen years as an active beacon. They
settled permanently in Coconut Grove. 84
At least those who chose to stay in the Miami area escaped the
deadly outbreaks of yellow fever that frequently devastated the Key
West population. A major epidemic struck Key West in July 1864.
General Woodbury was one of many who contracted the disease. He
died on Aug. 16, 1864. 85
A common struggle for survival brought both the old timers and
the new refugees together. William Wagner epitomized the neutrality
that characterized Miami. The dangers and tragedies brought out the
best in some pioneers. Michael Sears, John Adams, William Wagner,
George Lewis, and others showed courage and risked everything for
their families, friends, and their country.
Endnotes
1. The name "Miami" was in use during 1861-65. The U.S.
Navy used the name "Little Miami." See the naval records cited
below. Mrs. Adam C. Richards, maiden name Rose Wagner, whose
personal account is the primary source for the period, uses the name
for the area near the mouth of the Miami River. She also reported
that the Post Office was called Miami. See Mrs. Adam C. Richards,
"Reminiscences of the Early Days of Miami," The Miami News, Oct
1903, newspaper clipping collection, vol. 3, Agnew Welsh Notebook
36, Florida Room, Miami Public Library, Miami, Florida (hereafter
Richards, "Reminiscences"). Page numbers, which are difficult to
identify due to their illegibility and the disorganization of the clipping
file, are not included in the footnotes.
2. Jeanne Bellamy, "The Everglades National Park Unlike Anything
Else in the World," The Florida Handbook 5th ed. (Tallahassee:
The Peninsular Publishing Co., 1955), 43.
3. U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Fifteenth
Census of the United States (Washington: Government Print-