John Levique and Joseph Silva ‒ the First Jungle Landowners

Fishermen and Turtle Hunters 

Around 1840, Frenchman John Levique and Spaniard Joseph Silva were fishermen and turtle hunters who worked together in the Gulf of Mexico, Boca Ciega Bay, and the Jungle. They sold their catch in Key West and New Orleans (where turtle soup was ‒ and still is ‒ a popular delicacy). 

The Florida Armed Occupation Act of 1842

The U.S government enacted the The Florida Armed Occupation Act of 1842 to encourage settlement of the Florida territory. Qualified homesteaders received 160 acres of land in designated areas ‒  including the Jungle. In 1843, Levique and Silva became homesteaders, laying claim to their prime turtle hunting land. They traveled to Fort Brooke in Tampa on May 30, 1843 and signed up for homestead grants. Silva's homestead was in current Abercrombie Park, Levique's was adjacent to the south at the Jungle Prada Site.

The names of Silva (Silven) and Levique (Levich) appear in the Jungle area section of the 1882 map of Hillsborough County.

Key West Turtle, Crab and Fish Market in 1838 (bottom left).

Land Ownership

To be granted ownership of the land, a homesteader was required to reside on the property for five consecutive years, cultivate five acres and build a house on the lot. Levique and Silva were nomadic sailors who lived and worked at sea and probably didn't care much for the rattlesnakes, alligators and mosquitos that were part of the Jungle environment. Still, they did the minimum required by the homestead grant, planting small citrus groves and building modest homes (similar to the home pictured below from Karl Grismer's book, the Story of St. Petersburg). Levique and Silva were granted land ownership in 1848. 

Color postcard of the fisherman's palmetto shack, circa 1909.

Walter P. Fuller speculates that the two went to Havana during the Civil War to avoid conscription into the Confederate Army. After the war, Levique returned and sold his land to settle a $46 grocery bill. Silva also returned briefly, but left the area soon afterwards.

Turtle Crawl Point

Across the bay from the Silva and Levique homesteads is an area on the southern tip of current day War Veterans’ Memorial Park called Turtle Crawl Point (derived from Spanish for "turtle corral"). This is where the two settlers confined captured sea turtles before sailing to the New Orleans markets. 

John's Pass: John Levique's Legacy

Levique and Silva were in New Orleans when St. Petersburg took a direct hit from the hurricane of 1848. Levique's house was destroyed. On their return, they discovered that the storm had reconfigured the landscape. They found themselves returning to their Jungle properties via a new pass the storm created through the barrier islands. They called it John's Pass. Today John's Pass is a popular tourist spot and John Levique Pirate Days are celebrated annually in Madeira Beach.

Today, John's Pass Village has some of the charm of old-time Florida

Except... John Levique was not a pirate, though buried treasure is part of his legend. It was thought that Levique returned from the fish markets with gold doubloons which he buried near his home for safekeeping. Some of the coins might still be buried in the Jungle. Developer and historian Walter P. Fuller points out that Levique died a pauper, so the treasure had already been dug up and spent. Others believe that a major storm like the one in 1848 could have altered the landscape, causing Levique to lose track of his treasure sites.

A Second House on the Jungle Prada Site

Levique built a second house. The foundation of that house is currently under the restroom at the Jungle Prada Site museum.

The site of John Levique's second house, now a restroom.

Levique Name Variations

There have been various spellings of John Levique's name. Walter P. Fuller, in his book St. Petersburg and Its People, calls him Juan Levique. Lavach, Levech, Levich and Lavich are other variations. The surveyor who approved the land grant in 1848 called him "French John," suggesting the French variation "Levique" is accurate. 

Illiterate but Multilingual

Levique and Silva, like many homesteaders, were illiterate and signed their homestead papers with an "X" mark. "French John" was born in New Orleans around 1810, died in 1869 and was buried in the vicinity of the Jungle Prada Site. Although illiterate, Levique and Silva were multilingual ‒ competent in negotiating the sale of fish and turtles in French and Spanish markets and applying for a homestead at the English fort. 

Citizenship

According to Fuller's book, both Joseph Silva, the Spaniard, and John Levique, the Frenchman, took the oath of allegiance to the United States and were by law automatically made citizens. (Levique's birth in New Orleans in 1810, after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, made him a U.S. citizen, but that may not have been well-documented.)

John's Pass Vintage Postcards

Pioneer Park

The names "John Levech" and "Joe Silva" are included on a twenty foot obelisk in Pioneer Park in downtown St. Petersburg "Dedicated to the memory of the pioneers and their families whose vision and leadership helped create St. Petersburg, Florida."

click here for the John Levech plaque on The Historical Marker Database

click here for the Joe Silva plaque on The Historical Marker Database

The Waterfront Parks Foundation produced this video about Pioneer Park.

Joseph Silva's Legacy

Joe's Creek and Silver Lake in St. Petersburg are named for Joseph Silva. There will be an article about Joe's Creek in the future.