Scientists are still baffled by the rumors of a hidden volcano in the deep swamps and wetlands of Florida. Since the 1800s there have been reports of smoke pillars rising from the impenetrable forest of Wakulla, located in the northwest part of the state. Even witnesses from Tallahassee reported seeing columns of steam and a red glow at night.
State records show that the phenomenon came to dramatic halt in 1886 – the same year as the infamous Charleston earthquake that left 60 people dead, millions of dollars of damages and was powerful enough to spawn a tsunami.
A 1974 article from the Tallahassee Democrat reported how only a handful of people had ventured out to the area since the earthquake, due to its hard-to-reach nature. No doubt, many explorers were also put off by the tragic end to an 1870s expedition that was launched to uncover a mystery. The expedition was abandoned after three days of fighting through alligator infested terrain that had not been mapped.
Carlson described one of the guides falling from a tree as he tried to scope out the area. The reporter, however, died from malaria or swamp fever. Meanwhile, speculation around the unexplained smoke continued to swirl – with theories ranging from secret pirate settlements to moonshine distilleries.
Author Maurice Thompson wrote of the legend in his 1881 tome ‘A Tallahassee Girl’: ‘About twenty eight miles from this city [Tallahassee]Since more than forty-years, a dense, almost constant column of smoke has been rising in a densely forested marsh. It has defied the curiosity of curious people. ‘It is known as Wakulla Volcano in the locality because it is not far from the famous Wakulla Spring.
“Only yesterday I stood on a hill south of the City and watched the smoke rise and drift away from the mysterious spot where as yet no foot has walked.”
The article continues to describe an adventure by P. Woodson White who, like his predecessors, failed to penetrate this insect-ridden swamp. Years later White would write about his journey: “Some years ago, I decided to visit that spot and solve this mystery of the smoke.
I was optimistic about my chances of success. I believed, as I do today, that I could easily find something in the form of a very small volcano. The respected jurist went on to say, “I organized a group of active young men and, armed with a surveyor’s transit, I set out for the scene.”
“From a high point on land, I trained my instrument onto the smoke column and after securing the line, ordered my men to start cutting into the swamp.”
The lawyer described a hot, dense terrain that made the journey impossible.
He said: “Cypresses, ash trees, oaks, elders vines air-plants briars long moss and every other tiling ever found in swamps were all there in a tangle of luxuriance.” ‘The weather had been terribly hot. We chose midsummer because it was the best time to travel through the wettest areas. After two days of sweltering in the midst of moccasins and alligators, my men abandoned the enterprise, leaving only me and a plucky colored boy to continue alone,” he continued.
Progress was painfully slow. Every foot of the path had to be cut out while we stood under water up to three feet deep and endured the attacks of millions of ravenous bugs. On the third day of the excursion, he climbed a tall pine tree that overlooked the swamp, where he ‘viewed the smoke column rising from the midmost tangle of the swamp, not more than five miles distant’.
He wrote: “The immediate point where smoke was emitted seemed to be the apex a flat mound about a mile wide, covered with a swamp growth that was absolutely impenetrable. ‘My resolve forsook, and almost dead from exposure and exhaustion, I made it back to the track which I had cleared.
Several other newspapers reported reports of Gulf fisherman describing how smoke – at times appearing white – “sometimes disappears entirely for an hour, then suddenly leaps up like the gas and smoke from a great explosion but without any sound.”
A report from that time said: ‘At times, the smoke rolls into a thick, black fleece, like the one from a large tar-kiln. Then it becomes a thin white vapor, which hovers over the mysterious spot.’
A dull, flickering, dim light will accompany the smoke column at night to indicate that there is fire. The report added that “occasionally” this light was increased to a great power, causing a strong reflection on the sky and clouds.
Fisherman added that waterfowl avoid passing over the spot when the column of smoke appears to be coming from, even if it is not visible.
Tom Sorrells, News 6 Chief Weather Meteorologist, said: ‘Amongst the various theories surrounding this enigmatic smoke I am inclined to favor fire as the most likely explanation’. More modern theories suggest that a peatfire is the source.
‘Unlike regions experiencing the characteristic “Ring of Fire” geological activity, Florida lacks such occurrences,’ Sorrells said when explaining why he did not believe the smoke had a volcanic origin. The tectonic plates responsible for the volcanic phenomena in Eastern Caribbean are located far south of Cuba and extend west to include Costa Rica.
He continued, ‘Given that there is no bubbling volcanic activity in Florida it is difficult to accept recent volcanic events. Florida is a state where fires are frequent. It is not unusual for fires to be repeatedly ignited by thunderstorms. The presence of a fire that has burned, smoldered or been nearly extinguished over time, or several fires in the past, seems to be the more reasonable explanation.
Some people who ventured into the swamp claimed that they saw a crater in which a fiery blast could have occurred – possibly a remnant of the steam source put out by the earthquake back in 1886.
A peat fire that lasted as long as there were sightings could be considered unusual. The cause is still unknown. The sheer volume of smoke makes it impossible to be a campfire.
It likely stemmed from a site located just south of Tallahassee between Sumatra and Carrabelle that is known as Tate’s Hell – a 200-square-mile strip of wilderness that remains partially unmapped to this day.
The forest located on what is often referred to as Florida’s ‘forgotten coast’ got its unusual name when a local homesteader by the name of Cebe Tate got lost in its 200,000 acres in 1870s after pursing a panther that had been hunting its livestock.
Local legend states that when the 45 year old emerged from an opening near Carrabelle, he murmured: “My name’s Cebe Tate and just came from Hell!” before collapsing, dead.
The forest is still haunted by rumors. Most people today believe that the smoke is the result of long-burning fires. An 1880 article from the Tallahassee Patriot casts some doubt, stating that the black smoke was seen by the oldest residents of the city for more than half a century. It is likely that it originated from a site just south of Tallahassee, between Sumatra & Carrabelle. This 200-square mile strip of wilderness remains unmapped today.
A 1974 Tallahassee Democrat article reports that only a few people ventured to the area following a devastating quake towards the end 19th Century. It also stated that a loud, rumbling noise is heard often in Wakulla County. This sound was so intense that it caused Frank Dingle’s family to ‘get out of bed and run outside’ after falling asleep.
Citizens described the discharge as a large fire shooting a flaming tongue into the upper realms and reflecting back from passing clouds. Some claim that the ‘volcanic activity’ did not cease because of the earthquake in 1886, but simply went dormant. Sightings were reported as early as four years after the earthquake.
In 1890, author JC Powell wrote how a ‘strange vivid illumination’ lit up the sky to the southwest of his convict work camp in Jefferson County, in his famed book The American Siberia; or, Fourteen years’ experience in a southern convict camp.
This may be true, as state records indicate that the so-called Wakulla Volcano most likely originated in southern Jefferson County, just to the north of Tate’s Hell. This would put the source near the ‘Gum Swamp’ section of the St. Marks Wildlife Refuge, which was also notoriously hard to reach.
In 1891, the Leon County Courthouse was the site of the last documented sighting. In 1894, a second expedition funded by the Florida Times-Union at Jacksonville failed to locate the supposed crater. They also did not see any smoke. As the 20th century dawned the ‘volcano” slipped into the shadows – and today the legend is as obscure as the site itself. It is possible that the mystery of Wakulla Swamp will never be solved.
