FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
123 
own cost of deprivation and hardship, es¬ 
tablished the original thirteen colonies, 
on the Atlantic Sea Board; who first oc¬ 
cupied the land, drove back the Indian; 
threw off the yoke of the old country—• 
with its limitations, political and relig¬ 
ious, to establish a Republic of Freemen, 
where liberty in its truest, sense should 
prevail. 
The true American type—we certainly 
have such a type—is now found princi¬ 
pally south of “Mason and Dixon’s Line” 
—In the South Atlantic, and Gulf States; 
and is most strongly marked in the rural 
districts of the cotton growing States; 
particularly in Florida, where most of 
our people can trace their lineage, direct¬ 
ly to the founders of the Republic, with 
little if any admixture of foreign blood— 
Descendants of those grand old pioneers 
—rugged, capable, stubborn, courageous 
and honest, who lone handed, and by 
mere force of character, conquered the 
wilderness, as an heritage for their chil¬ 
dren, and children’s children. 
The descendants of whom fought the 
bloodiest war of modern times, to preserve 
the constitutional liberties of the Republic 
founded by their fathers. Those fathers, 
who by their sacrifices, made it possible 
for the foreign immigrant to flock to the 
States—the North and West—after the 
establishment of religious and political 
liberty, by our Revolutionary ancestors. 
Florida has had a large increase of 
population, during the past fifteen years; 
she has increased from 391,000 to 620,- 
000—a little more than 58 per cent.— 
From 1890 to 1900, she increased 35 per 
cent. (391,000 to 528,000). The States’s 
census taken last year, now being com¬ 
pleted, will show a greater proportionate 
increase. 
Florida gained a larger percentage of 
population, than any other Atlantic State, 
during the last United States census per¬ 
iod; namely, 35 per cent. She exceeded 
the average of all the groups of States— 
that is the North Atlantic group—20.90 
per cent. The South Atlantic, 17.90 per 
cent.; the North Central, 17.50 per cent.; 
the South Central, 26.10 per cent., and 
the Western Division, 31.90 per cent. 
Her percentage of increase in popula¬ 
tion was exceeded only, by Arizona, 
Idaho, Indian Territory, Montana, North 
Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, Washington, 
and Wyoming, from 1890 to 1900; while 
the indications are that her increase for 
the present decade will be far greater in 
proportion. 
The census of 1900, show^ Florida’s 
total population, as 528,542. 
Of Native born Americans . . . .504,710 
Foreign Born. 23,823 
Percentage of Native Born .... 95.5 
Percentage of Foreign Born ... 4.5 
Our State census of 1905, will show 
a total of 62,000 approximately. 
The most remarkable feature of Flori¬ 
da’s population is the very large per¬ 
centage of native born Americans; par¬ 
ticularly natives of the Southern States— 
notably from the States of Georgia. 
South Carolina, Alabama and North 
Carolina. 
In 1900, we find Florida born in¬ 
habitants .342,818 
Born in Georgia . 57>^2 
Born in South Carolina . 26,798 
Born in Alabama . 24,721 
Born in North Carolina . 13^339 
Born in New York. 
Born in Virginia. 3’754 
Born in Ohio . 2,721 
Born in Tennessee . 2.445 
Born in Illinois. 2,176 
