INDIAN RIVER COUNTY - For the past 70 years, the Sexton family, among Indian River County's pioneer settlers, has worked their 610 acre cattle operation known as Treasure Hammock Ranch. Located on the west side of the county, at 37th St. and 74th Ave., the ranch has been passed down through the generations into the current care of Sean Sexton.
Considered a local historical landmark, the county purchased development rights to the property in 2007 for $12 million securing the conservation easement in perpetuity.
In recent weeks, the state of Florida recognized the historical significance of the ranch and has recommened that it be listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
According to Sexton, The Review Board in Tallahassee indicated the ranch has the best set of cow pens in the state to be designated a Historical Resource and were duly excited about the proposition.
"They're not the oldest pens in the state," said Sexton, "but they preserve many very .ne examples of special features of cattle operations in our region including a dipping vat, butchering pen, a one of a kind wooden squeeze chute that's been in use for 70 years, swiveled swinging gates introduced by my grandfather, Waldo, mechanical cattle scales—still certi.ed and operating since the 1950's, and the barn." Built in 1943 by Waldo Sexton, the Treasure Hammock Ranch Farmstead tends about 300 head of angus-cross commercial cattle, a small herd of Brahmas and various horses. Everyday, like his father and grandfather before him, Sexton and his wife, Sharon Sexton complete the daily chores with their son Mike Sexton, 25, a 2012 graduate of the University of Florida with a degree in agriculture.
Part of the ranch's historical value is "it reflects an important land-use for Florida dating back to the introduction of cattle to the continent by the Spanish, over 500 years ago," said Sexton, who is presently weaning the 2013 replacement heifers in the very pens that have been deemed an historical resource.
Getting the designation from the state was no easy feat.
"Doing this was as complicated and time-consuming as writing a major college research paper and took many hours away from my ranch work," said Sexton, "But it also resulted in my conducting many interviews with my dad about the ranch which turned out to be a great experience, enabling me to better understand the history of our family and land." Working closely with Sexton during the four month-application process was Carl Shiver, State Historic Preservation Specialist.
"There are specific criteria that must be met," said Sexton. During the review in Tallahassee, Shiver and Sexton presented a slide show of the ranch's special features, and gave a history of his family and the local cattle industry.
The dipping vat "has an unusual roofed structure, made entirely of Pekky Cypress and was constructed by state mandate to combat the Texas Fever Tick, an epidemic in the early 1950's," explained Sexton. "Shortly after it was built, use of the vat was replaced by a spraying method, which was easier on the cattle." Regarding the cattle chute, Sexton said, "Waldo built the chute with a special head gate, securing the cattle while we work them and give them medical care. It's the only one like it I know about in the state, a real antique. Nowadays they've all been replaced by metal or hydraulic chutes." The barn, also built in 1943, is a pole-framed structure half of which was renovated according to Historical Bureau standards when the two hurricanes took off the roof in 2004. The upstairs residence has yet to be restored.
"Any farm structure built during the war had to have a residence in it to get electric power," says Sexton. "Will Webb, who used to deliver mail to Ft. Drum on foot, lived upstairs with his family for quite a few years." In a letter to Indian River County Commission Chairman, Joseph E. Flescher, dated June 21, 2013, Barbara Mattick, Deputy State Historic Preservation Of.cer of Survey and Registration wrote: "If the Review Board finds this property meets the criteria for listing established by the National Register, a formal nomination will be submitted to the Keeper of the National Register in Washington, D.C. who will make the .nal decision." On July 26 in Tallahassee, the Florida National Historical Register Review Board voted unanimously the Treasure Hammock Ranch Farmstead, be nominated for listing in the National Register of Historic Places.
This brought to fruition, several years of research and the painstaking application process.
Now, the Sextons must wait to learn if the National Register accepts Treasure Hammock Ranch's nomination proposal. The process typically takes 45 days.
If approved, Treasure Hammock Ranch will receive the coveted brown sign posted in front of all national landmarks. More importantly, it will hold a protected status meaning the Sextons cannot turn it into a commercial property and must follow code in any restorations.
"The property would lose its historical status if we restored the barn using incorrect materials, for example," Sexton says.
Regarding restoration work, the property also quali.es for special tax consideration.
Achieving a historic landmark designation has been a gradually evolving process for the Sextons beginning in 2004 with Indian River County's 56 million dollar referendum for the conservation of agricultural, cultural and environmentally sensitive sites.
"The ranch met all three criteria," says Sexton. "That was unusual and gave it a high ranking." When Sexton's grandfather, Waldo Sexton, came to Indian River County from Shelby County, Indiana in 1913 he found a site well suited for cattle ranching.
"Cattle ranching continues to be a viable state industry," says Sexton. "When I was a kid, we were ranked 16th in the nation. Now we're 10th." The ranch has another life apart from cattle. As part of their contract with the county, the Sextons regularly open the ranch to different visitors.
Twice a year, the Pelican Island Audubon Society goes birding on the property. Janice Broda brings the Native Plant Society for an annual .eldtrip. Lifelong Learning students from Indian River State College visited recently and kindergarteners make an annual pilgrimage. Every year prior to F-CATS, fourth graders at Pelican Island Elementary pay a visit.
And on any given day, artists from near and far – including Sexton himself – spend time with canvas and brush, pencil and paper, capturing the unique fauna and flora of this unique Florida landscape.
