LIVING HISTORY
Florida Cowman
Several miles past I-95 as you drive west on Orange
12
Avenue the landscape is mostly sky, and our inconstant
Florida skies are always so intriguing. But the
wide celestial vistas feel so much more luxurious
when dollops of hardwood hammock are added here and
there. As you feast your eyes upon those islands of oaks and
sabal palms ― or cypress trees in the wetlands ― you have to
wonder how anyone ever undervalued the natural beauty of
our state.
If you love hammocks, as well you should, you will love
the astonishing panorama of Adams Ranch in western St.
Lucie County. It feels like a never-ending gallery of Beanie
Backus paintings, which is to say that Adams Ranch looks
like every longtime Floridian’s dream. It has been aptly
dubbed “the ranch of 10,000 hammocks.”
The beauty of Adams Ranch is no accident. An artist of
sorts, who understands the ways of nature, has been at work
on the terrain for nearly seven decades. Since 1949, Alto Lee
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BY RICK CRARY
ROBERT ADAMS
Bud Adams made Adams Ranch world-famous when he developed a new breed of cattle he named Braford.