6
His report to the 30th Congress was published as Senate Document No. 242 and
proved to be the catalyst for the evitable drainage of the Everglades (Blake 1980;
Snyder and Davidson 1994).
Even though the United States Congress immediately passed the “Swamp and
Overflowed Lands Act of 1850,” which conveyed the whole of Florida’s swamp and
overflowed lands to State ownership with the intent of draining them, it was not
until the early twentieth century that large-scale alterations occurred (Finkl 1995;
Light et al. 1995). The State Legislature wound up creating a Board of Drainage
Commissioners and turned over to them the lands that were acquired in 1850 by the
Swamp and Overflowed Lands Act (Light and Dineen 1994). This board was vested
with government authority to:
“...establish drainage districts and to fix the boundaries thereof in the State of Florida”.
Also, they were... “to establish a system of canals, levees, drains, dikes, and reservoirs…to
drain and reclaim the swamp and overflowed lands within the State of Florida.”
In 1906, the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Fund and the Drainage
Commissioners purchased and operated dredges, and from 1906 to 1913, over
365 km of drainage canals were built, including the Miami, North New River, and
South New River Canals by the Everglades Drainage District (EDD) (Light et al.
1995). Over the next 15 years, six large drainage canals and numerous smaller
canals, totaling approximately 710 km, 75 km of levees, and 16 locks and dams
were completed (Light et al. 1989; Sklar and van der Valk 2002). The newly constructed system of canals and locks was directly responsible for draining the northern and eastern parts of the Everglades region, with a majority of the canals
originating at Lake Okeechobee and flowing easterly toward the Atlantic. This partial drainage of the Everglades subsequently opened the area to large farming settlements. By 1921, the population in the Okeechobee lake region was estimated to be
around 2000 people, with newly cultivated lands in the glades yielding crops of
sugar cane, tomatoes, beans, peas, peppers, and potatoes (Dovell 1947; Snyder and
Davidson 1994).
Even with all the constructed canals, locks, and levees, which cost upwards of 20
million dollars, satisfactory drainage of Lake Okeechobee was not being met (Blake
1980). However, this was imperative since improper drainage did not afford sufficient protection to residents and farmlands from lake overflow during unusual
weather. This impending hazard became all too apparent during the hurricane that
struck Miami and the Lake Okeechobee region in 1926. Strong wind tides overflowed the banks of Lake Okeechobee causing over 200 deaths and millions in
financial losses (Blake 1980; Chimney and Goforth 2001). Another hurricane in
1928 passed through the Palm Beach region on a path towards Lake Okeechobee
with disastrous results. Wind-driven water off the lake, augmented by the torrential
rains, overflowed the lakeshores and drowned approximately 2400 people, in addition to destroying a vast amount of property (Blake 1980). After these two catastrophes, the U.S. Federal government seized control under pressure from an outraged
public. After a personal inspection of the area by President Herbert Hoover, the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers drafted a new plan that provided for the construction
C.W. Finkl and C. Makowski
His report to the 30th Congress was published as Senate Document No. 242 and
proved to be the catalyst for the evitable drainage of the Everglades (Blake 1980;
Snyder and Davidson 1994).
Even though the United States Congress immediately passed the “Swamp and
Overflowed Lands Act of 1850,” which conveyed the whole of Florida’s swamp and
overflowed lands to State ownership with the intent of draining them, it was not
until the early twentieth century that large-scale alterations occurred (Finkl 1995;
Light et al. 1995). The State Legislature wound up creating a Board of Drainage
Commissioners and turned over to them the lands that were acquired in 1850 by the
Swamp and Overflowed Lands Act (Light and Dineen 1994). This board was vested
with government authority to:
“...establish drainage districts and to fix the boundaries thereof in the State of Florida”.
Also, they were... “to establish a system of canals, levees, drains, dikes, and reservoirs…to
drain and reclaim the swamp and overflowed lands within the State of Florida.”
In 1906, the Trustees of the Internal Improvement Fund and the Drainage
Commissioners purchased and operated dredges, and from 1906 to 1913, over
365 km of drainage canals were built, including the Miami, North New River, and
South New River Canals by the Everglades Drainage District (EDD) (Light et al.
1995). Over the next 15 years, six large drainage canals and numerous smaller
canals, totaling approximately 710 km, 75 km of levees, and 16 locks and dams
were completed (Light et al. 1989; Sklar and van der Valk 2002). The newly constructed system of canals and locks was directly responsible for draining the northern and eastern parts of the Everglades region, with a majority of the canals
originating at Lake Okeechobee and flowing easterly toward the Atlantic. This partial drainage of the Everglades subsequently opened the area to large farming settlements. By 1921, the population in the Okeechobee lake region was estimated to be
around 2000 people, with newly cultivated lands in the glades yielding crops of
sugar cane, tomatoes, beans, peas, peppers, and potatoes (Dovell 1947; Snyder and
Davidson 1994).
Even with all the constructed canals, locks, and levees, which cost upwards of 20
million dollars, satisfactory drainage of Lake Okeechobee was not being met (Blake
1980). However, this was imperative since improper drainage did not afford sufficient protection to residents and farmlands from lake overflow during unusual
weather. This impending hazard became all too apparent during the hurricane that
struck Miami and the Lake Okeechobee region in 1926. Strong wind tides overflowed the banks of Lake Okeechobee causing over 200 deaths and millions in
financial losses (Blake 1980; Chimney and Goforth 2001). Another hurricane in
1928 passed through the Palm Beach region on a path towards Lake Okeechobee
with disastrous results. Wind-driven water off the lake, augmented by the torrential
rains, overflowed the lakeshores and drowned approximately 2400 people, in addition to destroying a vast amount of property (Blake 1980). After these two catastrophes, the U.S. Federal government seized control under pressure from an outraged
public. After a personal inspection of the area by President Herbert Hoover, the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers drafted a new plan that provided for the construction
C.W. Finkl and C. Makowski