Editing Everglades (section)

==History==

===Native Americans===
{{Main|Indigenous people of the Everglades region}}

Humans arrived in the Florida peninsula approximately 15,000&nbsp;years ago. [[Paleo-Indian]]s came to Florida probably following large game that included [[giant sloth]]s, [[saber-toothed cat]]s, and [[spectacled bear]]s. They found an arid landscape that supported plants and animals adapted for desert conditions.<ref>McCally, p.&nbsp;34.</ref> However, 6,500&nbsp;years ago, climate changes brought a wetter landscape; large animals became extinct in Florida, and the Paleo-Indians slowly adapted and became the [[Archaic period in the Americas|Archaic peoples]]. They conformed to the environmental changes, and created many tools with the various resources available.<ref>McCally, p.&nbsp;35.</ref> During the Late Archaic period, the climate became wetter again, and approximately 3000&nbsp;BCE the rise of water tables allowed an increase in population and cultural activity. Florida Indians developed into three distinct but similar cultures that were named for the bodies of water near where they were located: [[Belle Glade culture|Okeechobee]], [[Caloosahatchee culture|Caloosahatchee]], and [[Glades culture|Glades]].<ref>McCally, pp.&nbsp;37–39.</ref>

====Calusa and Tequesta====
{{Main|Calusa|Tequesta}}

From the Glades peoples, two major nations emerged in the area: the [[Calusa]] and the [[Tequesta]]. The Calusa was the largest and most powerful nation in South Florida. It controlled fifty villages located on Florida's west coast, around Lake Okeechobee, and on the [[Florida Keys]]. Most Calusa villages were located at the mouths of rivers or on key islands. The Calusa were hunter-gatherers who lived on small game, fish, turtles, alligators, shellfish, and various plants.<ref>Tebeau (1968), pp.&nbsp;38–41.</ref> Most of their tools were made of bone or teeth, although sharpened reeds were also effective for hunting or war. Calusa weapons consisted of bows and arrows, [[atlatl]]s, and spears. Canoes were used for transportation, and South Florida tribes often canoed through the Everglades, but rarely lived in them.<ref>McCally, p.&nbsp;39.</ref> Canoe trips to Cuba were also common.<ref name="Griffin171">Griffin, p.&nbsp;171.</ref>

Estimated numbers of Calusa at the beginning of the Spanish occupation ranged from 4,000 to 7,000.<ref>Griffin, p.&nbsp;170.</ref> The society declined in power and population; by 1697 their number was estimated to be about 1,000.<ref name="Griffin171"/> In the early 18th century, the Calusa came under attack from the [[Yamasee]] to the north. They asked the Spanish for refuge in Cuba, where almost 200 died of illness. Soon they were relocated again to the Florida Keys.<ref>Griffin, p.&nbsp;173.</ref>

Second in power and number to the Calusa in South Florida were the [[Tequesta]]. They occupied the southeastern portion of the lower peninsula in modern-day [[Miami-Dade County, Florida|Dade]] and [[Broward County, Florida|Broward]] counties. Like the Calusa, the Tequesta societies centered on the mouths of rivers. Their main village was probably on the [[Miami River (Florida)|Miami River]] or Little River. Spanish depictions of the Tequesta state that they were greatly feared by sailors, who suspected them of torturing and killing survivors of shipwrecks.<ref name="goggintequesta">{{cite journal | last1 = Goggin | first1 = John | year = 1940 | title = The Tekesta Indians of Southern Florida | journal = [[The Florida Historical Quarterly]] | volume = 18 | issue = 4| pages = 274–285 }}</ref> With an increasing European presence in south Florida, Native Americans from the Keys and other areas began increasing their trips to Cuba. Official permission for the immigration of Native Americans from the Florida Keys was granted by Cuban officials in 1704.<ref>Worth, John E. ''A history of Southeastern Indians in Cuba, 1513–1823''. Florida Museum of Natural History, 2004. (Pages 5–6)</ref> Spanish priests attempted to set up missions in 1743, but noted that the Tequesta were under assault from a neighboring tribe. When only 30&nbsp;members were left, they were removed to Havana. A British surveyor in 1770 described multiple deserted villages in the region where the Tequesta lived.<ref>Tebeau, p.&nbsp;43.</ref> Common descriptions of Native Americans in Florida by 1820 used only the term "Seminoles".<ref>Tebeau, p.&nbsp;45.</ref>

====Seminole====
{{Main|Seminole}}

[[File:Charley Cypress Seminole Everglades.jpg|thumb|upright|Seminoles made their home in the Everglades.]]

Following the demise of the Calusa and Tequesta, Native Americans in southern Florida were referred to as "Spanish Indians" in the 1740s, probably due to their friendlier relations with Spain. The [[Creek (people)|Creek]] invaded the Florida peninsula; they conquered and assimilated what was left of pre-Columbian societies into the Creek Confederacy. They were joined by remnant Indian groups and formed the Seminole, a new tribe, by [[ethnogenesis]]. The Seminole originally settled in the northern portion of the territory. In addition, [[free people of color|free blacks]] and fugitive [[Slavery in the United States|slaves]] made their way to Florida, where Spain had promised slaves freedom and arms if they converted to Catholicism and pledged loyalty to Spain. These African Americans gradually created communities near those of the Seminole, and became known as the [[Black Seminoles]]. The groups acted as allies.

In 1817, [[Andrew Jackson]] invaded Florida to hasten its annexation to the United States, in what became known as the [[First Seminole War]]. After Florida became a U.S. territory in 1821, conflicts between settlers and the Seminole increased as the former tried to acquire lands. The [[Second Seminole War]] lasted from 1835 to 1842, and afterward, the US forcibly removed about 3,000 Seminole and 800 Black Seminole to [[Indian Territory]] (now Oklahoma), west of the Mississippi River. Many others died in the war.<ref>Griffin, p.&nbsp;180.</ref> Conflict broke out again in the [[Third Seminole War]] from 1855 to 1859, when a few hundred Seminole fought off US forces from the swamps of the Everglades. The US finally decided to leave them alone, as they could not dislodge them even after this protracted and expensive warfare.

By 1913, the Seminole in the Everglades numbered no more than 325.<ref name="skinner"/> They made a living by hunting and trading with white settlers, and raised domesticated animals.<ref>Tebeau, pp.&nbsp;50–51</ref> The Seminole made their villages in hardwood hammocks or pinelands, had diets of [[hominy]] and [[coontie]] roots, fish, turtles, venison, and small game.<ref name="skinner">{{cite journal | last1 = Skinner | first1 = Alanson | year = 1913 | title = Notes on the Florida Seminole | journal = American Anthropologist | volume = 15 | issue = 1| pages = 63–77 | doi=10.1525/aa.1913.15.1.02a00070| doi-access = free }}</ref> Their villages were not large, due to the limited size of the hammocks. Between the end of the last Seminole War and 1930, the people lived in relative isolation from the majority culture.

The construction of the [[Tamiami Trail]], beginning in 1928 and spanning the region from [[Tampa, Florida|Tampa]] to Miami, altered their ways of life. Some began to work in local farms, ranches, and souvenir stands.<ref>Tebeau, pp.&nbsp;55–56.</ref> Some of the people who interacted more with European Americans began to move to reservations in the 1940s. These were their bases for reorganizing their government and they became federally recognized in 1957 as the [[Seminole Tribe of Florida]].

People who kept more traditional ways had settlements along the Tamiami Trail and tended to speak the [[Mikasuki language]]. They later were federally recognized in 1962 as the [[Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida]]. As metropolitan areas in South Florida began to grow, the two groups were closely associated with the Everglades. They struggled to maintain privacy while serving as tourist attractions. They earned money by [[Alligator wrestling|wrestling alligators]] and selling craftworks.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.floridamemory.com/PhotographicCollection/photo_exhibits/seminoles/seminoles4.cfm|title=Images of Florida Seminoles in the Sunshine State|date=c. 1880|publisher=Florida Memory Project: Tourism|access-date=2008-06-20|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080603073231/http://www.floridamemory.com/PhotographicCollection/photo_exhibits/seminoles/seminoles4.cfm <!--Added by H3llBot-->|archive-date=June 3, 2008}}</ref> {{as of|2008}}, the Seminole Tribe of Florida had five reservations, and the lands of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians were collectively considered a sixth reservation. The two tribes have each developed [[casino]] gaming on some of their properties to generate revenue for support, services and economic development.<ref>{{cite web| title = Tourism/Enterprises| year = 2007| publisher = Seminole Tribe of Florida| url = http://www.seminoletribe.com/enterprises/casinos.shtml| access-date = 2008-04-30| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080203033514/http://www.seminoletribe.com/enterprises/casinos.shtml <!--Added by H3llBot-->| archive-date = 2008-02-03}}</ref>

===Exploration===
[[File:US War Department Everglades Map 1856.jpg|thumb|upright|Map of the Everglades in 1856: Military action during the [[Seminole Wars]] improved understanding of the features of the Everglades.]]
{{Main|Draining and development of the Everglades}}

The military penetration of southern Florida offered the opportunity to map a poorly understood and largely unknown part of the country. An 1840 expedition into the Everglades offered the first printed account for the general public to read about the Everglades. The anonymous writer described the terrain the party was crossing:
<blockquote>No country that I have ever heard of bears any resemblance to it; it seems like a vast sea filled with grass and green trees, and expressly intended as a retreat for the rascally Indian, from which the white man would never seek to drive them.<ref>Tebeau, pp.&nbsp;66–67.</ref></blockquote>

The land seemed to inspire extreme reactions of both wonder or hatred. During the Second Seminole War an army surgeon wrote, "It is in fact a most hideous region to live in, a perfect paradise for Indians, alligators, serpents, frogs, and every other kind of loathsome reptile."<ref>Grunwald, p.&nbsp;42.</ref>

A survey team led by railroad executive [[James Edmundson Ingraham]] explored the area in 1892.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://everglades.fiu.edu/reclaim/bios/ingraham.htm|title=Everglades Digital Library}}</ref> In 1897, explorer [[Hugh Willoughby]] spent eight days canoeing with a party from the mouth of the [[Harney River]] to the [[Miami River (Florida)|Miami River]]. He sent his observations to the ''[[New Orleans Times-Democrat]]''. Willoughby described the water as healthy and wholesome, with numerous [[spring (hydrosphere)|springs]], and 10,000&nbsp;[[alligator]]s "more or less" in Lake Okeechobee. The party encountered thousands of birds near the [[Shark River (Florida)|Shark River]], "killing hundreds, but they continued to return".<ref>McCally, pp.&nbsp;65–69.</ref> Willoughby pointed out that much of the rest of the country had been explored and mapped except for this part of Florida, writing, "(w)e have a tract of land one hundred and thirty miles long and seventy miles wide that is as much unknown to the white man as the heart of Africa."<ref name="stephan">{{cite journal | last1 = Stephan | first1 = L. Lamar | year = 1942 | title = Geographic Role of the Everglades in the Early History of Florida | journal = The Scientific Monthly | volume = 55 | issue = 6| pages = 515–526 | bibcode = 1942SciMo..55..515L }}</ref>

===Drainage===
A national push for expansion and progress in the United States occurred in the later part of the 19th century, which stimulated interest in draining the Everglades for agricultural use. According to historians, "From the middle of the nineteenth century to the middle of the twentieth century, the United States went through a period in which wetland removal was not questioned. Indeed, it was considered the proper thing to do."<ref name="meindl">{{cite journal | last1 = Meindl | first1 = Christopher | display-authors = etal | title = "(December, 2002). "On the Importance of Claims-Making: The Role of James O. Wright in Promoting the Drainage of Florida's Everglades in the Early Twentieth Century | journal = Annals of the Association of American Geographers | volume = 92 | issue = 4| pages = 682–701 | doi=10.1111/1467-8306.00311| s2cid = 143720189 }}</ref> Draining the Everglades was suggested as early as 1837,<ref name="dovell">{{cite journal | last1 = Dovell | first1 = J.E. | year = 1947 | title = The Everglades Before Reclamation | journal = The Florida Historical Quarterly | volume = 26 | issue = 1| pages = 1–44 }}</ref> and a resolution in [[U.S. Congress|Congress]] was passed in 1842 that prompted [[Secretary of Treasury]] [[Robert J. Walker]] to request those with experience in the Everglades to give their opinion on the possibility of drainage. Many officers who had served in the Seminole Wars favored the idea.<ref name="dovell"/>  In 1850 Congress passed a law that gave several states [[wetland]]s within their state boundaries. The [[Swamp and Overflowed Lands Act]] ensured that the state would be responsible for funding the attempts at developing wetlands into farmlands.<ref name="dovell1948">{{cite journal | last1 = Dovell | first1 = Junius | year = 1948 | title = The Everglades: A Florida Frontier | journal = Agricultural History | volume = 22 | issue = 3| pages = 187–197 }}</ref>  Florida quickly formed a committee to consolidate grants to pay for any attempts, though the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] and [[Reconstruction era of the United States|Reconstruction]] halted progress until after 1877.

[[File:Hamilton Disston Land Sale Notice.jpg|thumb|upright|Hamilton Disston's land sale notice]]

After the Civil War, a state agency called the [[Internal improvements|Internal Improvement Fund (IIF)]], whose purpose was to improve Florida's roads, canals, and rail lines, was discovered to be deeply in debt. The IIF found a Pennsylvania real estate developer named [[Hamilton Disston]] interested in implementing plans to drain the land for agriculture. Disston purchased {{convert|4000000|acre|km2}} of land for $1&nbsp;million in 1881,<ref name="davis2">{{cite journal | last1 = Davis | first1 = T. Frederick | year = 1939 | title = The Disston Land Purchase | journal = The Florida Historical Quarterly | volume = 17 | issue = 3| pages = 201–211 }}</ref> and he began constructing canals near [[St. Cloud, Florida|St. Cloud]]. At first, the canals seemed to work in lowering the water levels in the wetlands surrounding the rivers.<ref>Grunwald, pp.&nbsp;92–93.</ref> They were effective in lowering the groundwater, but it became apparent that their capacity was insufficient for the wet season.<ref>Douglas p.&nbsp;286.</ref> Although Disston's canals did not drain well, his purchase primed the economy of Florida. It made news and attracted tourists and land buyers. Within four years property values doubled, and the population increased significantly.<ref name="davis2"/>

The IIF was able to invest in development projects due to Disston's purchase, and an opportunity to improve transportation arose when oil tycoon [[Henry Flagler]] began purchasing land and building rail lines along the east coast of Florida, as far south as [[Palm Beach, Florida|Palm Beach]] in 1893.<ref>"Henry Flagler". ''Encyclopedia of World Biography Supplement'', Vol. 21. Gale Group, 2001.</ref> Along the way he built resort hotels, transforming territorial outposts into tourist destinations. The land bordering the rail lines was developed as citrus farms.<ref>"Henry Morrison Flagler". ''Dictionary of American Biography'' Base Set. American Council of Learned Societies, 1928–1936.</ref> By 1896 the rail line had been extended to [[Biscayne Bay]].<ref name="bramson">Bramson, Seth (1998). "A Tale of Three Henrys", ''The Journal of Decorative and Propaganda Arts'', '''23''', Florida Theme Issue, pp.&nbsp;113–143.</ref> Three months after the first train had arrived, the residents of Miami voted to incorporate the town. Miami became a prime destination for extremely wealthy people after the [[Royal Palm Hotel (Miami)|Royal Palm Hotel]] was opened.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Bush | first1 = Gregory | year = 1999 | title = Playground of the USA | journal = The Pacific Historical Review | volume = 62 | issue = 2| pages = 153–172 | doi = 10.2307/3641982 | jstor = 3641982 }}</ref>

During the 1904 [[gubernatorial]] race, the strongest candidate, [[Napoleon Bonaparte Broward]], a populist Democrat from Duval County, promoted draining the Everglades. He called the future of South Florida the "Empire of the Everglades". Soon after his successful election, he began work to "drain that abominable pestilence-ridden swamp",<ref>Carter, p.&nbsp;78.</ref> and pushed the Florida legislature to form a group of commissioners to oversee reclamation of flooded lands. In 1907 they established the Everglades Drainage District and began to study how to build the most effective canals, and how to fund them.<ref name="dovell"/> Governor Broward ran for the [[U.S. Senate]] in 1908 but lost. Broward was paid by land developer [[Richard "Dicky" J. Bolles|Richard J. Bolles]] to tour the state to promote drainage. Elected to the Senate in 1910, Broward died before he could take office. Land in the Everglades was being sold for $15 an acre a month after Broward died.<ref>Grunwald, pp.&nbsp;148–149.</ref> Meanwhile, Henry Flagler continued to build railway stations at towns as soon as the populations warranted them.<ref name="bramson"/>

===Growth of urban areas===
[[File:Canal in the Everglades Drainage District 1915.jpg|thumb|A canal lock in the Everglades Drainage District around 1915]]

With the construction of canals, newly reclaimed Everglades land was promoted throughout the United States. Land developers sold 20,000&nbsp;lots in a few months in 1912. Advertisements promised within eight weeks of arrival, a farmer could be making a living, although for many it took at least two months to clear the land. Some tried burning off the sawgrass or other vegetation, only to learn that the peat continued to burn. Animals and tractors used for plowing got mired in the muck and were useless. When the muck dried, it turned to a fine black powder and created dust storms.<ref>McCally, pp.&nbsp;124–126.</ref> Although initially crops sprouted quickly and lushly, they just as quickly wilted and died, seemingly without reason.<ref>Douglas, p.&nbsp;318.</ref>

The increasing population in towns near the Everglades hunted in the area. Raccoons and otters were the most widely hunted for their skins. Hunting often went unchecked; in one trip, a Lake Okeechobee hunter killed 250&nbsp;alligators and 172&nbsp;otters.<ref name="McCally117"/> [[Water bird]]s were a particular target of [[plume hunting]]. Bird feathers were used in women's hats in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

In 1886, 5&nbsp;million birds were estimated to be killed for their feathers.<ref>Grunwald, p.&nbsp;120.</ref> They were shot usually in the spring, when their feathers were colored for mating and nesting. The plumes, or [[aigrette]]s, as they were called in the [[Hatmaking|millinery]] business, sold for $32 an ounce in 1915—the price of gold.<ref name="McCally117">McCally, p.&nbsp;117.</ref> Millinery was a $17&nbsp;million a year industry<ref>Douglas, p.&nbsp;310.</ref> that motivated plume harvesters to lay in watch of nests of [[egret]]s and many colored birds during the nesting season, shoot the parents with small-bore rifles, and leave the chicks to starve.<ref name="McCally117"/> Plumes from Everglades wading birds could be found in Havana, New York City, London, and Paris. Hunters could collect plumes from a hundred birds on a good day.<ref>McCally, pp. 117–118.</ref>

[[Rum-runner]]s used the Everglades as a hiding spot during [[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]]; it was so vast there were never enough law enforcement officers to patrol it.<ref>Douglas, p.&nbsp;330.</ref> The arrival of the railroad, and the discovery that adding trace elements like [[copper]] was the remedy for crops sprouting and dying quickly, soon created a population boom. New towns such as [[Moore Haven, Florida|Moore Haven]], [[Clewiston, Florida|Clewiston]], and [[Belle Glade, Florida|Belle Glade]] sprouted like the crops.<ref name="dovell"/> [[Sugarcane]] became the primary crop grown in South Florida. Miami experienced a second real estate boom that earned a developer in Coral Gables $150&nbsp;million. Undeveloped land north of Miami sold for $30,600 an acre.<ref>Douglas, p.&nbsp;334.</ref> In 1925, Miami newspapers published editions weighing over {{convert|7|lb|kg}}, most of it in real estate advertising.<ref>Grunwald, p.&nbsp;179.</ref> Waterfront property was the most highly valued. Mangrove trees were cut down and replaced with palm trees to improve the view. Acres of South Florida [[slash pine]] were cleared. Some of the pine was for lumber, but most of the pine forests in Dade County were cleared for development.<ref name="fwspine"/>

===Flood control===
[[File:Army CoE sign Hoover Dike.jpg|thumb|A sign advertising the completion of the Herbert Hoover Dike]]
Two catastrophic hurricanes in [[1926 Miami Hurricane|1926]] and [[1928 Okeechobee Hurricane|1928]] caused Lake Okeechobee to breach its levees, killing thousands of people. The government began to focus on the control of floods rather than drainage. The Okeechobee Flood Control District was created in 1929, financed by both state and federal funds. President [[Herbert Hoover]] toured the towns affected by the 1928 Okeechobee Hurricane and ordered the [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|Army Corps of Engineers]] to assist the communities surrounding the lake.<ref>Grunwald, pp.&nbsp;198–199.</ref> Between 1930 and 1937 a dike {{convert|66|mi|km}} long was built around the southern edge of the lake. Control of the [[Hoover Dike]] and the waters of [[Lake Okeechobee]] was delegated to federal powers: the United States declared legal limits of the lake to between {{convert|14|and|17|ft|m}}.<ref name="stephan"/> A massive canal was also constructed {{convert|80|ft|m}} wide and {{convert|6|ft|m}} deep through the [[Caloosahatchee River]]; whenever the lake rose too high, the excess water left through the canal.<ref name="stephan"/> More than $20&nbsp;million was spent on the entire project. Sugarcane production soared after the dike and canal were built. The populations of the small towns surrounding the lake jumped from 3,000 to 9,000 after [[World War II]].<ref>Grunwald, pp.&nbsp;199–200.</ref>

Immediately, the effects of the Hoover Dike were seen. An extended drought occurred in the 1930s; with the wall preventing water from leaving Lake Okeechobee and canals and ditches removing other water, the Everglades became parched. Peat turned to dust. Salt ocean water intruded into Miami's wells; when the city brought in an expert to explain why, he discovered that the water in the Everglades was the area's [[groundwater]]—here, it appeared on the surface.<ref>McCally, p.&nbsp;9.</ref> In 1939, a million acres (4,000&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of Everglades burned, and the black clouds of peat and sawgrass fires hung over Miami.<ref>McCally, p.&nbsp;142.</ref> Scientists who took soil samples before draining did not take into account that the organic composition of peat and muck in the Everglades make it prone to soil [[subsidence]] when it becomes dry. Naturally occurring bacteria in Everglades peat and muck assist with the process of decomposition under water, which is generally very slow, partially due to the low levels of [[dissolved oxygen]]. When water levels became so low that peat and muck were at the surface, the bacteria interacted with much higher levels of oxygen in the air, rapidly breaking down the soil. In some places, homes had to be moved to stilts and {{convert|8|ft|m}} of soil was lost.<ref name="Lodge, p. 38"/>

====Everglades National Park====
[[File:Harry Truman at Everglades National Park.jpg|thumb|President [[Harry Truman]] dedicating [[Everglades National Park]] on December 6, 1947]]
{{Main|Everglades National Park}}

The idea of a national park for the Everglades was pitched in 1928, when a Miami land developer named [[Ernest F. Coe]] established the Everglades Tropical National Park Association. It had enough support to be declared a national park by Congress in 1934. It took another 13&nbsp;years to be dedicated on December 6, 1947.<ref name="enpsite">{{cite web| title = Conservation efforts| publisher = National Park Service| work = Everglades National Park| date = September 17, 2007| url = http://www.nps.gov/ever/historyculture/consefforts.htm| access-date = 2008-05-10}}</ref> One month before the dedication of the park, a former editor from ''[[The Miami Herald]]'' and freelance writer named [[Marjory Stoneman Douglas]] released her first book titled ''[[The Everglades: River of Grass]]''. After researching the region for five years, she described the history and ecology of South Florida in great detail. She characterized the Everglades as a river instead of a stagnant swamp.<ref name="davis">{{cite journal | last1 = Davis | first1 = Jack | year = 2001 | title = Green Awakening: Social activism and the evolution of Marjory Stoneman Douglas's Environmental Consciousness | journal = The Florida Historical Quarterly | volume = 80 | issue = 1| pages = 43–77 }}</ref> The last chapter was titled "The Eleventh Hour" and warned that the Everglades were dying, although it could be reversed.<ref>Douglas, p.&nbsp;349.</ref>

====Central and Southern Florida Flood Control Project====

The same year the park was dedicated, two hurricanes and the wet season caused {{convert|100|in|cm}} to fall on South Florida. Although there were no human casualties, agricultural interests lost approximately $59&nbsp;million (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|59|1949|r=0}}&nbsp;million in {{Inflation/year|US}}).<ref>Grunwald, p.&nbsp;219.</ref> In 1948, Congress approved the Central and Southern Florida Project for Flood Control and Other Purposes (C&SF), which divided the Everglades into basins. In the northern Everglades were Water Conservation Areas (WCAs), and the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) bordering to the south of Lake Okeechobee. In the southern Everglades was Everglades National Park. Levees and pumping stations bordered each WCA, and released water in dryer times or removed it and pumped it to the ocean in times of flood. The WCAs took up approximately 37&nbsp;percent of the original Everglades.<ref>Lodge, p.&nbsp;224.</ref> The C&SF constructed over {{convert|1000|mi|km}} of canals, and hundreds of pumping stations and levees within three decades. During the 1950s and 1960s the Miami metropolitan area grew four times as fast as the rest of the nation. Between 1940 and 1965, 6&nbsp;million people moved to South Florida: 1,000&nbsp;people moved to Miami every week.<ref>Grunwald, p.&nbsp;229.</ref> Developed areas between the mid-1950s and the late 1960s quadrupled. Much of the water reclaimed from the Everglades was sent to newly developed areas.<ref>Caulfield, p.&nbsp;55.</ref>

====Everglades Agricultural Area====
{{See also|Draining and development of the Everglades#Everglades Agricultural Area}}
[[File:Everglades canal.jpg|thumb|A 2003 U.S. Geological Survey photo showing the border between Water Conservation Area 3 (bottom) with water, and [[Everglades National Park]], dry (top)]]

The C&SF established {{convert|470000|acre|km2}} for the Everglades Agricultural Area—27&nbsp;percent of the Everglades prior to development.<ref>Lodge, p.&nbsp;223.</ref> In the late 1920s, agricultural experiments indicated that adding large amounts of [[manganese sulfate]] to Everglades muck produced a profitable harvest for vegetables.<ref>McCally, pp.&nbsp;159–160.</ref> The primary cash crop in the EAA is sugarcane, though [[sod]], beans, lettuce, celery, and rice are also grown. Fields in the EAA are typically {{convert|40|acre|m2}}, bordered by canals on two sides, that are connected to larger canals where water is pumped in or out depending on the needs of the crops.<ref>Lodge, pp.&nbsp;225–226.</ref> The fertilizers used on vegetables, along with high concentrations of [[nitrogen]] and [[phosphorus]] that are the byproduct of decayed soil necessary for sugarcane production, were pumped into WCAs south of the EAA. The introduction of large amounts of these chemicals provided opportunities for exotic plants to take hold in the Everglades.<ref>McCally, pp.&nbsp;172–173.</ref> One of the defining characteristics of natural Everglades ecology is its ability to support itself in a nutrient-poor environment, and the introduction of fertilizers began to alter the plant life in the region.<ref>Grunwald, pp.&nbsp;283–284.</ref>

====Jetport proposition====
A turning point came for development in the Everglades at the proposal in the late 1960s for an expanded airport, after [[Miami International Airport]] outgrew its capacities. The new jetport was planned to be larger than [[O'Hare International Airport|O'Hare]], [[Dulles International Airport|Dulles]], [[John F. Kennedy International Airport|JFK]], and [[Los Angeles International Airport|LAX]] airports combined,{{citation needed|date=February 2018}} and the chosen location was {{convert|6|mi|km}} north of Everglades National Park. The first sentence of the [[U.S. Department of Interior]] study of the [[Environmental Impact of the Big Cypress Swamp Jetport|environmental impact of the jetport]] read, "Development of the proposed jetport and its attendant facilities&nbsp;... will inexorably destroy the south Florida ecosystem and thus the Everglades National Park".<ref>Grunwald,&nbsp;p. 257.</ref> When studies indicated the proposed jetport would create {{convert|4000000|USgal|L}} of raw sewage a day and {{convert|10000|ST|MT}} of jet engine pollutants a year, the project met staunch opposition. ''[[The New York Times]]'' called it a "blueprint for disaster",<ref>{{cite news| last = Brooks| first = Paul| title = Topics: Everglades Jetport — A Blueprint for Disaster| newspaper = The New York Times| date = July 12, 1969| page = 26}}</ref> and [[Wisconsin]] senator [[Gaylord Nelson]] wrote to President [[Richard Nixon]] voicing his opposition: "It is a test of whether or not we are really committed in this country to protecting our environment."<ref name="timejets">{{cite magazine| title = Jets v. Everglades| magazine = [[Time (magazine)|Time]] | date = August 22, 1969| url = http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,898538-2,00.html| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080925141017/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,898538-2,00.html| url-status = dead| archive-date = September 25, 2008| access-date = 2008-05-10}}</ref> Governor [[Claude Kirk]] withdrew his support for the project, and [[Marjory Stoneman Douglas]] was persuaded at 79&nbsp;years old to go on tour to give hundreds of speeches against it. Nixon instead proposed [[Big Cypress National Preserve]], announcing it in the Special Message to the Congress Outlining the 1972 Environmental Program.<ref>{{cite web| last = Nixon| first = Richard| title = 51 – Special Message to the Congress Outlining the 1972 Environmental Program| work = The American Presidency Project| date = February 8, 1972| url = http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=3731| access-date = 2008-05-10}}</ref> Although construction of only one runway was completed, the remains of the Everglades Jetport was later opened as the [[Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport]] and is sometimes used as an aviation training facility.