Spanish-American War 1898

Spanish-American War

Dateline: October 25, 1998

Exactly one hundred years ago, the United States was engaged in wrapping up a strange war. In a way, it was an outgrowth of a the westward expansion of this country in the 1840's, when the U. S. fought with Mexico to extend its borders to the Pacific Ocean. This time, as a result of the Spanish-American War, the United States became a world power, with control of an empire stretching from the Caribbean Sea to the Far East.

The city of Tampa in particular and Florida in general has figured prominently in many aspects that led to the actual fighting. Most students of history are aware that Lieutenant Colonel Theodore Roosevelt's brigade nicknamed the "Rough Riders" were billeted in Tampa for a brief period before they embarked for Cuba. The Rough Riders helped secure victory for the United States with the battles of El Caney and San Juan Hill early in July, 1898. A group of re-enactors are active in the area.

Prior to the outbreak of those hostilities between Spain and the United States, there was political ferment throughout Tampa in support of Cuban loyalists. The political situation in Cuba had been building at least since the 1870's, when José Martí had been one of the most fervent and strident voices in support of a free Cuba.

The cigar industry began in Tampa in 1886, when Don Vicente Martinez Ybor built Tampa Port 1890 the first cigar factory in the area of town that is now called Ybor City. He was soon joined by a friendly rival, Ignacio Haya who purchased adjacent land. Other veteran manufacturers, eager to flee the oppression and upheaval that was growing in Cuba, soon joined Ybor and Haya. One thing that attracted both men was the excellent port so that the tobacco, grown in Cuba, could be readily imported.

These pioneers became known to Martí, and as the voice of Cuban freedom, he began making frequent trips to Tampa to solicit funds for the revolutionary forces. In 1895, war began between Spain and Cuba. The hostilities were instigated as a result of a secret message rolled into a cigar by a worker in Tampa, then hand-carried to General Maceo Grajales, on a ship off the coast of Cuba, awaiting word that the effort to free Cuba from Spain's control was to begin.

At first, the U.S. took only idle interest from afar, then eventually became more interested in its outcome. Particularly galling to many Americans was the brutality exacted on the revolutionaries seeking to expel Spanish control of the island nation.

Newspaper publishers such as William Randolph Hearst and Joseph Pulitzer vied with each other for exclusive reports. Both utilized war correspondents who filed regular dispatches. Soon other papers followed suit, including The Florida Times-Union, in Jacksonville, which carried frequent reports from the war front.

Since Jacksonville was located on the St. John's River, considerable shipping was moved through its well-developed port. Privateer Three Friends One activity was not endorsed by the U. S. Navy at that time, since the U.S. was not yet involved in a conflict with Spain. There were privateers who were engaged to transport war materials to Cuba. On one of these "excursions" called filibustering, a popular journalist and author named Ralph D. Paine was engaged to ship out aboard one of the steamers, Three Friends.

One of his essays is included in a book called Tales of Old Florida. It is a fascinating account of his experiences aboard one of three steamers carrying arms and munitions to a remote beach along the western coast of Cuba. In this essay, he describes being put ashore several miles south of Jacksonville on the ship's safe return from the mission, and of being a near-fugitive because of the furtive nature of the expedition. The captain of the ship did not dare return to port with extra passengers not known to have shipped out with him. Paine quotes a dispatch from the Times-Union:

"Havana, via Key West.—It is known here that the steamer Three Friends had landed at Juaraco the expedition carried from Fernandina, and it is reported that Ralph D. Paine, the correspondent who was on the filibuster, has been captured and, with three Cubans, has been placed in the Cabanas fortress."

Upon being confronted with this newspaper story as it was being discussed in a saloon, Payne decided it better to not atttempt a denial, and fled to Green Cove Springs, about fifteen miles south of Jacksonville. Paine ends the essay:

"The chief embarrassment in this shy and retiring life in Florida was that I changed my name so often it was necessary to consult a memorandum book before asking for mail. When it seemed probable that no more expeditions could be got away from Florida for weeks or months, newspaper orders called me to other fields of work, and a career of filibustering on the Spanish Main was cut off in its prime."

Bailey has considerable historical knowledge of Tampa and is available for walking tours, guided tours via automobile, etc. Please contact Bailey for more information .