St. Petersburg in the Civil War

Cypress Point Park and Confederate Salt Works- 5620 West Cypress Street

The missing marker from HMDB (link)

The reconstructed salt works display below used a 60 gallon cast iron kettle acquired from an antique dealer in Darien, Georgia. The low brick wall and circular plaza were constructed from old Tampa street bricks. It was built by Boy Scout Troup #45 as an Eagle Scout project, with the advice of Tampa Parks and Recreation Department personnel.

The missing marker describes an event for which there are conflicting stories. Local lore and the missing sign tell the story of Joseph Robles who was working overseeing the salt works at Frazier’s Beach that were owned by Captain James McKay. He saw a Union gunboat enter the bay and send out a landing party to raid and destroy the works. About a dozen Union troops landed on the beach. Robles hid in an abandoned steam boiler and when the sailors came ashore, jumped from the boiler and fired his double-barreled shotgun. Some of the Federals panicked and fled in their small boat leaving five of their comrades stranded. Robles took them prisoner back to Tampa with his empty shotgun.

The Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies tell a different story (Volume 17, pages 775-776). Acting Volunteer Lieutenant R.B. Smith of the USS Nita reported landing on November 11, 1864, a small shore party near the head of Old Tampa Bay and scouting inland. When they returned to shore five men were missing from the Hendrick Hudson which they presumed had deserted. On December 3, 1864, a much larger expedition was sent to the same area once again led by Acting Volunteer Lieutenant R.B. Smith. Detachments from the Nita, Stars and Stripes, Hendrick Hudson, and the tenders Ariel and Two Sisters destroyed seven large boilers with no casualties (Volume 17, page 780).

Captain James McKay’s grave- Oaklawn Cemetery, Tampa- 27.9543889, -82.4578056