A Taste of Antebellum Florida

Travel is only cosmetic unless there is an effort to know the story behind what the traveler sees. The State of Florida, with its Disney World, Lego Land, beaches and marinas, remains unknown to many tourists. This is why Judy and I are attracted to the lesser publicized (and far less expensive or crowded) locations and events. It is there the story of the region bubbles up from beneath the layers of high profile attractions.

One such event is the Alafia River Rendezvous which meets each year, just west of the Peace River on the southern edge of the little hamlet of Homeland. The multiple acre gathering of history buffs and craft folks can be found each January, just a short drive on route 17 south of Bartow, in central Florida’s Polk County. The setting is largely pre-Civil war, taking in the era between 1819 and 1845, when Florida was a United States territory.

The Alafia River Rendezvous is a society of Florida Frontiersmen. 

"A nonprofit organization committed to preserving the skills of our first settlers, pioneers and mountain men in their use of muzzle loading firearms and the equipment and accouterments that accompanied such use."

They "endeavor to promote fellowship, together with historical appreciation of the era and equipment."

For several days the club meets to enjoy camaraderie, learn skills and infuse in each other the atmosphere of Florida's territorial past. Then they open the festivities to the public on a Friday and Saturday.

The one anomaly in the setting is the Native American quarter. Because the Seminoles had permanent dwellings, the Frontiersmen elected to use the tee-pee styles of the plains tribes; Other than that, a visitor will find ample visual, audio and flavorful reminders of the Florida frontier.

Be advised, the event attracts a lot of visitors, and there is a lot of walking involved. A large field provides ample parking.

Quite by accident, we discovered that a good time to visit, when there are fewer people milling about, is on a chilly Friday. Our experience from a year earlier demonstrated that a warm Saturday can be another story altogether.

As soon as you are on the campus you are treated to a menu of entertainment, food, creative crafts, historical visualization and information along with opportunities to see how these people “camp out” in the old fashioned way when they are not managing their displays. We arrived early enough to chat with a group enjoying breakfast.




Man, made in the image of God, is marvelously creative; and a venue such as the Alafia River Rendezvous brings that out to the max in a setting which predates the technological, assembly-line productions of today. If you are willing to ask questions, you can learn interesting mini-facts such as how the Seminoles used bob cat hides and seal skins for quivers and the special way they should be hung and why arrows should not protrude from the mouth. You might also be offered the opportunity to try on a wolverine hat which, being a New York State transplant, made me wish I had known about such a thing during my sixty-plus winters there.



All around the encampment you will see flags dancing overhead. They represent the ethnic or regional background of the members attending. There are also different renditions of early flags of the United States. Then there are some which defy explanation unless you can track down the person who raised them.

And, speaking of persons. Many of the members are more than eager to talk with you about the era they represent or about the path they have taken in the modern world. You can meet a woman from Ohio who, with her husband, has discovered the joys of a simple life in a small cabin near the house they turned over to their children. Her tent is full of handmade trinkets and authentic memorabilia. Or there is the lady who taught English, drove an over-the-road rig and met her husband in prison. She enjoys watching the eyebrows pop up when she mentions that last point. Both of them were involved in efforts to minister to the prisoners. Today, when they aren't on location with the club, they are still reaching out to those in need. You can also learn a lot about the commerce behind an event such as this from a lady who explained the various animal skins in her tent and helped us understand the journey of a sheep skin from New Zealand to Thailand to the United States.

We spent a great day at the Rendezvous last year; and we were not disappointed to return this year; and, I suspect we will wander among the tents and displays in the future. For an added feature, this year we took a new friend with us. Harry recently moved to Florida and has settled in our church. He joined us for the day and found it to be "far beyond his expectations." At the same time, he added to the fullness of our day with his own stories of three tours of duty in Vietnam as well as the fascinating anecdotes of other paths he has traveled both at home and around the world. People are cool.

You can access more information about the Alafia River Rendezvous at http://www.floridafrontiersmen.org/alafia.html

Perhaps we'll see you there next year.