What Was A Florida Cattle Drive Like?

Ever wonder what a Florida cattle drive was like in the 1800s?

While you get a good glimpse of it in A Land Remembered, there is a group of diehard cowboys and others who actually go on one once a year.

And you can experience it too from the comfort of your home.

The Great Florida Cattle Drive: Unbroken Circles.

A few years ago, I was contacted by Emmy award-winning father and son filmmakers Elam & Nic Stoltzfus who asked me to write the forward to their book, The Great Florida Cattle Drive: Unbroken Circles.

I was honored to do so.

I am loving the book! – Trudy Trask, Christmas, FL

This coffee table book chronicles the Great Florida Cattle Drive 2016 which celebrated the 20th anniversary of the first Great Florida Cattle Drive ’95. This event allowed people to experience the life of a Florida cow hunter on a cattle drive in the mid-1800s. The organizers of the cattle drive strove to make it as historically accurate as possible.

In fact, in one of the early years, Dad (Patrick Smith) rode along on one of the drives.

Another beautiful coffee table book on the life of the Florida cowboy is Florida Cowboys: Keepers of the Last Frontier by the wonderful Florida photographer, Carlton Ward. My father wrote the forward to that one.

You not only get to experience the riders’ adventures on this special journey, the book also tells the history of Florida’s heritage cattle breed and how they almost went extinct. In addition, it includes a section on the making of the Great Florida Cattle Drive 2016 documentary which is available on DVD.

You can purchase The Great Florida Cattle Drive: Unbroken Circles below at The Live Oak Production Group who published the book.

Check out these other books on the Florida Cowboy.

And while you will love the coffee table book, you’ll also enjoy the companion DVD.

The Great Florida Cattle Drive On Film

This film tells the story of the Great Florida Cattle Drive 2016, the history of Florida’s heritage cattle breed—and how they almost went extinct, and how Florida’s cow culture is being preserved for future generations. It is narrated by Baxter Black. Music by J. Robert Houghtaling.

Here’s a clip from that DVD.

 

Want to enjoy the music – featuring John McEuen of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – from “The Great Florida Cattle Drive: Unbroken Circles” documentary?

The CD and DVD are available at GreatfForidaCrackerDrive.com. You can get The Great Florida Cattle Drive: Unbroken Circles CD on Amazon Unlimited Music too.

Join The Great Florida Cattle Drive

Would you like to find out more or to join these devotees of the frontier Florida cowboy lifestyle? Head over to Great Florida Cattle Drive & Reunion Rides on Facebook and check it out.

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