Mayo, Nathan, 1876-1960

Nathan Mayo (1876-1960) was born in Whitakers, North Carolina, December 1, 1876 and moved with his parents to Ocala, Fla., in 1886 at the age of 10. His first business enterprise as a young man was a country store (later the Mayo-Lyles Store) in Summerfield, to the south of Ocala, in Marion County. In the years leading up to World War I he expanded his business ventures into citrus growing, the turpentine industry (1905) and cotton ginning (1916). Mayo represented Marion County in the Florida legislature in 1921 and 1923. By appointment of Governor Cary A. Hardee, he became the state Commissioner of Agriculture in 1923 and then won re-election eight times, holding the position for 37 years.

Mayo's duties in the Department of Agriculture were the most broad-ranging of any state official. Besides his responsibilities for the inspection of poultry, livestock, citrus, and seeds, he also oversaw the state highway patrol system and the state prison system. In addition, he was head of the state bureau of immigration and ran a full-scale publishing house that churned out bulletins, pamphlets, and promotional materials about Florida, its business opportunities, and its agricultural production. Known as "Mr. Florida" for his boosterism of state interests, Mayo was a fixture in the state government throughout the Depression, World War II, and the Fifties. In the opinion of many, he ran the most powerful political machine in the state (although it still was not sufficient to win him the governor's office). Throughout his political career Mayo maintained his farm, store, and residence in Summerfield where Mrs. Mayo served as post-mistress.

Nathan Mayo (1876-1960) was born in Whitakers, North Carolina, December 1, 1876 and moved with his parents to Ocala, Fla., in 1886 at the age of 10. His first business enterprise as a young man was a country store (later the Mayo-Lyles Store) in Summerfield, to the south of Ocala, in Marion County. In the years leading up to World War I he expanded his business ventures into citrus growing, the turpentine industry (1905) and cotton ginning (1916). Mayo represented Marion County in the Florida legislature in 1921 and 1923. By appointment of Governor Cary A. Hardee, he became the state Commissioner of Agriculture in 1923 and then won re-election eight times, holding the position for 37 years. His two most hotly contested election campaigns came early on, the first in 1928 against Will S. Sparkman and the second in 1932 against state senator Franklin O. King.

Mayo's duties in the Department of Agriculture were the most broad-ranging of any state official. Besides his responsibilities for the inspection of poultry, livestock, citrus, and seeds, he also oversaw the state highway patrol system and the state prison system. In addition, he was head of the state bureau of immigration and ran a full-scale publishing house that churned out bulletins, pamphlets, and promotional materials about Florida, its business opportunities, and its agricultural production.

Known as "Mr. Florida" for his boosterism of state interests, Mayo was a fixture in the state government throughout the Depression, World War II, and the Fifties. In the opinion of many, he ran the most powerful political machine in the state (although it still was not sufficient to win him the governor's office). When news of his possible retirement began to circulate in 1959, a reporter for The Tampa Tribune commented that, without Mayo, "Tallahassee will feel somewhat as if it awoke one morning to find the statehouse rotunda gone." His official retirement from the Department of Agriculture was slated for January 1961, coming in the midst of a major reorganization of his department, but Mayo never lived to see it. Throughout 1960 he battled lung cancer and remained on the job until illness put him in the hospital. He died at home April 14, 1960 at the age of 83.

Mayo's long career with the Department of Agriculture saw him both lionized as a defender of agricultural production and sharply criticized for the department's sometimes draconian policies. He had a stormy relationship with Florida's twenty fourth governor John Martin (1925-1929). In 1926 the two men blamed each other in the press over the escape of the convict Joe Tracey from custody. An even bigger confrontation came in 1928 when Mayo refused to put his signature on a $20 million bond issue to finance draining of the Everglades, effectively scuttling Martin's efforts to spark another Florida land investment boom. Two other long term issues that marked Mayo's tenure in office were a campaign to eradicate the cattle tick and efforts to prevent the shipment of unripe or "green" fruit out of Florida. As early as 1923, Mayo voiced concerns that a few Florida growers could damage the state's reputation for quality citrus if they sold unripe fruit to northern markets. He advocated inspections and regulations to prevent such shipments and ultimately his concerns led to creation of an oversight agency, the Florida Citrus Commission, in 1935. Other agricultural issues from his time in office included the program to contain fruit fly and a controversy over the use of arsenic spray on citrus. Mayo's most popular initiative was probably the creation and promotion of the Florida State Farmers' Markets.

His tenure as administrator for the state prison system also saw numerous controversies. Besides local outcries against escapes like the "Tracey Affair" (see above) he weathered national scandals about locking prisoners inside sweat boxes and other forms of abuse in the state penal system. However, he received credit for ending the convict lease labor system and modernizing the state's prison facilities. The latter part of his time in office saw the rise of rehabilitative programs in prisons, including the operation of dairies, farms, license plate manufacturing shops, and vocational education programs.

By his third decade in office, much of Mayo's legacy rested on his reputation for promoting Florida. The Miami Herald called him the "No. 1 booster of Florida farm products" and "one of the state's super-salesmen." His massive publishing house, begun in 1925 with a legislative disbursement of $50,000, often drew criticism for its expenditures but spearheaded Florida's efforts at national advertising. By 1957 the Department of Agriculture was publishing more than 200 titles a year and building Florida's image as a boom state, tourist mecca, and land rich in investment opportunities. Mayo also created the "Cracker Breakfast" celebrations that became a major promotional gimmick for foods grown in Florida.

Mayo was a noted family man who spent weekends at home and had a lifelong fondness for Marion County. He married Nora Newsom of Ocala in October 18, 1899 and the couple had two sons, Nathan (Nat) Mayo and William T. Mayo, and a daughter Gertrude Lyon Mayo. Throughout his political career Mayo maintained his farm, store, and residence in Summerfield where Mrs. Mayo served as post-mistress.

Among the many honors accorded to Mayo was the inauguration of the Nathan Mayo Building in Tallahassee to house the Department of Agriculture.

Citations: Florida Today, by Clarence M. Gay "Mayo called Mr. Florida," n.d., copy on hand in biographical folders; "Personality of the Month, Hon. Nathan Mayo," News Desk, the Florida State Capitol Monthly Magazine, Nov. 1946; Pioneer Florida, by D.B. McKay, "Commissioner Mayo's First Job was on Milk Wagon," Tampa Sunday Tribune, June 16, 1957; "It may be for a lifetime," Tampa Tribune, Saturday, Oct. 17, 1959; biography of Nathan Mayo written by his son Nat Mayo, copy on hand in biographical folders; "Nathan Mayo, Commissioner of Agriculture, State of Florida, November 1, 1923-April 14, 1960," memorial pamphlet produced at the time of Mayo's death. Martin M. LaGodna, "Agriculture and Advertising: Florida State Bureau of Immigration, 1923-1960," The Florida Historical Quarterly, Vol. 46, No. 3 (Jan., 1968), pp. 195-208; "Greens, Grist and Guernseys: Development of the Florida State Agricultural Marketing System," The Florida Historical Quarterly, Vol. 53, No. 2 (Oct., 1974), pp. 146-163.