 The history of draining and development of the Everglades dates back to the 19th century . During the Second Seminole War beginning in 1836 , the United States military 's mission was to seek out Seminole people in the Everglades and capture or kill them . Those missions gave the military the opportunity to map land that seemed to <unk> and <unk> them at every turn . A national push for expansion and progress toward the latter part of the 19th century stimulated interest in draining the Everglades for agricultural use . According to historians , " From the middle of the nineteenth century to the middle of the twentieth century , the United States went through a period in which wetland removal was not questioned . Indeed , it was considered the proper thing to do . " 
