The Civil War in the United States lasted from 1861 to 1868. Those in the south wanted to keep their long-held traditions and institutions such as slavery. Following the defeat of the confederate army in the US Civil War, American southerners sought new lands outside of the USA where they could relocate, start a new life and keep their customs.
At the time, both the Belize Estate Co. and Young, Toledo and Co. were offering their lands at cheap prices for agriculturalists. A key figure during the recruitment period was Cristopher Hatch. Hatch was born in Louisiana and he travelled to the United States actively recruiting Americans to settle, particularly in southern Belize. The area between what is now Cattle Landing and Eldridgeville was seen as a possible site for relocation.
In late 1867, southerners like Reverends Charles Swett and Levi Pearce visited sites in Belize and the Republic of Honduras. A group led by Rev. Levi Pearce, T.A. Watrous and George M. Eldredge eventually selected Belize. The first months proved laborious as the settlers needed to adapt to the tropical climate and rudimentary lifestyle, and to endure disease outbreaks. Historical records and a small grave site in Punta Gorda attest to the death of seven of the American migrants who succumbed to a cholera outbreak at the beginning of 1868. There is also a Confederate Cemetery in Forest Home.
They also had to manually cultivate the land. Of the fourteen families that initially settled in the area, only four families remained by May. They bought property from Young, Toledo and Co. and made the decision to stay. Thus it was that the Toledo Settlement emerged. Today, those lands south of the Río Grande encompass Jacintoville, Eldridgeville, Forest Home and Cattle Landing.
By 1870, the remaining families were Pearce, Watrous, Foster, Mason, Moore, Copeland, Johnston, Wilson, Perrett, Dextler and Lester. Of these, the Reverend Levi Pearce Sr. was the first to settle and emerged as a prominent figure. Pearce was a Methodist Minister from Sharon, Mississippi and his lasting contribution was introducing Methodism to the area.
By 1872, East Indians were brought into the Toledo Settlement as indentured laborers to work on the sugar plantations. The East Indians were not slaves. They were contracted to work and in turn were provided with payment for their labour ($6.00 – $8.00) and given accommodations and food rations. Permission had to be granted by the estate owner or appointee for the laborers to leave the premises.
The community was not bound to survive as a southerner enclave since their younger generation of Americans were sent to the USA for their schooling and to seek a partner as intermingling with the East Indians and other nearby populations was discouraged but not entirely subdued.
By the 1930s most had returned to the USA and the sugar mills and plantations were sold. The lands were bought by local residents including East Indians and descendants of those who had worked on the plantations.[1]