An old legend in Jackson County holds that the caves of Florida Caverns State Park were once mined by Confederate soldiers. Caves are common sources for saltpeter, a necessary component of gunpowder, and similar caverns throughout the South were mined during the war.
The legends are based on a real Civil War event, but in truth the caves were never mined. In 1862 the Confederate military sent a scientist from Oglethorpe College in Macon, Georgia, to examine the caves. Records indicate that he rented a horse and buggy in Marianna and spent a day exploring the caves now preserved at Florida Caverns State Park. He determined that they were too wet to be mined for saltpeter, so mining operations never began. His explorations, however, were preserved as stories of lost Confederate mines in local legend.
Florida Caverns State Park might not have been a suitable location for manufacturing gunpowder, but it is one of the most strikingly beautiful places in Florida. To learn more, please visit our new Florida Caverns section at www.exploresouthernhistory.com. Just follow the link and you will see the heading on the main page.
0 comments:
Post a Comment