History of St. Joseph
The prominence which has been given to St. Josephs
bay of late owing to the tendency of the Western roads to
find an outlet on the Gulf, so as to connect their lines with
the Panama Canal, makes the history of this once famous
place interesting to the readers who delve into the conditions
of the past. The railroad from Iola to St. Josephs
city is sometimes spoken of as the first railroad in Florida.
This is a mistake. The railroad from Iola to St. Josephs
was built in 1836-37 while the road from Tallahassee to
St. Marks was built in 1833-34. The road from Tallahassee
to St. Marks was the third railroad in the United
States. While St. Josephs cannot boast of the first railroad
in Florida, she can boast of having had the first
Convention for the organizing of a colonial government
seven years before the Territory was admitted to the
Union. The Territory was admitted in 1845 and this
convention was held in 1838. It is stated in an old newspaper
that twenty trains of cars entered St. Josephs each
day.
The following account of the founding of this
remarkable city which at one time had a population of
over four thousand was written by an old citizen who
passed to his rest a few years ago. Some citizens of
Middle Florida and southern Georgia conceived the idea
of founding a city on the bay of St. Josephs in West
Florida about twenty-five miles west of Apalachicola.
At that time Apalachicola was the seaport for all the
counties of southern Georgia lying contiguous to the
rivers Apalachicola, Flint, Chattahoochee and Chipola,
and for the counties of Middle and West Florida bordering
on these streams ; with the exception of the short
road from Tallahassee to St. Marks, there were no railroads
in Florida or Georgia.
The connection with the states lay north of Georgia
at Georgetown, South Carolina. Therefore as there were
no railroads traversing the country between the Mississippi
and the Atlantic, the commerce of this extensive
country was carried on through the Gulf ports and the
ports of St. Marks, Apalachicola, Pensacola and Mobile
were busy marts crowded with the snowy sails of a great
ocean traffic. The shipping of the port of Apalachicola
could not approach nearer than sixteen miles to the city
in consequence of the shallow channels which intervened
between the city at the mouth of the river Apalachicola,
and the deep waters of St. George’s Sound at the west
pass. All the freightage of the country inward and outward
was carried to the shipping in the lower sound by
the dangerous, tedious and expensive medium of barges.
To avoid this therefore and to secure a port free from
all obstacles was the moving cause for the founding of
the city of St. Josephs.
Among those most active in this undertaking was
Colonel George Grattan Gamble of Leon County. Colonel
Gamble, among his other avocations and attainments
during an eventful life, had mastered the profession of
civil engineer. He had large experience both as engineer
and builder of canals in his native state, Virginia; being
at one time President of the State system known as the
James River and Kanawha Canal Company. Embarking
in this undertaking with all his characteristic zeal and
energy he thoroughly examined the territory lying along
the banks of the Chipola and Apalachicola Rivers, and by
a series of levels ascertained that from Iola, some twentyfive
miles north of the bay of St. Josephs, the land
sloped in an unbroken inclined plain to the waters of
the bay and that a canal could be constructed with very
little excavation. He therefore advocated constructing
a canal from Iola to St. Joseph. So very slight was the
variation between the site of the proposed city and the
river at Iola, he believed the canal could be built without
locks, simply making the embankment higher at one end
and having an inland front to the city where the boats
could land their produce. He proposed to have wharves
at both sides the city, on the bay and on the back at
the canal basin. These wharves would be connected with
a line of road. The city would thus present the novelty
of having the traffic of many rivers, conveying the products
of several states brought to its doors on its inland
front while its seaward face could receive ships bearing
the flags of the maritime nations of the world.
Colonel Gamble also proposed to connect Lake
Wimico with the city by another canal thus giving the
city a supply of healthy fresh water. But Colonel Gamble
was ahead of his time and generation. His co-laborers
decided to build a railroad from Iola and another to
Wimico or rather the bayou. This scheme was carried
out and for several years trains ran regularly between
Iola and St. Joseph much to the detriment of Apalachicola.
At one time it appeared as though St. Joseph
would entirely destroy the trade of Apalachicola. But
Colonel Gamble’s predictions were verified. The unloading
of the steamers at Iola and the transmission by rail
proved expensive and troublesome and elicited the bitter
opposition of the steamers because they lost the freight
from Iola to Apalachicola. The city began to languish,
but its fall came sooner than was expected even by its
enemies. It was before the days of quarantine. People
knew little then about infection and took absolutely no
care to prevent the spread of disease. One day an infected
ship, from some isle of the greater Antilles, entered
the port and very soon yellow fever made its appearance
in every part of the city. The mortality was terrible.
Tallahassee lost many of its citizens who had gone to
spend the summer in the healthy and pleasant town,
Here Governor R. R. Reed caught the fearful malady
which ended his life ; among others was the wife of
Governor Duval, the mother and sister of Colonel G. H.
Ward, Judge Allen and many others who fled from the
city only to reach home and die.

St. Joseph grew to have a population of over four
thousand. It was the metropolis of Florida. Cosmopolitan
in character it attracted people from many states who
came either to enjoy the gulf breezes or to engage in business.
The people were energetic, active and stirring. It
became a place for pleasure seekers and much wealth
was congregated there. Fine buildings and large hotels
adorned the city.
One writer who attended the Convention of 1838 thus
speaks of the city : “It was then a stirring busy place, its
citizens full of energy and hope, fine buildings and hotels
adorned the town and more were building. The fact of
its being selected for the meeting of the Convention
speaks loudly as to its existing attractiveness. Before
the city lay one of the most beautiful of ocean harbors
with crystal, flashing waters and snowlike beach crowned
with verdure to the waters edge; to seaward bounded by
towering forest clad hills whose varied profile was made
more picturesque by the large ships lying close to their
base, was a vision of beauty ever varying with shifting
light and shadow.” It was not long after the city had
been depopulated by yellow fever, a forest fire spread to
the city and every house was burned to the ground.
Nothing was left. Many had died and the remaining few
who still felt an interest in the pleasure seeking city refused
to go back, the rails of the road were torn up and
sold, and thus ended the once beautiful city of St. Joseph.

Source: Vol II., 1909, No. 2., Florida Historical Society Quarterly

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