“If you drive a few miles south of Perry, you might pass over woods that once echoed with the hiss of still fires and the hum of a once-booming industry.”
The Rise of Taylor County’s Turpentine Boom
In the early 20th century, Taylor County stood at the heart of a vital Southern industry: naval stores—namely, turpentine and rosin. From about 1905 to the early 1920s, Florida surpassed Georgia as the top producer in the nation, with Taylor County supplying a notable portion of that output.
Names like Aycock-Lindsey, Blue Creek Turpentine Co., H. J. Westberry, Perry Naval Stores, and Urban Potts Still are etched into the county’s past, each representing a camp or still that once dotted the pine-covered landscape. Locals recall, “Here’s where the 9-Mile Still was located; Potts’ Still was here; Huxford’s Still was on that road… Captain Brown operated along the beach road.”
During those years, these camps, or “company towns,” were more than production sites, they were entire ecosystems. Workers lived alongside coal-powered stills, commissaries, barrel-makers, cooks, and overseers. Nearly self-sufficient, they featured housing (canvas tents or prefabricated wood structures), company stores, even schools or small churches in larger camps.
Life in the Camps: Harsh, Remote, But Essential
Turpentine workers often African American men, and historically even leased convicts faced grueling conditions. They tapped pine resin using “cat-face” scars on trees, collected the flowing sap in clay or metal cups, and carried barrels back to the stills, where the resin was heated to extract turpentine and rosin.
Payment was typically in company scrip, redeemable only at camp stores, trapping workers in perpetual debt, a classic system of exploitative peonage. In many ways, these camps mirrored paternalistic company towns of other industries—but set deep in remote forests under Jim Crow-era inequality.
The Huxford Story: From Growth to Decline
One local figure stands out: J. O. Huxford, Sr. Beginning in 1929, he acquired land seven miles south of Perry on Beach Road, establishing a naval-stores business. By the early 1940s, his sons took over, navigating a shrinking market as synthetic alternatives emerged and trees weakened from over-tapping.
By the early 1950s, with production dwindling and pulpwood gaining market value, the family ceased turpentine operations altogether. The land was reorganized under Huxford Estate, Inc., focusing instead on timber and tree farming, clearing “cat-face” trees and planting new growth, shifting away from extraction toward sustainability.
Echoes in the Pines: What Remains Today
Today, the physical signs of those camps are faint, but the stories persist:
- Workers still talk of local still sites, Potts’, Huxford’s, Aycock-Lindsey, and others.
- Ruins across North Florida from Tiger Bay to Withlacoochee forests reveal artifacts like bricks, cisterns, metal cups, and the odd “herty cup,” reminders of the camps’ reach.
- The Taylor County Historical Society, seated in the old Bank of Perry building, preserves these stories even as it works to repair storm damage in recent years.
At sites like Hampton Springs, just four miles from Perry, ruins of historic landmarks, like the Hampton Springs Hotel—stand as touchpoints for deeper local memory, even if not directly connected to turpentine.
Turpentine’s Legacy: Beyond the Industry
The industry shaped more than county economics, it helped define racial and labor dynamics in the South. Turpentine camps became entrenched systems of inequality, reinforcing a cycle of limited freedoms for workers in remote areas, where oversight was minimal and alternatives scarce.
Today, acknowledging that history is essential. It’s not just about wood and resin, it’s about the lives tied to that labor, the transformation of forests, and the shifts from exploitation to regeneration.
Visualizing History: Infographic & Map Ideas
- Timeline Infographic: Trace Florida’s naval-stores rise from about 1905 to its decline by the 1950s.
- Camp Map: Plot known sites like Huxford’s, Aycock-Lindsey, Potts’, plus rail lines and roads that served them.
Perry’s forests may seem quiet now, but if you listen closely, walking along Beach Road or through pine shadows near Hampton Springs, you might feel the pulsing residue of an industry that once shaped the county’s economy and its people.
These camps remain invisible to many, yet their impact echoes in the land, in historical records, and in the memories preserved by local historians. Perry, after all, is built on more than just trees, it’s built on a story of hard work, hope, decline, and a resilient reinvention.
The Forgotten Turpentine Camps of Taylor County
Turpentine Industry Timeline in Florida
Year Event
Late 1800s Florida’s pine forests attract turpentine operators.
1905–1923 Florida surpasses Georgia as top U.S. producer of naval stores.
1920s Taylor County hosts multiple stills (Aycock-Lindsey, Potts, Huxford).
1929 J.O. Huxford establishes his still on Beach Road.
1940s Synthetic alternatives reduce demand; operations decline.
1950s Most camps close; Huxford family shifts to timber farming.
Major Turpentine Camps and Stills in Taylor County
- Aycock-Lindsey Still – one of the county’s largest operations.
- Blue Creek Turpentine Co. – active during Florida’s peak production.
- H. J. Westberry Still – locally known producer.
- Perry Naval Stores – operated near town.
- Urban Potts Still – remembered in oral histories.
- J.O. Huxford Still – opened in 1929 south of Perry on Beach Road.
Legacy of the Camps - Workers lived in self-contained company camps with stores and housing.
- Many were paid in company scrip, creating cycles of debt.
- African American labor and convict leasing played major roles.
- Artifacts like ‘herty cups’ and scarred pine trees remain in forests.
- By the 1950s, timber farming replaced turpentine as the economic driver
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