1919 Greve Advertisement for Land Investment in Baldwin, Duval County, Florida

A relic of the early phase of the Florida Land Boom, this c. 1911 promotional broadside was produced by the Colonization Department of Sutherland, McConnel and Co., based in Jacksonville, Florida. It advertises land for sale in Baldwin, Duvall County, not far from Jacksonville (now a semi-independent consolidated town within the latter city).

A Closer Look

This broadside advertises a 'plain, old-fashioned land opening' of some 27,000 acres in Baldwin, Duvall County, 'within ten miles of the heart of the city of Jacksonville,' which is accurately described as 'the Gateway to Florida'. Sutherland, McConnel and Co. go to great lengths to distinguish themselves from land speculators of years past, and prematurely (and laughably in retrospect) claim that 'Florida Has Passed Through the Days of Wild Land Speculation'. Considerable text is also devoted to descriptions of the soil and types of crops that could be grown on what 'is generally considered to be the best tract for general farming purposes in the State of Florida'. Good schools, fine churches, and Florida's climate and its purported health benefits are also touted.

Potential investors were enjoined to tear off one of the 'coupons' at bottom-left and right to receive more information about the land sale and have train tickets arranged by Sutherland, McConnel and Co. After arriving, they would be provided with accommodation and, if dissatisfied, would have their trip costs refunded. If, however, they chose to buy land, their travel costs would be applied towards the cost of the land. Given the mention of train tickets from Cincinnati and other points in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky, and the location of the Auck Bros. agents in Bucyrus, Ohio, this was a targeted piece advertising to potential investors from the Midwest. Presumably, the main sheet was a 'template', and the local agents' information could be changed by locality. That being said, all known examples of this broadside mention the Auck Bros. in Bucyrus, suggesting that printings with other local agents were not produced. It appears that the convincing sales pitch given here did not find many takers (perhaps due to the disruptions of the First World War); according to U.S. Census records, Baldwin's population actually shrank (from 907 to 791) between 1910 and 1920.

Florida Land Boom(s)

In the second half of the 19th and throughout the early 20th century, Florida experienced a series of land booms and crashes. The initial land boom established Florida as a center for the citrus industry in the 1880s - 1890s, and its collapse allowed for the easy acquisition of large tracts of land at cut-rate prices. Industrialist and founder of Standard Oil Henry Flagler (1830 - 1913) seized the opportunity to build his Florida East Coast Railway, starting in Jacksonville, and extend it to the region that would develop into Miami and other communities on the state's southeastern coast.

Flagler and other Florida boosters successfully promoted it as a paradisical escape from the grimy cities and cold weather of lands further north. Land prices shot up at an astronomical rate and developers carved entirely new cities out of wetlands in mere months. In addition to Flagler's railway, the arrival of the highway system in the 1920s made the region more accessible. But the speculation around land prices in Florida had reached irrational heights, and the damage caused by two hurricanes followed by the financial crash of 1929 led to a collapse in the real estate market, ruining many investors in the process. For its part, Jacksonville was a 'gateway' rather than a destination for many tourists, investors, and migrants, perhaps explaining the lackluster uptake of the land offered here.

Publication History and Census

This broadside was produced by the Colonization Department of Sutherland, McConnel and Co., naming Clifford Greve as its General Manager, and distributed by Auck Bros. in Bucyrus, Ohio around the year 1911. The OCLC notes it among the holdings of the State Library of Florida, University of North Florida, and Yale University.