In 1521, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon introduced the first herd of cattle to what is now known as the state of Florida. Since then, the Sunshine State has become one of the top cattle-producing states in the country.
Fast forward to 2019: The Florida Cow Culture Preservation Committee started planning its quincentennial celebration, including nearly two years of events to celebrate the milestone.
First up on the list was painting seven life-size fiberglass bulls dubbed Juan Ponce de Leon’s 1521 Herd of 7. Florida artists were commissioned to use their imagination by painting these replicas with scenes of Florida’s cattle industry, wildlife, country living and rodeo. These replicas traveled the state and eventually were sold. Their last appearance as a group was at the Trail’s End Celebration of The Great Florida Cattle Drive 2021.
Then, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the events were pushed back a year, making it The Great Florida Cattle Drive 2022. This was the fourth such cattle drive, with the initial one in 1995, followed again in 2006 and 2016.
Commencing December 4, 2022, near St. Cloud, the group drove the cattle over four ranches for 68.3 miles. They left Diego Medina’s ranch, near Kenansville, on December 10 for the last 7 miles to the Trail’s End Celebration at Kenansville Silver Spurs Arena.
The stories from this journey are as varied as the 350-some horsemen and women who braved the weeklong ride, including those who rode in 14 wagons. They came from Florida and 17 other states. Flags from Brazil, Mexico and Guatemala flew among the riders.
The Seminole Tribe of Florida was well-represented. It sponsored 20 military veterans, paying their entry fees and providing them with horses. It also provided for a group of boys from the Live Oak location of the Florida Sheriff’s Youth Ranches. The boys helped the veterans and arranged the last set of cattle used for the drive: 500 head of Corriente, with longhorn influence and horns to match.
The Seminole Tribe’s flag flew from a Conestoga-style wagon—a specific design of heavy covered wagon used extensively during the late 18th and 19th centuries in the Eastern United States and Canada. Billie Joe and Tara Johns drove the wagon. Their son and daughter-in-law were supposed to make the trip, but they had to leave after three days, returning for the Friday night entertainment: Seminole Indian culture night.
This family’s wagon also hosted others. Veteran Mike Hill, of St. Augustine, rode with the couple on the initial day of the drive. Eighty-eight-year-old Ron Wetherington, of Dover, joined them for the final mile of the Saturday drive. While completing the entire ride had been on his bucket list, he was prevented by emergency surgery just before the start date.
The youngest participant was 6-year-old Jayme Wells, of Fellsmere, and the oldest was 90-year-old Al Johnson, of Orlando. Al had served the first three drives as a cow hunter—someone who can track a wild cow through dense woods and return her to the herd—but this time he drove a wagon.
Thirty-three-year-old Bennett Lloyd, of Sanford, completed the entire event on foot. As coordinator of the Museum of Seminole County History, he wanted to experience Florida’s history. He was dressed entirely in 1530s-era clothing, most of which he made himself.
Delaney Crosby, a high school senior from Baker County, also completed the trip dressed in period clothing.
“It ended up being an amazing experience,” she says. “One of my favorite parts was dressing up as they did in that time period.”
Several Florida cattle families were represented on the drive by multiple generations, including the family of the late Imogene Yarbrough from Geneva; and Polk County cattle dynasty Cary Lightsey, his son, Clint, and his granddaughter, Hattie, who served as a cow hunter.
Veterinarian LuJean Waters-Stein was joined by her mother and stepfather, her husband and their 12-year-old son.
“Reenacting what our ancestors went through, how they were able to move their homesteads into central Florida—after spending just a week with only a fraction of their struggles—is truly moving,” LuJean says.
The weather cooperated beautifully—and those who complained about the early morning fog were met with dark scowls from the veterans of the 2016 drive, who endured three straight days and nights of downpours, leaving everything perpetually drenched.
The 2024 Great Florida Cattle Drive Reunion Ride and Gathering is January 26-28 at the Florida Sheriff’s Boy’s Ranch in Live Oak. Visit greatfloridacattledrive.com for more information.