MANATEE COUNTY. County Seat, BRADENTON.

    Historical Events-Created from part of Hillsborough County. It was named 
for the Manatee or Sea Cow which was then plentiful along the coasts and 
rivers of the section. Gamble Mansion, near Bradenton, was the place of refuge 
of Judah P. Benjamin, Secretary of State of Confederacy, while eluding Federal 
troops after the collapse of the Confederacy. Braden Castle is also a point of 
great interest to visitors.

Population                26,098
Number of farms              935
Total acreage            540,160
Farm acreage             260,873
Acres cultivated:
Field crops                1,576
Truck crops                7,571
Groves (citrus)            6,295
Tractors                     209
Automobiles                5,435
Trucks                     1,426

    Forty-four different crops are grown commercially.

    Leading agricultural sources of revenue: Citrus, tomatoes, celery, 
dairying, poultry and eggs.

    Leading industry: Canneries.

    Manatee lies south of Hillsborough County and is bordered on the west by 
the Gulf of Mexico.

From:
Know Your State by T. J. Brooks (1944)