Water Oak Plantation

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Location of Wateroak Plantation and Walnut Hill Plantation.

Water Oak Plantation was a was a small cotton plantation of 1840 acres (7½ km²) located in northern Leon County, Florida, USA owned by Richard Bradford.

1 Location
2 Plantation specifics
3 The owner
4 References

[edit] Location

Water Oak Plantation was located in the general area of Bradfordville near Thomas Anderson Bradford's Walnut Hill Plantation, and Edward Bradford's Pine Hill Plantation.

Wrought iron hook unearthed at Water Oak

[edit] Plantation specifics

The Leon County Florida 1860 Agricultural Census shows that Water Oak Plantation had the following:

Improved Land: 900 acres (3½ km²)
Unimproved Land: 940 acres (4 km²)
Cash value of plantation: $18,400
Cash value of farm implements/machinery: $1500
Cash value of farm animals: $3,500
Number of slaves: 65
Bushels of corn: 2500
Bales of cotton: 130

[edit] The owner

Richard Henry Bradford born November 15, 1800 in Enfield, North Carolina.

The Bradford brothers took turns hosting July 4th celebrations with massive barbeques for their slaves. When it was Richard's turn to host the celebration he included fishing parties on Lake Iamonia. No whites were allowed to attend these events.

During the Civil War, Richard was Captain of a company of the 1st Florida Regiment. He left with his regiment for Pensacola, Florida in the fall of 1861. On the night of October 9, 1861, while leading an attack column in the assault on Federal positions during the Battle of Santa Rosa Island, on Santa Rosa Island, Florida, he was shot and killed by a sentinel of the 6th New York Volunteer Infantry. His body was returned for a hero’s funeral, and was buried in the cemetery at Pine Hill Plantation. He could well have been the first Floridian killed in Confederate action.