The 1894-1895 Freeze
The 1894-95 is often referred to as “The Big One” since it was the most severe freezes to hit the Florida Citrus Industry during the first three centuries of the crops existence in the state. This freeze was not predictable and permanently altering the locations in Florida growers deemed fit to grow citrus forever. According to Ziegler and Wolfe authors of Citrus Growing In Florida, the citrus industry was approximately 114,800 acres in 1890. Additionally, the year before “The Big One” the state of Florida produced 6,000,000 during the 1894-95 season. The commercial citrus industry had expanded across the state of Florida even north of Jacksonville.
The 1894-1895 growing season experienced two major freezes. The first freeze occurred in late December 1894 and the second one took place in early February 1895. The first freeze took place on December 29 and 30. Most citrus groves experienced defoliated trees, in which the leaves on the trees were prematurely killed. The trees were not severely damaged so the planter’s outlook remained positive for the season. This was highlighted by the fact that the following month, Florida experienced warm weather. John Attaway author of A History of Florida History Freezes indicated that there was an “abundant rainfall” which followed the December freeze. This miss leading weather would ultimately result in the deaths of thousands of acres of trees when the second freeze arrived in Florida. On February 8th and 9th of 1895, Florida was impacted by the second freezes. The warm weather prior to the February freezes made the crop especially susceptible to the cold. Attaway concludes that the “vulnerable orange and grapefruit trees” were killed “to the ground.” At the end of the 1894-1895 season, acreage was reduced down to 48,200 acres. In a matter of months, the citrus industry was cut in half.
“The Big One” resulted in massive damage to the citrus industry in Florida. As the result of damaged groves in the north, countless growers moved south to central Florida. Attaway mentions that the citrus growers perceived central Florida “to be immune to such destruction.” The first three centuries that the citrus crop was in Florida, this was the only freeze to force the citrus industry to give up on northern land and move their groves south. The industry took a major blow primary because there was no way to salvage the slight damage crops to turn them into concentrate. This would not be an option for citrus growers until after World War II. There also was no disaster loans or any government assistance programs around during this time. According to Attaway, to remedy this crisis Henry Flagler provided “free seeds to growers, plus tools, crates, and even personal loans” to aid with the replanting. Flagler aided in the revitalization of the citrus industry following the 1894-1895 citrus freezes.