Central – Section 2.2: Florida Cowboys & Agricultural Roots
Step into Florida’s cattle-driving past at Lake Kissimmee State Park’s Cow Camp, where living history reenactments bring the 1870s “cracker cowboy” era to life.
Meanwhile, the new settlers who streamed into Florida after the Civil War began to homestead and start ranches in the prairie lands around Kissimmee, St. Cloud, Orlando and Ocala and launched a still-thriving cattle industry and “cowboy culture.” Visitors can soak in that heritage at events like Kissimmee’s Silver Spurs Rodeo, once one of the largest rodeos in the country and still hugely popular.
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Despite the lack of infrastructure in Central Florida’s early days, the pioneers always made it through, and one of them was Jacob Summerlin, who made his fortune hunting wild Cracker cows in the Kissimmee and Peace River areas—descendants of cattle (and horses) brought by the Spanish in the 1500s and left behind to run wild. Travelers can explore this unique heritage at Lake Kissimmee’s Historical Cow Camp in Polk County, which includes a living history reenactment of the era.
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In addition, visitors to the area can get a sense of this era at the Pioneer Village at Shingle Creek, telling the story of Osceola County’s early settlers through original pioneer homes, schoolhouse, blacksmith shop and an original citrus packing plant. Meanwhile, dioramas at the Osceola Welcome Center and History Museum in Kissimmee showcase local habitats such as swamplands, pine flatwoods and oak hammocks. The museum also features exhibits related to the early cattle industry in Central Florida.