Does a Florida spell protect the coast from hurricanes? What to know about the legend
If you’ve lived along Florida’s Gulf Coast, you may have heard about some historic hurricane protection.
It’s a legend, the one about how the Sarasota area is protected from a direct hit thanks to a Native American blessing on their land.
And since 1871, when reliable hurricane records started, no hurricane has made a direct landfall on Sarasota.
Despite the history, there is no truth to the Native American blessings legend, New College of Florida anthropology professor Uzi Baram says.
“It’s a nice little myth; it’s a nice little story except if people believe it,” Baram, who has lived in the area since 1997, said in a phone interview with the Herald.
A spokesperson for the Seminole Tribe of Florida did not respond to a request for comment.
Hurricane blessing
The hurricane story is intertwined with the origins of Sarasota. Baram said a 1763 map is the earliest to document the name Sarasota.
But in 1909, George F. Chapline, of Charendon, Arkansas, created the fictional Sarasota origin story, claiming the area’s name was derived from a person.
Chapline claimed that person was Sara De Soto, the daughter of Spanish conquistador and explorer Hernando de Soto. Like the hurricane story, it’s a myth.
“There is no such person and he did not bring her here, I can assure you, on his conquest,” Baram said. “But it is one of those biting mysteries. It’s a unique name, Sarasota. It’s a very pretty name and there’s lots of theories about the name ... but we actually really don’t know.”
How she is woven into the hurricane legend is what Chapline wrote, according to SarasotaHistoryAlive.com, over a century ago. He wrote that Hernando de Soto captured local Seminole prince Chichi-Okobee, who fell ill and was nursed back to health by Hernando’s daughter, Sara.
Sara then fell ill and could not be saved. The Native American prince asked permission to bury her in Sarasota Bay, according to the made-up legend, which also claims that Okobee and the members of his tribe perished in the bay as a way to guard Sara forever.
“It is said that the sullen roar of the gulf, as it breaks upon the beaches, is but the noise, of conflict, and that the whitecaps which chase each other and break and tumble across the pass are but the wraths of the warriors of Okobee and the children of the sea, tossing their spirit arms, and meeting in never ending contest for the possession of the bay,” Chapline wrote. “This, the legend of Sara De Soto and Chichi, the fleet and strong — the legend of Sarasota Bay. It is peaceful, it is beautiful.”
Storms at Sarasota Bay
And while hurricanes have not made direct landfall in Sarasota, they have been felt. Hurricane Ian devastated the southern part of Sarasota County along with Southwest Florida after making landfall near Cayo Costa.
In 2017, Irma swept through near Sarasota County as it came up from the Florida Keys, while Charley wreaked havoc on Charlotte County upon its arrival near Cayo Costa in 2004, with outer bands effecting Sarasota.
Hurricanes also caused damage in 1926, 1944, 1950 and with Donna in 1960 and Gabrielle in 2001.
According to the National Hurricane Center, the naming convention for hurricanes began in 1950.
“It’s a cute story and a cute poem if you like that stuff, but please don’t use this for guidance,” Baram said. “The science is really clear when the county or the state government says to evacuate, believe them and go.”
The Sarasota hurricane protection legend isn’t the only one in the region. There’s one for Tampa involving the Tocobagas. And while there is no historical records from the explorers in the region that document who was actually in Sarasota/Bradenton, the story of a protective spell continues to be retold over the years for different areas.
“Across the United States, there’s lots of places with these types of myths,” Baram said. “The shadows of history are there to reassure us that it is OK that we are here and that we are safe.”
