Florida Cracker Cowboys

In my paper, I researched the Florida Cracker Cowboys. Florida Crackers were hard working, self-sufficient, and fiercely independent people who lived on the frontiers of Florida, living in places that were considered almost uninhabitable. The lawlessness of Florida's frontier was similar to the stories famous in the Old West. Cattle raising became a large industry after the Second Seminole War, and many Crackers became cowmen and cattlehunters. This nomadic, solitary lifestyle suited many freedom-loving Crackers in Florida. Cattle kings, ranchers who accumulated large herds and large sums of money, were also established in Florida, and they handed their ranches down through generations. Though ranches and cattle raising persist today, the cattle-raising lifestyle in Florida is slowly disappearing as Florida becomes more developed and civilization replaces open grassland.