LIVING HISTORY
The brothers Raulerson arrive early to Fort Pierce and help shape
the community while also creating their own successful enterprises
20
RISE OF A
CATTLE BARON
Though his name is vaguely remembered today, Cyrus
Franklin Raulerson was once one of the most influential
politicians on the Treasure Coast. He also was
among its wealthiest citizens.
A pioneer in the cattle industry, Raulerson, known as C.F.
or Frank, amassed a small fortune raising cattle and buying
land for more than four decades. The Raulerson Building in
downtown Fort Pierce, designed by noted architect William
Hatcher and built in the1920s boom era, is a testament to his
vision and legacy, as is the home he built, impressive for the
time, just a few blocks away.
In an era when cattle roamed the open range and interior
land was seen as having little value, Raulerson purchased
tens of thousands of acres to assemble four cattle ranches,
including his home ranch at Cow Creek swamp along the
border of St. Lucie and Okeechobee counties.
FLORIDA PHOTOGRAPHIC CONCERN/ST. LUCIE COUNTY REGIONAL HISTORY CENTER
In this early photo of downtown Fort Pierce, Raulerson Grocery is identified
as being on the right side of Pine Street, now Second Street. Brothers
K.B. and Frank Raulerson also ran their East Coast Cattle Company in
downtown Fort Pierce.
With his only child, Alfred, working with him in the
cattle business in the 1930s, the future of Frank Raulerson’s
family seemed promising. But Alfred died in a boating
accident in 1938, leaving 8-year-old Jo Ann Raulerson,
Alfred’s only child, as the sole heir to all that Frank
Raulerson had amassed.
Believing that they could provide a better life for their
granddaughter, Frank and wife, Annie Louise, pressured Jo
Ann’s mother, Mae, to give them custody of Jo Ann. Mae
relented. Although the custody agreement didn’t involve a
divisive court action, it faintly echoed the national case that
played out just four years earlier of “poor little rich girl”
Gloria Vanderbilt, who, after the death of her father, was
entrusted to her aunt over her mother, who was declared
unfit. And like the Vanderbilt case, the Raulerson succession
involved a large trust fund.
The story of Frank Raulerson and his descendants is of a >>
PART ONE:
Pioneer Frank Raulerson builds
a cattle-ranching empire, but
who will take it over?