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CHAPTER 20 To Transform the Wilderness into a Garden" I n the 1880s, as American entrepreneurs sought new fields to conquer, Florida was a state whose time had come. Many were willing to overlook the hazard of tropical disease in order to take advantage of the abundance of land, so plentiful that it inspired plans for developing, not just new communities, but new cities. The potential of the state's citrus groves was also being realized, while the unspoiled beauties of Florida held great promise for attracting Northern tourists. Beyond the lure of lucrative investments, some Northerners who were discouraged by political conditions in the South, hoped that the economic recovery of the region might cure many ills. They theorized that with opportunities for both races, the resulting stability might lead to progress in social equality that was not being achieved at the polls.1 Chamberlain was first drawn to Florida by an offer from the Florida West Coast Improvement Company, an enterprise based in Ocala, a growing little metropolis in north central Florida. Among other things, the company would build the Silver Springs, Ocala and Gulf Railroad, with a charter to run from Silver Springs, a budding tourist mecca and steamboat terminus near Ocala, to the tiny village of Homosassa on the Gulf Coast. One of the leading directors of the railroad would be a key figure in many enterprises with which Chamberlain would be involved over the next decade. John F. Dunn, though known as Col. Dunn, had served as a private in the 4th and 7th Florida Infantry. Captured and finally released from Camp Douglas prison in June 1865, Dunn came to Ocala after the war. There he rose from law clerk, to lawyer, to the founder and president of the town'sfirstbank, the Bank of Ocala. Dunn was also banker, stockholder and land agent for the Homosassa Land Company, which had invested in substantial acreage that would sky-rocket in value with the completion of the rail line. Other businessmen who had an interest in the SSO&G Railroad included Solomon and Simon Benjamin, kin of the Confederate cabinet officer Judah Benjamin, and Summerfield M. G. Gary of Ocala. "Colonel" Gary, once a member of Florida's Secession Convention, was a former captain in the 9th Florida Infantry, before serving as aide-de-camp to his brother Gen. Martin W. Gary, CSA. While Summerfield Gary was paroled at Appomattox, Gen. Gary had cut his way out and eventually escorted Jefferson Davis to South Carolina, where, it is said, the last Confederate cabinet meeting was held in the Gary brothers ' childhood home. While it has not been discovered how Chamberlain became involved with this group of Ocala businessmen, it is not difficult to ascertain why they were interested in him. Such grand plans demanded capital that could only be gotten, at that time, from Northern investors. What was needed was a respected and trustworthyfigureheadfor their enterprise. But what was it about this particular business venture that appealed to Chamberlain?2 After landing at Fernandina on Florida's east coast, Chamberlain traveled to Ocala by train through the wild and unspoiled beauty of the state's interior. Offering a landscape intriguingly alien from that of New England, Florida still teemed with wildlife, from deer and bear to the more exotic panther and alligator. On reaching Ocala, the last stop on the rail line, he traveled another 60 miles to Homosassa by horse and buggy, through virgin lands of unique beauty. The village was set at the mouth of the crystal clear Homosassa River, afisherman'sparadise, its banks lined with giant cypress and its waters teeming with waterfowl. Writing to his sister Sae from Washington as he returned north, Lawrence wrote of what he had seen and the dreams it inspired: / made quite a visit to Florida, & saw much there to invite energetic & resolute young men. There are great opportunities to get health & wealthy & also to do goody & help other people. I was most warmly received by all sorts of people, & had many invitations to take positions of responsibility which naturally suit my temperament & aspirations. I always wanted to be at the head of some enterprise to transform the wilderness into a gardenboth materially & spiritually—to be a missionary of civilization & of Christianity at once. Here is a great chance to do itf & in my own country, which is peculiarly dear to me. It would be a delight to me now to give my energies to bringing forward the true results of all our struggle & sacrifice for the...

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