Off the Shelf
Author details Florida’s smuggling history
By LEE CLARK ZUMPE
Article published on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2007  |
Bootleg wine, Columbian cocaine, marijuana, Cuban cigars and guns and ammo – journalist Stan Zimmerman covers just about everything that has illicitly slipped into the state in his recent book “A History of Smuggling in Florida.”
Florida’s history, the author points out, is itself a history of smuggling. From the earliest incursions by Spanish conquistadors searching for gold and returning home empty-handed, the peninsula’s history has been burdened by materialism, malice and mercilessness.
When precious metals eluded them, certain unscrupulous Spaniards turned to a most heinous enterprise: “The smuggling of Indian slaves,” writes Zimmerman, “was Florida’s first industry …”
Even after the importation of slaves was outlawed, some individuals continued the practice, bringing slaves in from Cuba, through the state and north to markets in Georgia. Zimmerman cites a passage from “Tampa Town 1824-1886,” written by Anthony Pizzo, which alleges that Count Ode Phillippe – the individual to whom Safety Harbor’s Phillippe Park owes its name – was among those who partook in such callous transactions.
Zimmerman goes on to discuss a more recent form of slavery, human trafficking, detailing three cases that took place in the late 1990s, in addition to exploring Florida’s reputation as a major player in “the international arms bazaar,” a rumrunner’s paradise during Prohibition years and a hub for pot haulers and cocaine entrepreneurs. One particularly interesting chapter, “Nightmare on Noah’s Ark,” examines the illegal trade in endangered plants and animals.
Zimmerman’s methodical research and succinct style lure the reader into mangrove-fringed estuaries where bales of deserted marijuana float, into Confederate ports where blockade runners once unloaded guns and munitions during the Civil War, and into the backseat of Cuban taxicabs where drivers will sell counterfeit cigars to “suckers.” Since Zimmerman’s catalog of smugglers runs the gamut from capitalist to criminal, the author resists lionizing or demonizing them, leaving the reader to pass judgment on a seemingly endless array of rumrunners, cocaine cowboys and bootleggers.
Zimmerman to appear at Heritage Village
Journalist and author Stan Zimmerman will present a free program based on his book, “A History of Smuggling in Florida,” on Friday, Aug. 17, 7 p.m., at Heritage Village, 11909 125th St. N., Largo.
Zimmerman teaches maritime history and the history of Florida smuggling at the University of South Florida’s Academy for Lifelong Learning, Sarasota County’s Adult Education Program and Pierian Spring Academy. He was a broadcast journalist in Sarasota, West Palm Beach, Fort Myers and Washington, D.C. before becoming an award-winning freelance writer.
A book sale and signing will follow the program that is sponsored by the Pinellas County Historical Society.
Call 582-2123.
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Article published on Wednesday, Aug. 8, 2007
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