Lanier Bridge
This is the bridge you cross over as you enter the West Tract of the Green Swamp. The site of the Lanier Bridge, as its named, has had a crossing of the Withlacoochee River since the first structure was completed in 1850s. From the County Commission minutes of April 2, 1888, have: “It was ordered that John Sumner repair Lanier Bridge at $2.00 per hundred feet of lumber.”
The wooden deck is actually pretty smooth to drive on and is one of the few wooden deck automotive bridges I'm aware of that still is in service within in Central Florida.
The wooden deck is actually pretty smooth to drive on and is one of the few wooden deck automotive bridges I'm aware of that still is in service within in Central Florida.
Replaced several times during the following century, the bridge served lumber, turpentine and cattle operations along with several short-lived small towns including Ashley and Titanic, as well as Sturkey and Cumpressco. Some timbers from one of the early bridges remain in the river about 100 yards downstream.
During the Second Seminole War, Old Tiger Tail, a prominent War Chief, had his camp in swamps near the east bank of the river. About 1900 the Campbell family operated a cypress shingle factory on the west side of the river north of the bridge.
During prohibition, many illicit whiskey stills operated in the area. Two agents were murdered nearby after failing to heed the local sheriff's warning: "Don't go beyond the Lanier Bridge." Men suspected of the murder were killed in a gunfight shortly afterward and their bodies displayed to the public in Dade City.
It took place on October 4th, 1922, Pasco County Deputy Sheriff Arthur Fleece Crenshaw and United States Prohibition Agent John Van Waters were ambushed and killed while returning from an investigation into a robbery and search for bootleg liquor. Seven men were arrested and two stood trial for the murder of the officers. Preston Overstreet and his cousin Paul Overstreet, were both acquitted of the crime by December 16, 1922.
Just over two years later, on February 25, 1925, Pasco County Deputy Sheriff C.C. Walker and a young man named Hancock were investigating three moonshine stills three miles south of the Lanier Bridge. Upon hearing an approaching vehicle, Walker told Hancock to "get set." As Hancock moved into position, his double-barreled shotgun discharged. The two suspected moonshiners jumped out of their car. The first suspect, Preston Overstreet, was armed with an automatic shotgun. The second suspect, Neil Wilson, was armed with a 30-30 rifle. Deputy Walker shouted "gentleman, drop your guns, you are under arrest." Wilson fired a shot at Walker barely missing his head. Walker returned fire and killed both suspects before they could fire another shot. Sources: The Dade City Banner , The Lakeland Star Telegram and The Lakeland Evening Ledger.
During the Second Seminole War, Old Tiger Tail, a prominent War Chief, had his camp in swamps near the east bank of the river. About 1900 the Campbell family operated a cypress shingle factory on the west side of the river north of the bridge.
During prohibition, many illicit whiskey stills operated in the area. Two agents were murdered nearby after failing to heed the local sheriff's warning: "Don't go beyond the Lanier Bridge." Men suspected of the murder were killed in a gunfight shortly afterward and their bodies displayed to the public in Dade City.
It took place on October 4th, 1922, Pasco County Deputy Sheriff Arthur Fleece Crenshaw and United States Prohibition Agent John Van Waters were ambushed and killed while returning from an investigation into a robbery and search for bootleg liquor. Seven men were arrested and two stood trial for the murder of the officers. Preston Overstreet and his cousin Paul Overstreet, were both acquitted of the crime by December 16, 1922.
Just over two years later, on February 25, 1925, Pasco County Deputy Sheriff C.C. Walker and a young man named Hancock were investigating three moonshine stills three miles south of the Lanier Bridge. Upon hearing an approaching vehicle, Walker told Hancock to "get set." As Hancock moved into position, his double-barreled shotgun discharged. The two suspected moonshiners jumped out of their car. The first suspect, Preston Overstreet, was armed with an automatic shotgun. The second suspect, Neil Wilson, was armed with a 30-30 rifle. Deputy Walker shouted "gentleman, drop your guns, you are under arrest." Wilson fired a shot at Walker barely missing his head. Walker returned fire and killed both suspects before they could fire another shot. Sources: The Dade City Banner , The Lakeland Star Telegram and The Lakeland Evening Ledger.
In the early 1920s Cummer Cypress Company acquired over fifty square miles of eastern Pasco County, including most of the river south and east of Lacoochee. A company town, Cumpressco, was located in the northeast corner of Pasco County and reached by road from the Lanier Bridge. The Cummer Sawmill closed in 1959 but remains of its private rail lines and tram roads can still be seen. In the 1930s a Works Progress Administration (WPA) labor placed a rock dam about 100 yards south of the bridge in an attempt to retain water in the upper reaches of the river during dry spells. A WPA crew also rebuilt the bridge. The Cummer property was acquired by Agri-Timber, Inc. in the 1970s and subsequently sold to the Southwest Florida Management District in 1992 for water resource protection and conservation.
James Lanier: Lanier was born in 1799 in Georgia. By the late 1840's he and his family lived in, what was then, Benton County in the Buddy's Lake Settlement. While Lanier was a slaveholder, he most likely contracted additional laborers from family or neighbors to help construct the bridge. Before 1860, Lanier and his family relocated a few miles south to Socrum in what is now northwest Polk County. During the US Civil War, Lanier sold cattle to the Confederate Government.
On April 7, 1864, Lanier was the only man killed in a skirmish referred to as the "Battle of Bowlegs Creek" southeast of Ft. Meade, Florida. He was buried in an unmarked grave in Pleasant Grove Cemetery east of Ft. Meade
It is believed that slaves belonging to the Lanier family may have built the bridge. It was noted that the 1850 census shows that James Lanier owned only one adult slave, a 30-year-old female. He also owned an 11-year-old male, a 6-year-old female, and three 5-year-old males.
As dark as history may be, it’s important to learn and remember who built the bridge—not the namesake.
On April 7, 1864, Lanier was the only man killed in a skirmish referred to as the "Battle of Bowlegs Creek" southeast of Ft. Meade, Florida. He was buried in an unmarked grave in Pleasant Grove Cemetery east of Ft. Meade
It is believed that slaves belonging to the Lanier family may have built the bridge. It was noted that the 1850 census shows that James Lanier owned only one adult slave, a 30-year-old female. He also owned an 11-year-old male, a 6-year-old female, and three 5-year-old males.
As dark as history may be, it’s important to learn and remember who built the bridge—not the namesake.