How did Florida fund the civil war?

Answer 1

People in Florida who worked on farms and plantations raised crops and cattle to send to the troops. They sent beef, pork, fish, fruit and salt. Florida was a large producer of salt. Salt work plants would separate salt from the seawater. Two of the biggest salt works (factories) were at Apalachee Bay and St. Andrews. Salt was an important resource to the army. Because refrigeration had not been introduced yet, it was used to keep the meat from spoiling.

An estimated 16,000 Floridians fought in the war. Most were in the Confederacy, but approximately 2,000 joined the Union army. Some Floridians didn't want to fight for either side, so they hid out in the woods and swamps to avoid being drafted.

The Floridian soldiers were organized into eleven regiments of infantry, two cavalry, and numerous small units. Almost 5,000 Floridian soldiers were killed during the war.With most of the Floridian men fighting, it was up to the women, children, and slaves to keep the farms working. Money was very tight and most families, even in the cities, had to grow their own food and make their own clothes.

Clothing was collected to send to the troops and iron was collected to make swords, guns, and other arms.Battles were fought in the North and the South, but most took place in the South. There were two large battles that that took place in Florida and both were won by Confederate troops.

On February 20, 1864, the largest Civil War battle in Florida occurred near Lake City. It was called the Battle of Olustee. It was a victory for the Confederacy, but did not help win the war.The war continued, but with the Confederacy becoming weaker and weaker and most of the southern capitals captured, supply lines to the confederate troops were cut off. On April 4, 1865, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant.

The war was officially over. Some battles continued for a short period of time, but, once word reached troops who were still fighting, the southern generals surrendered. Florida officially surrendered April 26, 1865. Union troops took over Tallahassee and immediately raised the United States flag. Once again, the states were united.

Early 1861: Some speculate that the Civil War could have begun in Florida instead of Fort Sumter, South Carolina. In early January of 1861 when Florida joined the other Confederate states and seceded from the Union, there were Union (U.S. Army) soldiers stationed at Fort Pickens on Santa Rosa Island, right off Pensacola.

Confederate soldiers demanded that the Union soldiers surrender now that Florida was a Confederate state. The Union soldiers refused to leave the fort. The Union quickly moved in more troops to reinforce the number of soldiers in the fort of Pensacola. A battle began and a standoff lasted over several months.