History of the Barley Barber Swamp

Naming of the swamp

The swamp is named for an early resident of the area, Barley Barber, who homesteaded here in the 1900s. Little is known about the man Barley Barber, except that he left the region around 1915 "after trouble with the law."

After Barley Barber left

Barley Barber's old house was then occupied by Dolph Fountain until his death in 1924 or 1925. Duke Tucker and his sister bought the Barber homestead, plus some adjacent 40-acre parcels, and ran some 1,000 head of cattle.

Game preserve and cattle ranch

Duke's sister leased the inaccessible swamp to the state as a game preserve for about 10 years. John Daughtry of Indiantown was the local game warden until the preserve status was dropped and the area was opened to hunting. In 1965, the Stuart brothers purchased the Barley Barber Swamp and the surrounding lands, using it as a cattle ranch.

Description of region

Dr. Jacob Molte, the military surgeon accompanying General Jessup's expedition in the 1830s, described the region in the following manner: "a poor country ... nearly all wet prairies and swamp; healthy in the winter but sickly in the summer ... it is in fact a most hideous place to live in."

Recreation of history

Much of this historical perspective was recreated by Tomey Clements and Rod Chandler, longtime residents of the area. According to Clements, the homesteaders "lived off the land," hunting deer, wild hogs, turkey, alligators, frogs, wood ducks, curlew (white ibis) and marsh hens. Clements recalls that "old man" Fountain killed a "catamount " (Florida panther) in the area.