Customer Reviews

Tales of Old Florida

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

A collection of newspaper articles about the state of Florida from the turn of the last century. This is a excellent method of presenting a detailed and varied look at what originally drew people to this state. It's also a poignant look at what the increased population of the state has caused. One article mentions fishermen being able to spot turtles swimming along the bottom of Sarasota Bay while today visibility in the same bay is often measured in terms of inches instead of feet. Of course, there were many different view points at the time as well. Some of the articles are clearly written with conservationist overtones while others discuss the entertainment of shooting unlimited numbers of animals while traveling the state's waterways. Whatever your viewpoint, this is a very entertaining trip in time to Old Florida.

This is a great collection of magazine articles documenting trips and moves to Florida dating from the late 1800's to the early 1900's. I found it fascinating reading about the wilderness this state was only a century ago.

As the description says, this is a collection of newspaper and magazine articles that illustrate life in Southern Florida in the late 1800s and the early 1900s. The quality of writing in most of these articles is amazing. Most read like a Hemingway short story (without the usually grim endings, however) full of lush imagery and wonderful tales of fishing, sailing, and hiking through the wilderness.

There are stories that talk of Native Americans, old towns, near-deadly storms, and of relaxing rides down the Indian River. Having lived in Florida quite a few years ago this book took me back to the natural world that Florida was first known for (before Disney World and the night-life of Miami).

Also, the book is peppered with wonderful illustrations (mostly drawings but some photographs) that add more life to the book.

I totally recommend this book to anyone even remotely interested in Florida.

5/5

Also recommended: Florida Poems

If you love reading history of things that happened a long time ago this is a wonderful book. It describes the real Florida by a person who experienced it. Definately worth buying and reading.

The font of this book is too small for me. The presentationis like it was lifted from very old news magazines and put into book form. Not what I expected.