Guy Bradley
Encyclopedia
Guy Morrell Bradley was an American game warden
and deputy sheriff for Monroe County, Florida
. Born in Chicago
, Illinois
, he relocated to Florida with his family when he was young. As a boy, he often served as guide to visiting fishermen and plume
hunters, although he later denounced poaching after legislation was passed to protect the dwindling number of birds. In 1902, Bradley was hired by the American Ornithologists' Union
, at the request of the Florida Audubon Society, to become one of the country's first game wardens.
Tasked with protecting the area's wading birds from hunters, he patrolled the area stretching from Florida's west coast, through the Everglades
, to Key West
, single-handedly enforcing the ban on bird hunting. Bradley was shot and killed in the line of duty, after confronting a man and his two sons who were hunting egret
s in the Everglades. His much-publicized death at the age of 35 galvanized conservationist
s, and served as inspiration for future legislation to protect Florida's bird populations. Several national awards and places have been named in his honor.
, Illinois
, in 1870. His family had strong ties to the city; his father, Edwin Ruthven Bradley, was born there in 1840, and two members of the family held high positions in Chicago's law enforcement. Six years after Guy's birth, the family relocated to Florida. After making their home in smaller towns, the family eventually settled in Fort Lauderdale, where Edwin became keeper of the Fort Lauderdale House of Refuge
. Shortly after the death of Bradley's sister Flora from an unknown illness—which also affected Guy, leaving him ill for several years—the family moved to Lake Worth
. Edwin became a postman, earning an annual wage of six hundred dollars. He, with the help of his oldest son, later received national attention for being one of several barefoot mailmen
, who operated until a road was constructed in 1892.
The family then relocated to Miami, where Edwin served as superintendent
of the Dade County
school district. In 1885, fifteen-year-old Guy and his older brother Louis served as scouts for noted French plume hunter Jean Chevalier on his trip to the Everglades. Accompanied by their friend Charlie Pierce, the men set sail on Pierce's craft, the Bonton, ending their journey in Key West. At the time, plume feathers—selling for more than $20 an ounce ($ in 2011)—were reportedly more valuable than gold. On their expedition, which lasted several weeks, the young men and Chevalier's party killed 1,397 individual birds of thirty-six different species.
trade at a rate of five million a year; many species faced extinction as a result. In Florida, plume birds were first driven away from the most populated areas in the northern part of the state, and forced to nest further south. Rookeries
concentrated in and around the Everglades area, which had abundant food and seasonal dry periods, ideal for nesting birds. By the late 1880s, there were no longer any large numbers of plume birds within reach of Florida's most settled cities.
The most popular plumes came from various species of wading birds, known as "little snowies" for their snowy-white feathers; even more prized were the "nuptial plumes", grown during mating season and displayed by birds during courtship. Poachers often stole into the densely populated rookeries, where they would shoot and then pluck the roosting birds clean, leaving their carcasses to rot. Unprotected eggs became easy prey for predators, as were newly hatched birds, who also starved or died from exposure. One ex-poacher would later write of the practice, "The heads and necks of the young birds were hanging out of the nests by the hundreds. I am done with bird hunting forever!"
In the mid-1890s, Edwin became head of the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company
and then the Model Land Company, both of which sold land for the railroads. In 1900, after twenty years living in Lake Worth, the family moved to Flamingo
in Monroe County, near the Everglades. Edwin had heard that railroad tycoon Henry Flagler planned to build his railroad through the area, and that the then primitive city of Flamingo would flourish as a result; Flagler later changed his mind, deciding to build to Key West instead. Guy and his brother, who continued working as guides and hunters, each received a quarter of a mile of land on Florida Bay as part of their father's deal with the Model Land Company. While working variously as a postman, farmer and boatman during his 20s, Guy continued to augment his income with an occasional plume hunt. In 1899, he married the young widow Sophronia ("Fronie") Vickers Kirvin from Key West. Their first child, Morrell, was born a year later.
, a friend of the Bradley family and a founding vice president of the Florida Audubon Society, recommended Guy for the position. Seen as different from the other "wild" young men in Flamingo, Bradley was described as “pleasant, quiet… fair, with blue eyes, always whistling and a pretty good violinist… [a] social asset to the isolated, frontier community, clean-cut, reliable, courageous, energetic and conscientious”.
Bradley was at this time a reformed plume hunter, who had given up the profession after the passage of the Lacey Act of 1900. In a letter to William Dutcher, president of the Florida Audubon Society, Bradley wrote "I used to hunt plume birds, but since the game laws were passed, I have not killed a plume bird. For it is a cruel and hard calling not withstanding being unlawful. I make this statement upon honor." Soon after being accepted for the position, Bradley traveled to Key West to secure his appointment as both game warden and deputy sheriff, which gave him the authority to arrest those hunting illegally.
As one of the first game wardens, Bradley was responsible for reporting suspected poachers and the businesses with which they worked. He was paid a monthly stipend of $35 ($ in 2010) to single-handedly patrol the enormous area stretching from the Ten Thousand Islands on Florida's west coast, through the Everglades, to Key West
, which served as nesting areas for popular plume birds such as egrets, heron
s, spoonbill
s and ibis
. Bradley took his job seriously; he educated locals about the newly implemented laws which made plume hunting a punishable offense, spoke to hunters directly, and posted warning signs throughout his territory. He also set up a network of spies who watched for suspicious behavior, and employed his brother Louis and others close to him to work as assistant wardens during the height of the plume season.
created the first wildlife refuge in the United States, Pelican Island
. Its first warden, Paul Kroegel, joined forces with Bradley to enforce the illegality of bird-hunting in Florida. By 1904, the various Audubon organizations had 34 wardens employed in ten states. Conservationist publications were optimistic that Bradley and other wardens would be successful in their enforcement; in AOU's January 1904 issue of The Auk
, an editor wrote: "The natives are beginning to realize that the birds are to be protected and that the wardens are fearless men who are not to be trifled with. The Bradleys have the reputation of being the best rifle shots in that vicinity and they would not hesitate to shoot when necessary."
After accepting the position as game warden, however, Bradley became a vilified figure in southern Florida; working alone, with no reinforcements, he had been shot at more than once. In 1904, Bradley alerted visiting ornithologist and author Frank Chapman
that one of the more isolated rookeries, called Cuthbert, had been "shot out" despite previously having been found to be in good condition. He reportedly said, "You could've walked right around the Rookery on those bird's bodies—between four and five hundred of them."
Bradley took the slaughter to mean that he was being watched by local hunters, who only could have discovered the rookery by tracking his movements. Chapman later wrote, "Under his guardianship the 'white birds' had increased in numbers, which, with aigrettes selling at $32 an ounce, made the venture worth the risk (for there was a risk; as the man who attempted to 'shoot out' a rookery while Bradley was on guard would probably have lost his own 'plume'); the warden watched and in his absence his charges were slaughtered."
veteran Walter Smith had a reputation for being troublesome, and Bradley had previously had altercations with him. He had arrested Smith on one occasion and Smith's oldest son, Tom, twice for poaching. Smith threatened to retaliate against Bradley if he tried again, reportedly telling the warden, "You ever arrest one of my boys again, I'll kill you."
According to Walter Smith's account, Bradley encountered the three men as they were loading dead plume birds onto their boat. An argument ensued, and as the warden attempted to arrest one of the young men, Smith opened fire with his hunting rifle, fatally wounding Bradley. His body was found the next day by his brother's search party, after drifting 10 miles (16.1 km) from the scene of the crime. He had bled to death.
Bradley's death and Smith's acquittal made national headlines; detailed stories ran in the New York Times, the New York Herald
, the Philadelphia North American, and Forest and Stream
. The warden's wife and two young children were given a home in Key West, paid for by donations secured by the Florida Audubon Society. The Society, however, made no effort to replace Bradley, and his job as warden went unfilled. Bradley's obituary, written by William Dutcher and published in August 1905's edition of Bird Lore, characterized him as "fearless and brave." Dutcher eulogized Bradley by saying, "A faithful and devoted warden, who was a young and sturdy man, cut off in a moment, for what? That a few more plume birds might be secured to adorn heartless women's bonnets. Heretofore the price has been the life of the birds, now is added human blood. Every great movement must have its martyrs, and Guy M. Bradley is the first martyr in bird protection."
With no one to replace Bradley, lawlessness continued in the Everglades and rookeries were devastated for several more years. Frank Chapman remarked that "There is no community sufficiently law-abiding to leave a bank vault unmolested if it were left unprotected. We have given up. We can't protect it, and the rookery will have to go." In November 1908, game warden and deputy sheriff of DeSoto County
, Columbus G. McLeod, went missing near Charlotte Harbor
. A month later, his boat was found weighted down and sunk; inside, police found the warden's bloodstained hat, long gashes cut into the crown with what appeared to be an axe. It was suspected that he was killed by poachers. His body was never found and the perpetrators were not caught. Later that year, an employee of the South Carolina Audubon Society, Pressly Reeves, was shot and killed during an ambush by unknown assailants.
wrote after visiting a creek near Cape Sable
:
Bradley was buried on a shell ridge at Cape Sable, overlooking Florida Bay
. A nearby monument was erected by the Florida Audubon Society, reading: "Guy M. Bradley, 1870–1905, Faithful Unto Death, As Game Warden of Monroe County He Gave his Life for the Cause to Which He Was Pledged". The grave and monument, however, were later washed away in 1960's Hurricane Donna
. The original gravestone was recovered, and is now on display at the Flamingo Visitor Center. A nearby plaque was also dedicated to Bradley's memory, and reads: "Audubon warden was shot and killed off this shore by outlaw feather hunters, July 8, 1905. His martyrdom created nationwide indignation, strengthened bird protection laws and helped bring Everglades National Park
into being."
The story of Bradley's defense of the Everglades' birds, and the manner of his death, has been depicted in both literature and film. Author Marjory Stoneman Douglas
, who would later become famous for publicizing the need for conserving and restoring the Everglades, based the hero of her 1930 short story "Plumes" on Bradley. The 1958 film Wind Across the Everglades
, starring Christopher Plummer
and Burl Ives
, was loosely based upon Bradley's life and death.
In 1988, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
established the Guy Bradley Award, which recognizes achievements in wildlife law enforcement annually. Another honor, the Guy Bradley Lifetime Conservation Award, was established in 1997 by the Audubon Society Everglades Ecosystem Restoration Campaign to those who promote conservation and offer workable conservation solutions. A trail in the Everglades, leading from the Flamingo Visitor Center to the Flamingo Campground, also was named in Bradley's honor.
Game warden
A game warden is an employee who has the role of protecting wildlife. Game wardens may also be referred to as conservation officers or wildlife officers...
and deputy sheriff for Monroe County, Florida
Monroe County, Florida
Monroe County is a county located in the state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 79,589. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county was 74,737....
. Born in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, he relocated to Florida with his family when he was young. As a boy, he often served as guide to visiting fishermen and plume
Feather
Feathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds and some non-avian theropod dinosaurs. They are considered the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates, and indeed a premier example of a complex evolutionary novelty. They...
hunters, although he later denounced poaching after legislation was passed to protect the dwindling number of birds. In 1902, Bradley was hired by the American Ornithologists' Union
American Ornithologists' Union
The American Ornithologists' Union is an ornithological organization in the USA. Unlike the National Audubon Society, its members are primarily professional ornithologists rather than amateur birders...
, at the request of the Florida Audubon Society, to become one of the country's first game wardens.
Tasked with protecting the area's wading birds from hunters, he patrolled the area stretching from Florida's west coast, through the Everglades
Everglades
The Everglades are subtropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large watershed. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissimmee River, which discharges into the vast but shallow Lake Okeechobee...
, to Key West
Key West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. Key West is home to the southernmost point in the Continental United States; the island is about from Cuba....
, single-handedly enforcing the ban on bird hunting. Bradley was shot and killed in the line of duty, after confronting a man and his two sons who were hunting egret
Egret
An egret is any of several herons, most of which are white or buff, and several of which develop fine plumes during the breeding season. Many egrets are members of the genera Egretta or Ardea which contain other species named as herons rather than egrets...
s in the Everglades. His much-publicized death at the age of 35 galvanized conservationist
Conservationist
Conservationists are proponents or advocates of conservation. They advocate for the protection of all the species in an ecosystem with a strong focus on the natural environment...
s, and served as inspiration for future legislation to protect Florida's bird populations. Several national awards and places have been named in his honor.
Early life
Guy Bradley was born in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, in 1870. His family had strong ties to the city; his father, Edwin Ruthven Bradley, was born there in 1840, and two members of the family held high positions in Chicago's law enforcement. Six years after Guy's birth, the family relocated to Florida. After making their home in smaller towns, the family eventually settled in Fort Lauderdale, where Edwin became keeper of the Fort Lauderdale House of Refuge
Houses of Refuge in Florida
The Houses of Refuge in Florida were a series of stations operated by the United States Life-Saving Service along the coast of Florida to rescue and shelter ship-wrecked sailors. Five houses were constructed on the east coast in 1876, with five more added in 1885...
. Shortly after the death of Bradley's sister Flora from an unknown illness—which also affected Guy, leaving him ill for several years—the family moved to Lake Worth
Lake Worth, Florida
Lake Worth is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, which takes its name from the body of water along its eastern border, originally called "Lake Worth", and now generally known as the Lake Worth Lagoon. The lake itself was named for General William J. Worth, who led U.S. forces during the last...
. Edwin became a postman, earning an annual wage of six hundred dollars. He, with the help of his oldest son, later received national attention for being one of several barefoot mailmen
Barefoot mailman
The term barefoot mailman refers to the carriers on the first U.S. Mail route between Palm Beach , and the settlements around the body of water known as Lake Worth on the north, and Miami, Cocoanut Grove, and Lemon City to the south...
, who operated until a road was constructed in 1892.
The family then relocated to Miami, where Edwin served as superintendent
Superintendent (education)
In education in the United States, a superintendent is an individual who has executive oversight and administration rights, usually within an educational entity or organization....
of the Dade County
Miami-Dade County, Florida
Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the state of Florida. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 2,496,435, making it the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States...
school district. In 1885, fifteen-year-old Guy and his older brother Louis served as scouts for noted French plume hunter Jean Chevalier on his trip to the Everglades. Accompanied by their friend Charlie Pierce, the men set sail on Pierce's craft, the Bonton, ending their journey in Key West. At the time, plume feathers—selling for more than $20 an ounce ($ in 2011)—were reportedly more valuable than gold. On their expedition, which lasted several weeks, the young men and Chevalier's party killed 1,397 individual birds of thirty-six different species.
Hunt for plumes
At the turn of the 20th century, vast numbers of birds were being killed in order to provide feathers to decorate women's hats. The fashion craze, which began in the 1870s, became so prominent that by 1886 birds were being killed for the millineryHat
A hat is a head covering. It can be worn for protection against the elements, for ceremonial or religious reasons, for safety, or as a fashion accessory. In the past, hats were an indicator of social status...
trade at a rate of five million a year; many species faced extinction as a result. In Florida, plume birds were first driven away from the most populated areas in the northern part of the state, and forced to nest further south. Rookeries
Rookery
A rookery is a colony of breeding animals, generally birds. A rook is a Northern European and Central Asian member of the crow family, which nest in prominent colonies at the tops of trees. The term is applied to the nesting place of birds, such as crows and rooks, the source of the term...
concentrated in and around the Everglades area, which had abundant food and seasonal dry periods, ideal for nesting birds. By the late 1880s, there were no longer any large numbers of plume birds within reach of Florida's most settled cities.
The most popular plumes came from various species of wading birds, known as "little snowies" for their snowy-white feathers; even more prized were the "nuptial plumes", grown during mating season and displayed by birds during courtship. Poachers often stole into the densely populated rookeries, where they would shoot and then pluck the roosting birds clean, leaving their carcasses to rot. Unprotected eggs became easy prey for predators, as were newly hatched birds, who also starved or died from exposure. One ex-poacher would later write of the practice, "The heads and necks of the young birds were hanging out of the nests by the hundreds. I am done with bird hunting forever!"
In the mid-1890s, Edwin became head of the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company
Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company
The Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company was chartered in 1881 to construct a series of canals connecting existing lakes and rivers between St. Augustine and Lake Worth, Florida...
and then the Model Land Company, both of which sold land for the railroads. In 1900, after twenty years living in Lake Worth, the family moved to Flamingo
Flamingo, Florida
Flamingo is an unincorporated community and ghost town in Monroe County, Florida, United States. It began as a small coastal settlement on the eastern end of Cape Sable on the southern tip of the Florida peninsula, facing Florida Bay...
in Monroe County, near the Everglades. Edwin had heard that railroad tycoon Henry Flagler planned to build his railroad through the area, and that the then primitive city of Flamingo would flourish as a result; Flagler later changed his mind, deciding to build to Key West instead. Guy and his brother, who continued working as guides and hunters, each received a quarter of a mile of land on Florida Bay as part of their father's deal with the Model Land Company. While working variously as a postman, farmer and boatman during his 20s, Guy continued to augment his income with an occasional plume hunt. In 1899, he married the young widow Sophronia ("Fronie") Vickers Kirvin from Key West. Their first child, Morrell, was born a year later.
Game warden
When the Florida legislature passed the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) model law to outlaw the killing of plume birds, this created a need for qualified and competent wardens to enforce it. Kirk MunroeKirk Munroe
Kirk Munroe was an American writer and conservationist.-Biography:Born Charles Kirk Munroe in a log cab near Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, Munroe was the son of Charles and Susan Munroe. His youth was spent on the frontier, after which his family moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts where he...
, a friend of the Bradley family and a founding vice president of the Florida Audubon Society, recommended Guy for the position. Seen as different from the other "wild" young men in Flamingo, Bradley was described as “pleasant, quiet… fair, with blue eyes, always whistling and a pretty good violinist… [a] social asset to the isolated, frontier community, clean-cut, reliable, courageous, energetic and conscientious”.
Bradley was at this time a reformed plume hunter, who had given up the profession after the passage of the Lacey Act of 1900. In a letter to William Dutcher, president of the Florida Audubon Society, Bradley wrote "I used to hunt plume birds, but since the game laws were passed, I have not killed a plume bird. For it is a cruel and hard calling not withstanding being unlawful. I make this statement upon honor." Soon after being accepted for the position, Bradley traveled to Key West to secure his appointment as both game warden and deputy sheriff, which gave him the authority to arrest those hunting illegally.
As one of the first game wardens, Bradley was responsible for reporting suspected poachers and the businesses with which they worked. He was paid a monthly stipend of $35 ($ in 2010) to single-handedly patrol the enormous area stretching from the Ten Thousand Islands on Florida's west coast, through the Everglades, to Key West
Key West
Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida on the North American continent at the southernmost tip of the Florida Keys. Key West is home to the southernmost point in the Continental United States; the island is about from Cuba....
, which served as nesting areas for popular plume birds such as egrets, heron
Heron
The herons are long-legged freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae. There are 64 recognised species in this family. Some are called "egrets" or "bitterns" instead of "heron"....
s, spoonbill
Spoonbill
Spoonbills are a group of large, long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, which also includes the Ibises.All have large, flat, spatulate bills and feed by wading through shallow water, sweeping the partly opened bill from side to side...
s and ibis
Ibis
The ibises are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae....
. Bradley took his job seriously; he educated locals about the newly implemented laws which made plume hunting a punishable offense, spoke to hunters directly, and posted warning signs throughout his territory. He also set up a network of spies who watched for suspicious behavior, and employed his brother Louis and others close to him to work as assistant wardens during the height of the plume season.
Difficulties
In 1903, President Theodore RooseveltTheodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
created the first wildlife refuge in the United States, Pelican Island
Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge
Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge is a United States National Wildlife Refuge located just off the western coast of Orchid Island in the Indian River Lagoon east of Sebastian, Florida. The refuge consists of a island that includes an additional of surrounding water and is located off the...
. Its first warden, Paul Kroegel, joined forces with Bradley to enforce the illegality of bird-hunting in Florida. By 1904, the various Audubon organizations had 34 wardens employed in ten states. Conservationist publications were optimistic that Bradley and other wardens would be successful in their enforcement; in AOU's January 1904 issue of The Auk
The Auk
The Auk is a quarterly journal and the official publication of the American Ornithologists' Union, having been continuously published by that body since 1884. The journal contains articles relating scientific studies of the anatomy, behavior, and distribution of birds. The journal is named for the...
, an editor wrote: "The natives are beginning to realize that the birds are to be protected and that the wardens are fearless men who are not to be trifled with. The Bradleys have the reputation of being the best rifle shots in that vicinity and they would not hesitate to shoot when necessary."
After accepting the position as game warden, however, Bradley became a vilified figure in southern Florida; working alone, with no reinforcements, he had been shot at more than once. In 1904, Bradley alerted visiting ornithologist and author Frank Chapman
Frank Chapman
Frank Michler Chapman was a U.S. ornithologist and pioneering writer of field guides.Chapman was born in West Englewood, New Jersey and attended Englewood Academy. He joined the staff of the American Museum of Natural History in 1888 as assistant to Joel Asaph Allen...
that one of the more isolated rookeries, called Cuthbert, had been "shot out" despite previously having been found to be in good condition. He reportedly said, "You could've walked right around the Rookery on those bird's bodies—between four and five hundred of them."
Bradley took the slaughter to mean that he was being watched by local hunters, who only could have discovered the rookery by tracking his movements. Chapman later wrote, "Under his guardianship the 'white birds' had increased in numbers, which, with aigrettes selling at $32 an ounce, made the venture worth the risk (for there was a risk; as the man who attempted to 'shoot out' a rookery while Bradley was on guard would probably have lost his own 'plume'); the warden watched and in his absence his charges were slaughtered."
Death
On July 8, 1905, Bradley heard gunshots close to his waterfront home in Flamingo. He set sail in his small skiff, and encountered a father and his two sons by the name of Smith, who were shooting up a rookery. The families had known each other for years, but Civil WarAmerican Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
veteran Walter Smith had a reputation for being troublesome, and Bradley had previously had altercations with him. He had arrested Smith on one occasion and Smith's oldest son, Tom, twice for poaching. Smith threatened to retaliate against Bradley if he tried again, reportedly telling the warden, "You ever arrest one of my boys again, I'll kill you."
According to Walter Smith's account, Bradley encountered the three men as they were loading dead plume birds onto their boat. An argument ensued, and as the warden attempted to arrest one of the young men, Smith opened fire with his hunting rifle, fatally wounding Bradley. His body was found the next day by his brother's search party, after drifting 10 miles (16.1 km) from the scene of the crime. He had bled to death.
Aftermath
Smith set sail to Key West and turned himself in to the authorities the next day. Despite evidence found by the prosecution—paid for by the Florida Audubon Society—that Bradley had not fired his weapon, Smith claimed self defense. He maintained that the warden had fired first, but missed, hitting Smith's boat. Those who knew Bradley, however, insisted that he had been an excellent shot, and would not have missed his target had he, in fact, shot first. Smith later was found not guilty of murder, when the jury decided there was insufficient evidence to convict; he served only five months in jail, unable to pay $5,000 for bail. While he was incarcerated, Bradley's two brothers-in-law burned down Smith's Flamingo home.New York Herald
The New York Herald was a large distribution newspaper based in New York City that existed between May 6, 1835, and 1924.-History:The first issue of the paper was published by James Gordon Bennett, Sr., on May 6, 1835. By 1845 it was the most popular and profitable daily newspaper in the UnitedStates...
, the Philadelphia North American, and Forest and Stream
Forest and Stream
Forest and Stream was a magazine featuring hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities. Founded in 1873, it was the ninth oldest magazine in the United States....
. The warden's wife and two young children were given a home in Key West, paid for by donations secured by the Florida Audubon Society. The Society, however, made no effort to replace Bradley, and his job as warden went unfilled. Bradley's obituary, written by William Dutcher and published in August 1905's edition of Bird Lore, characterized him as "fearless and brave." Dutcher eulogized Bradley by saying, "A faithful and devoted warden, who was a young and sturdy man, cut off in a moment, for what? That a few more plume birds might be secured to adorn heartless women's bonnets. Heretofore the price has been the life of the birds, now is added human blood. Every great movement must have its martyrs, and Guy M. Bradley is the first martyr in bird protection."
With no one to replace Bradley, lawlessness continued in the Everglades and rookeries were devastated for several more years. Frank Chapman remarked that "There is no community sufficiently law-abiding to leave a bank vault unmolested if it were left unprotected. We have given up. We can't protect it, and the rookery will have to go." In November 1908, game warden and deputy sheriff of DeSoto County
DeSoto County, Florida
DeSoto County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 32,209. The U.S. Census Bureau 2005 estimate for the county is 35,406 . Its county seat is Arcadia, Florida. The county comprises the Arcadia, Florida Micropolitan Statistical Area.- History :DeSoto...
, Columbus G. McLeod, went missing near Charlotte Harbor
Charlotte Harbor (estuary)
Charlotte Harbor Estuary is a natural estuary spanning the west coast of Florida from Venice to Bonita Springs on the Gulf of Mexico and is one of the most productive wetlands in Florida...
. A month later, his boat was found weighted down and sunk; inside, police found the warden's bloodstained hat, long gashes cut into the crown with what appeared to be an axe. It was suspected that he was killed by poachers. His body was never found and the perpetrators were not caught. Later that year, an employee of the South Carolina Audubon Society, Pressly Reeves, was shot and killed during an ambush by unknown assailants.
Legacy
These three deaths within as many years helped end the commercial trade of feathers from Florida. In 1910, the New York legislature passed the Audubon Plumage Act, outlawing the plume trade; other states followed, and Congress soon banned the import of hats decorated with bird feathers. In time, the fashion craze for bird feathers faded. As the demand for plumage dwindled, thousands of birds returned to the Everglades rookeries; adventure writer Zane GreyZane Grey
Zane Grey was an American author best known for his popular adventure novels and stories that presented an idealized image of the Old West. Riders of the Purple Sage was his bestselling book. In addition to the success of his printed works, they later had second lives and continuing influence...
wrote after visiting a creek near Cape Sable
Cape Sable
Cape Sable, Florida is the southernmost point of the US mainland and mainland Florida. It is located in southwestern Florida, in Monroe County, and is part of the Everglades National Park. The cape is a peninsula issuing from the southeastern part of the Florida mainland, running west and curving...
:
Bradley was buried on a shell ridge at Cape Sable, overlooking Florida Bay
Florida Bay
Florida Bay is the bay located between the southern end of the Florida mainland and the Florida Keys. Its area is variously stated to be , or , or . Nearly all of Florida Bay is included in Everglades National Park. The southern edge, along the Florida Keys is in the Florida Keys National Marine...
. A nearby monument was erected by the Florida Audubon Society, reading: "Guy M. Bradley, 1870–1905, Faithful Unto Death, As Game Warden of Monroe County He Gave his Life for the Cause to Which He Was Pledged". The grave and monument, however, were later washed away in 1960's Hurricane Donna
Hurricane Donna
Hurricane Donna in the 1960 Atlantic hurricane season was a Cape Verde-type hurricane which moved across the Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispanola, Cuba, The Bahamas, and every state on the East Coast of the United States...
. The original gravestone was recovered, and is now on display at the Flamingo Visitor Center. A nearby plaque was also dedicated to Bradley's memory, and reads: "Audubon warden was shot and killed off this shore by outlaw feather hunters, July 8, 1905. His martyrdom created nationwide indignation, strengthened bird protection laws and helped bring Everglades National Park
Everglades National Park
Everglades National Park is a national park in the U.S. state of Florida that protects the southern 25 percent of the original Everglades. It is the largest subtropical wilderness in the United States, and is visited on average by one million people each year. It is the third-largest...
into being."
The story of Bradley's defense of the Everglades' birds, and the manner of his death, has been depicted in both literature and film. Author Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Marjory Stoneman Douglas
Marjory Stoneman Douglas was an American journalist, writer, feminist, and environmentalist known for her staunch defense of the Everglades against efforts to drain it and reclaim land for development...
, who would later become famous for publicizing the need for conserving and restoring the Everglades, based the hero of her 1930 short story "Plumes" on Bradley. The 1958 film Wind Across the Everglades
Wind Across the Everglades
Wind Across the Everglades is a 1958 film directed by Nicholas Ray. Ray was fired from the film before production was finished, and several scenes were completed by screenwriter Budd Schulberg, who also supervised the editing....
, starring Christopher Plummer
Christopher Plummer
Arthur Christopher Orne Plummer, CC is a Canadian theatre, film and television actor. He made his film debut in 1957's Stage Struck, and notable early film performances include Night of the Generals, The Return of the Pink Panther and The Man Who Would Be King.In a career that spans over five...
and Burl Ives
Burl Ives
Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives was an American actor, writer and folk music singer. As an actor, Ives's work included comedies, dramas, and voice work in theater, television, and motion pictures. Music critic John Rockwell said, "Ives's voice .....
, was loosely based upon Bradley's life and death.
In 1988, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation protects, sustains and restores the wildlife, plants and habitats of the United States. Established by Congress in 1984, the Foundation directs public conservation dollars to critical environmental needs and matches those investments with private...
established the Guy Bradley Award, which recognizes achievements in wildlife law enforcement annually. Another honor, the Guy Bradley Lifetime Conservation Award, was established in 1997 by the Audubon Society Everglades Ecosystem Restoration Campaign to those who promote conservation and offer workable conservation solutions. A trail in the Everglades, leading from the Flamingo Visitor Center to the Flamingo Campground, also was named in Bradley's honor.
Sources
- Davis, Jack E. An Everglades Providence: Marjory Stoneman Douglas and the American Environmental Century. Athens, GA: University of Georgia Press, 2009. ISBN 978-0-8203-3071-6.
- Grunwald, Michael. The Swamp: The Everglades, Florida, and the Politics of Paradise. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 2006. ISBN 0-7432-5105-9.
- Hammer, Roger. Everglades National Park and the Surrounding Area: A Guide to Exploring the Great Outdoors. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0-7627-3432-0.
- Huffstodt, Jim. Everglades Lawmen: True Stories of Danger and Adventure in the Glades. Sarasota, FL: Pineapple Press, 2000. ISBN 1-56164-192-8.
- McIver, Stuart B. Death in the Everglades: The Murder of Guy Bradley, America's First Martyr to Environmentalism. Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida, 2003. ISBN 0-8130-2671-7.
- Shearer, Victoria. It Happened in the Florida Keys. Guilford, CT: Globe Pequot Press, 2008. ISBN 978-0-7627-4091-8.
- Tebeau, Charlton WCharlton W. TebeauCharlton W. Tebeau was a prominent American historian of Florida. Tebeau was born in Springfield, Georgia. He took a teaching job at the University of Miami in 1939, where he remained for 37 years, ultimately serving as chairman of the University of Miami's History Department for 23 years.Tebeau...
. They Lived in the Park: The Story of Man in the Everglades National Park. Coral Gables, FL: University of Miami Press, 1963. - Wilbanks, William. Forgotten Heroes: Police Officers Killed in Early Florida, 1840–1925. Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing Company, 1998. ISBN 1-56311-407-0.
External links
- Guy Bradley Award, National Fish and Wildlife FoundationNational Fish and Wildlife FoundationThe National Fish and Wildlife Foundation protects, sustains and restores the wildlife, plants and habitats of the United States. Established by Congress in 1984, the Foundation directs public conservation dollars to critical environmental needs and matches those investments with private...
- Guy Bradley Trail, at Great Outdoor Recreation Pages (GORP)
- Game Warden Guy Bradley, at The Officer Down Memorial Page (ODMP)