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| Pelican Island (Govt. photo - George Gentry Wikipedia, Public Domain (see below) |
By Jane Feehan
Pelican Island sits in the Indian River at Sebastian on Florida’s east coast. It’s a small piece of property with national significance. Few Floridians, even some who live near it, are unaware of Pelican Island’s place in the conservation movement—and in U.S. history.
The story starts with Friedrich Paul Kroegel, a native of Germany, who came to Sebastian (known then as New Haven) in 1881 with his father.
The late 1800s and early 1900s were tough times for Florida’s birds. Ladies’ plumed hats, a coveted fashion accessory at the time, were adorned with feathers plucked from thousands (some say millions) of slaughtered egrets, pelicans and other birds nesting in the Everglades and nearby habitats. Kroegel sought to protect them, often sailing to rookeries on the small island to discourage bird hunters.
The Kroegel house, atop an Indian shell mound, provided a unique vantage point from which to observe birds on the island. Artists, ornithologists and writers were among its visitors. In 1898, Frank M. Chapman, curator of the American Museum of Natural History, came to Florida to continue his study of wildlife. He stayed with Paul Kroegel for a few days gathering facts for his book, Camps and Cruises of an Ornithologist.
The slaughter of birds shocked people across the nation and served as impetus for the founding of Audubon Society chapters. The Florida chapter was chartered in 1900 in Maitland. Chapman and William Dutcher of the American Ornithologists Union Committee and of the Florida Audubon Society, persuaded President Theodore Roosevelt to protect Florida birds.
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President Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), a key player in America’s nascent conservation movement, signed an executive order March 14, 1903, making this three-acre island the first designated wildlife refuge in the United States. The president also appointed the Audubon Society as operator of the island in cooperation with the Dept. of Agriculture. Paul Kroegel was tapped in the same order as warden of the refuge for a salary of $1 a month. He served in that role until 1926. The 1903 executive order led to the establishment in the U.S. of its national wildlife system. Since then:
1948 - Paul Kroegel died at 84.
1956 – Congress passed the Fish and Wildlife Act, creating policy to acquire and develop lands for national wildlife refuges.
1963 - Pelican Island was designated a National Historic Landmark because it was the first area set aside to protect wildlife.
1970 - Pelican Island became the smallest wilderness area (six acres) in the National Wilderness Preservation System under the 1964 Wilderness Act.
1993 – Pelican Island was recognized as a Wetland of International importance.
2002 – 250 acres were acquired to serve as a buffer against boaters near Pelican Island.
Present - Pelican Island administered as part of the Everglades NWR complex
1956 – Congress passed the Fish and Wildlife Act, creating policy to acquire and develop lands for national wildlife refuges.
1963 - Pelican Island was designated a National Historic Landmark because it was the first area set aside to protect wildlife.
1970 - Pelican Island became the smallest wilderness area (six acres) in the National Wilderness Preservation System under the 1964 Wilderness Act.
1993 – Pelican Island was recognized as a Wetland of International importance.
2002 – 250 acres were acquired to serve as a buffer against boaters near Pelican Island.
Present - Pelican Island administered as part of the Everglades NWR complex
A statue of Paul Kroegel sits in Sebastian’s Riverview Park across from Pelican Island. Its plaque reads “One person can make a difference.” Inspired by him, others will continue to protect Pelican Island. The refuge, now affected by increased boating activity and area development, will need people who also know they can make a difference.
Copyright 2019, All Rights Reserved. Jane Feehan
Copyright 2019, All Rights Reserved. Jane Feehan
Sources:
Tampa Tribune, May 17, 1903
Miami News, Jan. 12, 1909
Tampa Times, June 4, 1913
Palm Beach Post, Nov. 17, 1949
Tampa Tribune, Nov. 24, 1940
Miami News, June 27, 1946
Orlando Sentinel, Nov. 24, 1960
Wikipedia
Photo: Gentry, George - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, digital library
Tags: Paul Kroegel, Florida wildlife refuge, Florida birds, slaughter for plumes, Florida Audubon Society, Sebastian, Florida, Pelican Island, Jane Feehan, conservation