When Riverboats Ruled The Lagoon

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Residents of Melbourne crowd the decks of the St. Sebastian as they return from a daytrip to the barrier islands. Until the construction of the Rogers Bridge in Cocoa in 1917, boats afforded the only access to the barrier islands and few Indian River residents ever visited the beaches – a far cry from what today’s residents do.

Queens of the River” was the phrase a newspaper reporter used to describe the first steamboats that plied the Indian River Lagoon in the late 1870s. While the modern reader might forgive the hyperbole of this 19th century writer, there was an element of truth in his words. Between 1877 and 1905, more than 200 steamboats chugged up and down the lagoon carrying cargoes and people. In 30 years they changed the entire east coast of Florida from a backwards frontier to a vibrant hub of activity.

The change did not come easily or quickly.  In 1870, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that only 260 persons inhabited the 250-mile stretch of coastline between Titusville and Miami. A few hardy souls, some with  tainted pasts and others with dreams of wealth and glory, occupied isolated hammocks and coves along the coast. Even the vaunted Spanish explorers of the 16th century had by-passed this stretch of Florida, leaving it to small tribes of Native Americans who subsisted off the fish and animals that inhabited the region.

Read the entire article in the November 2005 issue

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