Events that led to the war in Florida--Treaty of Camp Moultrie and its
stipulations--Complaints of Indians and whites--Treaty of Payne's
Landing--Objections of the Indians to complying with the latter
treaty--Councils and talks with the Seminoles--Assiola--Murder
of mail carrier Dalton--Murder of Charley Amathla--Dade's
massacre--Murder of General Thompson and others--General
Clinch--Depredations by the Indians on the whites and by the
latter on the Indians--Volunteers--Military departments of Gaines
and Scott.
It is proper to give as brief a _résumé_ as the subject will permit of
the events that led to the outbreak of hostilities in Florida.
General Jackson, when Governor of Florida in 1821, urged upon the
Government the necessity of adopting measures to send back to their
own reservations the large number of Creek Indians who had left their
nation and settled with other tribes in Florida. He argued that this
was an encroachment by the Creeks, and that an increase of Indians in
this territory would lead to unhappy results. Colonel Joseph M. White,
the delegate from the territory of Florida, fully concurred with
General Jackson in this view, and so informed the Secretary of War.
The Government, disregarding these wise suggestions, entered into a
treaty with the Florida Indians, September 18, 1823, at Camp Moultrie,
stipulating for their continued residence in the territory for twenty
years. They were by this treaty established in the heart of the
country, and their claims to the lands acknowledged and guaranteed.
The treaty provided, among other things, that the Seminole Indians
should relinquish all their claim to lands in Florida except a tract
estimated to contain some five millions of acres, within the limits of
which they agreed to abide.
The Government of the United States agreed to pay to the Indians two
thousand dollars to aid them in removal to the new reservation, to
furnish them with certain articles of husbandry and stock to the
amount of six thousand dollars, to furnish them with corn, meat, and
salt for one year, to pay them forty-five hundred dollars for their
improvements on their surrendered lands, to allow them one thousand
dollars per annum for a blacksmith and one thousand dollars per annum
for a school fund, and these last two allowances to extend during the
term of the treaty. Complaints were made by the whites, and counter
complaints by the Indians, of depredations, but the preponderance of
testimony is that the whites were the principal aggressors. These
Indians were slave-holders, having a number of negroes held in
slavery by the same tenure that slaves were held by the whites in
Florida. The whites commenced and carried on a systematic and
continued robbery of the slaves and cattle belonging to the Indians,
sending them to Mobile for sale. A protest was made by the inhabitants
of ten of the Seminole towns, complaining in substance that the white
people had carried all their cattle off; that the white men first
commenced to steal from them; that within three years six Indians had
been killed by the whites, admitting that the Indians had taken
satisfaction, but were not even on that score by three.
Complaints from whites of Indian depredations and counter complaints
from the Indians became so frequent that the President determined to
endeavor to make a new treaty, abrogating that of Camp Moultrie. For
this purpose Colonel James Gadsden, of Florida, was appointed a
commissioner to carry out this purpose. The Indians, by invitation,
assembled at Payne's Landing, on the Ocklawaha River, on May 8, 1832.
The points agreed upon were that the Seminole Indians relinquish their
claim to the tract of land reserved for them by the second article of
the Camp Moultrie treaty, containing four million thirty-two thousand
six hundred and forty acres, and to remove west of the Mississippi
River and there become a constituent part of the Creeks.
The United States engaged to pay the Seminoles fifteen thousand four
hundred dollars as a consideration for the improvements on the lands
which they abandoned, and a further sum of two hundred dollars each to
two negroes, Abraham and Cudjoe, each Indian to be furnished with a
blanket and homespun frock, and a sufficient quantity of corn, meat,
and salt for one year's support after arriving in the new reservation.
Two blacksmiths, at one thousand dollars a year, were agreed to be
furnished for a period of ten years, and an annuity of three thousand
dollars for fifteen years to be paid after their arrival in the West;
which sum, together with the four thousand dollars stipulated for in
the Camp Moultrie treaty, making seven thousand dollars per annum, was
to be paid to the Creek nation with their annuities.
In order to relieve the Seminoles from vexatious demands on them for
their slaves and other property, the United States stipulated to have
the matter investigated, and to liquidate such as were satisfactory,
provided the amount did not exceed seven thousand dollars. This treaty
was executed on May 9, 1832, and signed by Holata Amathla and fourteen
other chiefs. Seven of the chiefs were deputed to visit and explore
the new country, accompanied by their interpreter and by Major John
Fagan, formerly Indian agent in Florida. The delegation reported their
approval of the country, and the ratification on the part of the
Indians was made by seven of the chiefs at Fort Gibson, La.
This ratification by the seven chiefs was in excess of their
authority, as they were only authorized to examine the country and
report the result of their mission to a general council of the nation,
which was to be convened on their return.
Colonel Gadsden, the commissioner on the part of the United States,
addressed a letter to the Secretary of War, in which he said: "There
is a condition prefixed to the agreement without assenting to which
the Florida Indians most positively refused to negotiate for their
removal west of the Mississippi. Even with the condition annexed,
there was a reluctance, which with some difficulty was overcome, on
the part of the Indians to bind themselves by any stipulations before
a knowledge of the facts and circumstances would enable them to judge
of the advantages or disadvantages of the disposition the Government
of the United States wished to make of them. They were finally
induced, however, to assent to the agreement....
"The payment for property alleged to have been plundered was the
subject most pressed by the Indians, and in yielding to their wishes
on this head a limitation has been fixed in a sum which I think,
however, will probably cover all demands which can be satisfactorily
proved. Many of the claims are for negroes said to have been enticed
away from their owners during the protracted Indian disturbances, of
which Florida has been for years the theater. The Indians allege that
the depredations were mutual, that they have suffered in the same
degree, and that most of the property claimed was taken as reprisal
for property of equal value lost by them. They could not, therefore,
yield to the justice of restitution solely on their part, and probably
there was no better mode of terminating the difficulty than by that
provided for in the treaty now concluded. The final ratification of
the treaty will depend upon the opinion of the seven chiefs selected
to explore the country west of the Mississippi River. If that
corresponds to the description given, or is equal to the expectations
formed of it, there will be no difficulty on the part of the
Seminoles. If the Creeks, however, raise any objections, this will be
a sufficient pretext on the part of some of the Seminole deputation to
oppose the execution of the whole arrangement for removal."
On March 8, 1835, the Hon. John H. Eaton addressed a letter to Lewis
Cass, Secretary of War, raising the question whether the treaty of
Payne's Landing was valid, it not having been ratified until 1834. To
this the Secretary replied that, the question had been referred to the
Attorney General, and that he had decided that the obligation of the
treaty was not affected by the delay, but that the Indians might be
required to move in the years 1835-'37.
The Indian agent called a meeting of the Indians, who assembled in
council on October 23, 1834. The agent stated that he had convened
them by order of the President, who said that he had complied with all
the promises made to them, and that they must prepare to move by the
beginning of cold weather. He further stated that he had a proposition
to them from the Creeks, and exhibited a map of the country allotted
to them west of the Mississippi.
The proposition from the Creeks was that the Seminoles, instead of
settling in the country allotted to them, in a separate body, settle
promiscuously among the Creeks. The agent stated in regard to this
last proposition: "It is left, as it should be, entirely optional with
you, and no persons but yourselves have any right to say you shall or
shall not accede to the proposition." Other questions were submitted,
such as the disposition of their cattle, whether they preferred to
march by land or go by water, and the manner in which they desired the
annuity paid them. The Indians then retired for a private council, and
on their return Holata Amathla said: "My brothers, we have now heard
the talk that our father at Washington has sent us. He says that we
made a treaty at Payne's Landing, and we have no excuse now for not
doing what we promised; we must be honest. Let us go, my brothers, and
talk it over, and don't let us act like fools."
At four o'clock in the afternoon of the same day the Indians met in
private council and were addressed by Assiola, in which he opposed
emigrating from Florida to the Creek country, denouncing the Creeks
as bad Indians. He also denounced the agent for advising them to
remove "from the lands which we live on--our homes and the graves of
our fathers." He announced that when the Great Spirit told him to go
he would go. But he said the Great Spirit had told him not to go. He
also threatened the white people with his rifle, for he still had
that, and some powder and lead. He also said that if any of the
Indians wanted to go West they would not be permitted to do so.
Assiola was followed by Holata Amathla, who strongly urged his
brothers to abide by the treaty of Payne's Landing, and advised them
to "act honest and do as our great father at Washington tells us."
Jumper, the sense-keeper, also urged a compliance with the last-named
treaty, because if they did not comply the white men would make them.
Chief Arpincki proposed that Holata Amathla be selected to represent
to the agent the objections of the nation to removal. This was
declined by Holata Amathla, and Jumper was selected in his stead to
speak the sentiments of the people on the next day.
On October 24, 1834, the Indians again met in council. The agent asked
them if they were ready to reply to the proposals made to them. Holata
Mico and Miconopy made short talks. When Jumper rose he complained
that a treaty had been made or rather forced on the Indians at Payne's
Landing before the twenty years provided in the Camp Moultrie treaty
had expired. He was one of the chiefs who had gone to look at the new
lands and liked them, but did not like the neighbors they would have,
and spoke of these latter Pawnees as savages and horse thieves. He
told the agent that his talk always seemed good, but that the Indians
did not want to go West. Holata Amathla, who was also one of the
chiefs who went West, objected to his people removing there for
substantially the same reason as Jumper. Charley Amathla said that
seven years of the time stipulated in the Camp Moultrie treaty
remained unexpired. He did not say that he would not go, but did not
think he would give an answer until the expiration of the seven years.
He also complained that the distance to the West was so great that
many would die on the way. In these talks the chiefs spoke well of the
agent. The latter, in reply, said: "I have no answer to make to what
you have said to me to-day. My talk to you yesterday must and will
stand, and you must abide by it." He then repeated the question he had
previously submitted, and told them to deliberate further, and let him
know when they were ready to meet him. Another meeting was held on
October 25, 1834. The agent told them he was ready to receive their
answers. The speakers on the part of the Indians said their people
still refused to comply with the treaty of Payne's Landing and leave
their native country. They thought the agent was mad with them.
General Thompson, the agent, told them he was not mad, but was their
friend; that what they said was not an answer to his questions, and
added, "Your father, the President, will compel you to go." He argued
that the treaty of Payne's Landing had been duly signed. This was
denied by Miconopy, when the general told him he lied, and that by the
terms of the treaty the decision of the delegation sent out to view
the country was binding on the Seminoles, and they were compelled
under its provisions to move. He told them that the Payne's Landing
treaty abrogated that made at Camp Moultrie. Replying to Charley
Amathla's assertion that the last treaty had been forced upon them, he
said: "You say that the white people forced you into the treaty of
Payne's Landing. If you were so cowardly as to be forced by anybody to
do what you ought not to do, you are unfit to be chiefs, and your
people ought to hurl you from your stations." He explained to them the
white people's Government; that the Indians living among white people
might be charged with all kinds of offenses under the law, and would
not be permitted to testify themselves; that the Cherokees, Creeks,
Choctaws, and Chickasaws who live in the States were moving beyond the
Mississippi River, because they could not live under the white
people's laws, and the Seminoles were a small handful compared to
their number; that when the jurisdiction of the State government was
extended over them the Indian laws and customs would have to be
abolished; and told them it was this view of the subject that had
induced the President to settle them beyond Florida; and told them
further that the land to which they were to go should be theirs "while
grass grows and water runs," It was for this reason the treaty had
been made with them at Payne's Landing, and for the same reason they
would be compelled to keep it and comply with their bargain. His
speech was a long one, reiterating, elaborating, and emphasizing the
determination of the Government to make them move, whether they
desired to or not. During this speech the agent was interrupted by
Assiola, who urged Miconopy to be firm, and to assure the agent that
he did not care whether any more annuity was paid or not. The agent
closed by hoping that mature reflection would make them act like
honest men, and not compel him to report them to their father, the
President, "as faithless to your engagements." The Indians then,
through Assiola and Miconopy, announced positively and emphatically
that their answer had been made, and that they did not intend to move.
The agent told them that he was satisfied now that they were willfully
and entirely dishonest in regard to their engagements with the
President, and regretted that he had to so report them. He told them
the talk he had given them must and should stand, and directed them to
retire and prepare their stocks to receive their annuity on the
following day.
It will be remembered that by the treaty of Payne's Landing it was
stipulated that seven chiefs should be sent to examine the lands to
which it was proposed to remove the Seminoles. They were to report its
general aspect and fertility to the nation, but were not invested with
power to ratify the treaty. That was the province of the nation in
general council. Jumper, as stated in these pages, was one of the
chiefs selected for the purpose of examining and reporting upon the
new country. General Thompson, the agent, had told the chiefs in
council that "no person has a right to say to you, You shall go, or
that you shall accede to the proposition made to you by the Creeks;
but it is left, as it should be, entirely optional with you." This is
in singular contrast to the words heretofore quoted from the agent,
and altogether different from his assurance to one of the chiefs: "The
President, backed by the Secretary of War" (the Indian Bureau was
then under the jurisdiction of the War Department) "and the whole
Congress, never should compel me to act so dishonorably as to violate
the treaty [of Camp Moultrie] made with your people. If such a thing
were required of me I would spurn the President's commission and
retire to the bosom of my family." General Thompson reported to the
authorities at Washington what had taken place, as just related, and
stated that, in view of the circumstances, no doubt remained that the
Indians intended to resist the execution of the treaty of Payne's
Landing. After giving a full statement of the situation, he felt it
his "imperious duty" to urge the necessity of a strong re-enforcement
at Fort King, and the station of a strong force at Tampa Bay, as early
as possible. "An imposing force, thus marshaled to coerce the
refractory people, would have the effect to crush the hopes of the
chiefs and those who had been tampering with them into a proper
respect for the Government, afford protection to the neighboring white
settlements, and supersede the necessity of Holata Amathla and his
followers fleeing the country." At this time the force at the two
posts mentioned was two hundred and thirty-five men. General Thompson,
sustained by Governor William P. Duval, continued to urge upon the
Government, an increase of the military force. The latter, in a letter
to the Secretary of War, informed that official that even with a
respectable military force stationed at Fort Brooke and Tampa Bay the
agent and superintendents would have much difficulty in carrying the
treaty of Payne's Landing into effect. The necessity for additional
military force was urged by Generals Clinch and Eaton and Lieutenant
Joseph W. Harris, the disbursing agent. These representations went
unheeded. In the whole of Florida there were but two hundred and fifty
men of the United States army, while more than three thousand were
stationed at other convenient points totally inactive.
When the time came for the removal of the Big Swamp Indians they were
so notified. But having been previously informed that they would be
expected to go, they did nothing in the way of planting crops, and
were destitute of food. Corn was distributed by the agents to the most
needy. It was concluded to make another effort to secure their
peaceful removal, and on April 22, 1835, several hundred of them
assembled in council. After the council was opened General Thompson
explained to them the treaty of Payne's Landing, and read a letter
from President Jackson, in which he besought them as his children, to
whom he had always acted honestly and kind, to comply with the treaty
and go to the lands selected for them, telling them they must go; that
they had sold all their land and did not have a piece "as big as a
blanket to sit upon," and had no right to stay. The letter concluded:
"If you listen to the voice of friendship and truth, you will go
quietly and voluntarily; but should you listen to the bad birds that
are always flying about you, and refuse to remove, I have then
directed the commanding officer to remove you by force. This will be
done. I pray the Great Spirit, therefore, to incline you to do what is
right." After the letter had been read through and interpreted, Jumper
rose and opposed the treaty, but deprecated force. Miconopy and others
sustained Jumper's views _as to the treaty_, but were silent on the
question of forcible resistance. General Clinch then addressed them,
and told them the time of expostulation had passed, that persuasion
had been exhausted, and wound up by telling them "it was the question
now whether they would go of their own accord or go by force." On the
next morning the chiefs and warriors sent word to the agent that they
wanted to talk to him. On assembling, Miconopy was absent. Jumper, the
spokesman, announced that he stood firm, but the veteran chief Fueta
Susta Hajo (Black Dirt) spoke passionately and eloquently in favor of
the execution of the treaty. After he had concluded, General Thompson
placed on the table a paper, dated April 23, 1835, which pledged the
Seminole tribe to voluntarily acknowledge the treaty at Payne's
Landing on May 9, 1832, and the treaty concluded at Fort Gibson on
March 28, 1833 (the one signed by the seven chiefs who had gone to
visit the country to which the Seminoles were to remove), and freely
submitting and assenting to said treaties in all their provisions.
This paper received the signatures of eight principal chiefs, among
them Fueta Susta Hajo and eight subchiefs. Five of the principal
chiefs, Jumper among them, stood aloof and would not sign. Miconopy,
who was absent, sent word by Jumper that he would not abide by the
treaty. Upon this the agent said he would no longer regard Miconopy as
a chief, and said his name should be stricken from the council of the
nation. This action on the part of the agent was arbitrary and wholly
unauthorized, and was severely censured by General Cass, Secretary of
War.
On August 11th the mail carrier Dalton was met by a party of Micosukee
Indians six miles from Fort Brooke and killed. The body was found a
few days afterward, and General Clinch immediately sent a demand for
the surrender of the murderers, but they eluded capture by seeking
refuge in the "Old red sticks" in the neighborhood of Ouithlacoochee.
This murder, it was claimed, was in retaliation for the killing of an
Indian in the previous June.
On August 19, 1835, at the request of Holata Amathla and twenty-five
others, a council of the Seminoles was convened. At the request of the
other chiefs Holata Amathla opened the council, saying they had come
to talk about matters of great interest. He referred to the treaty of
Payne's Landing, the visit to the West of the seven chiefs, and the
promises that had been made; stated that the Seminoles wanted their
separate agent, and paid a high compliment to General Thompson, who,
he said, had always told them the truth. The speech was forwarded to
Washington, but no notice was taken of it. This nonaction on the part
of the authorities at Washington served to intensify the distrust and
suspicions of the Indians as to the good faith of the Government, and
caused many of those who had expressed a willingness to move to join
the ranks of those who objected to doing so. Hostilities soon
commenced. The Long Swamp and Big Swamp Indians commenced pillaging.
Three of them were caught and subjected to exceedingly cruel treatment
by the white settlers. Many outrages were perpetrated on both sides.
The Indians were notified to bring in all their cattle, ponies, and
hogs to be turned over to a United States agent and appraised, the
owners to be paid on their arrival across the Mississippi. Six of the
principal chiefs and some others surrendered their stock. The sale,
however, was indefinitely postponed. The Big Swamp Indians resolved
to retain possession of the country, and condemned to death all those
Indians who should oppose their views. This caused many of the
friendly Indians to take refuge in the United States forts. About four
hundred and fifty fled to Fort Brooke, and on November 9th they
encamped on the opposite side of Hillsboro River. The hostile Indians,
fearing that the secrets of their councils had become known, made
every effort to win over to their side those who were disposed to
comply with the treaty. Assiola and about four hundred warriors went
to the house of Charley Amathla and demanded that he pledge himself to
oppose removal. He declined, saying he would sacrifice his life before
he would violate the pledge he had given his great father. Assiola
attempted to shoot Charley, but was prevented by Abraham, the
interpreter. Assiola left, but soon returned with a small party to the
house and murdered him in cold blood. A number of the murdered man's
followers at once made their escape to Fort King, while others joined
the hostile party. Charley Amathla was regarded as a brave, resolute,
and upright man. He had saved the life of Assiola, and his murder was
an act of horrible ingratitude. The Indians now abandoned their homes
and took refuge in the impenetrable swamps.
At this time the entire military force in Florida amounted to four
hundred and eighty-nine officers and men, and were distributed as
follows: At St. Augustine, one company, fifty-three men; at Fort
Brooke, on Hillsboro Bay, three companies, one hundred and fifty-three
men; at Fort King, six companies, three hundred and fifty-three men.
The Seminoles were located in the peninsula of Florida, a region of
fens, swamps, and creeks almost inapproachable. They claimed that the
Government had not carried out in good faith the treaties made with
them. Their great leader and chief was Assiola, sometimes called
Powell, and improperly spelled Osceola, whose father was a white man
and his mother a woman of the Creek Indian tribe. Among most of the
tribes of Southern Indians the children took rank from the mother. He
was recognized among the Indians as a Creek. He did not inherit the
title or place of a chief, but won it by his native ability, cruelty,
and courage. In his early days he was insolent in his manners, and
kept apart from the society of his people.
When General Alexander Ramsay Thompson was agent of the United States
for these Indians, on one occasion Assiola appeared before him and
announced that the lands claimed by the Government belonged to the
Indians; that the Indians could take care of themselves, and did not
need General Thompson's services. He was arrested and placed in
confinement, and after being imprisoned some time expressed regret,
signed the treaty, and was released. Subsequently he rendered valuable
service in arresting criminals, and regained the confidence of the
whites. This confidence, however, was of short duration.
War having been declared in the name of the Florida Indians, a
detachment of volunteers with some regulars, under General Duncan L.
Clinch, moved to the Ouithlacoochee, the Indian encampment. Three days
before the event which will be described as occurring at
Ouithlacoochee, Major Francis Langhorne Dade, with a small command,
had moved from Fort Brooke to relieve the post of Fort King. Major
Dade and his command had marched sixty-five miles in five days,
intrenching themselves each night in their encampment. On the sixth
night they were attacked by Indians and negro allies, and out of one
hundred and twelve all were slain except three. The officers killed
were Major Francis Langhorne Dade, Captain George Washington Gardiner,
Captain William Frazier, Lieutenants William E. Basinger, J.L. Keayes,
Robert Richard Mudge, Richard Henderson, and Dr. John Slade Gatlin.
Total killed, officers and men, one hundred and seven; escaped, three.
A handsome monument has been erected to their memory at West Point.
Returning to General Duncan L. Clinch's advance on Ouithlacoochee,
here he was attacked by Assiola and his followers after he had crossed
the river; but the general succeeded in repelling the attack and
driving the Indians. While the battle resulting in the massacre of
Major Dade and his command was being fought, the death of Thompson and
others was effected within a few hundred yards of Fort King, on
February 28th. All of the troops except Thomas W. Lendrum's company of
the Third Artillery, about forty strong, had been withdrawn on the
26th, to re-enforce General Clinch at Lang Syne plantation, with a
view to his striking a blow at the families of the Indians supposed to
be concealed in the swamps and hammocks of the Ouithlacoochee River,
with the hope of drawing the Indian warriors out and bringing on a
general engagement. All those attached to the fort or agency were
directed not to pass beyond the picketing. Thompson slept inside the
defenses and passed the greater part of the day at the agency, about
one hundred yards beyond the works. The sutler, Rogers, had moved his
goods into the fort, but was in the habit of taking his meals at his
residence, six hundred yards away in the skirt of a hammock to the
southwest of the fort.
On the day of the massacre Lieutenant Constantine Smith, of the Second
Artillery, had dined with General Thompson, and after dinner the two
went out for a walk. They had proceeded about three hundred yards
beyond the agency office when they were fired upon by a party of
Indians who were concealed in the hammock on the border of which the
sutler's house stood. The reports of the rifles, and the war-whoop
repeated, were heard within a brief time, other volleys more remote
were fired, when the smoke of the firing was seen at the fort. Captain
Lendrum at once called out his men, who were at that time engaged in
strengthening the pickets. He was not aware of the absence from the
fort of General Thompson and Lieutenant Smith; he supposed the firing
was a ruse to draw him out and cut him off from the fort. Very soon
several whites and negroes came in and informed him that Mr. Rogers,
his clerks, and themselves had been surprised at dinner, and the three
former had fallen into the hands of the Indians. A small command was
at once dispatched to succor and pursue, but the butchery had been as
brief as it was complete, and a last war-whoop had been given as a
signal for retreat. The bodies of General Thompson, Lieutenant Smith,
and Mr. Kitzler were soon found and brought in; those of the others
were not found until the following morning. General Thompson's body
had fourteen bullets in it and a deep knife-wound in the left breast.
Lieutenant Smith and Mr. Kitzler had each received two bullets in the
head. The bodies of Rogers the sutler and Robert Suggs were
shockingly mangled, the skulls of each being broken, and all save
Suggs were scalped. The party was led by Assiola, and consisted of
fifty or sixty Micosukees. Two other Indians were in the party attired
as chiefs, but were not recognized. This information comes from an old
negro woman who was in the house and who concealed herself so as to
elude the Indians, and made her escape to the fort after the massacre.
Information of the butchery was at once dispatched to General Clinch.
General Richard Keith Call, with Colonels Richard C. Parish and Leigh
Read, having arrived on the 29th with about five hundred volunteers
from the adjoining counties, who had previously been ordered to scour
the country on the right and left flank, joined the United States
troops, numbering about two hundred under General Clinch. Orders were
issued for a forward movement at sunrise on December 29th. They
arrived near the Ouithlacoochee on the 30th, and threw up breastworks
around their encampment. On arriving at the river next morning it was
found too deep to be forded. No Indians being in sight, one of the men
swam the river and brought over a canoe. As only seven men could be
taken over at a time, the work of crossing the troops was slow and
tedious. General Clinch and Colonels Samuel Parkhill and Read crossed
over, and, in conjunction with General Call, began the construction of
rafts on which the baggage and stores could be crossed over. The
regulars were all over by twelve o'clock, and Major Alexander C.W.
Fanning marched them into an open field surrounded on all sides either
by a thick swamp or hammock, and there formed them into line,
awaiting the crossing of the volunteers. When about fifty of the
volunteers had crossed, and the officers were engaged in
superintending the construction of the rafts, an alarm was given that
the Indians were upon them. General Call at once put his men in line,
and the Indians opened fire, but the volunteers poured a heavy volley
into the hammock, which silenced the fire of the Indians for a time;
but they soon collected their forces and opened a galling fire on the
regulars. General Clinch ordered a charge, which was gallantly led by
Major Fanning, but the Indians maintained their ground. A second
charge was more successful, driving the Indians some distance back.
The chiefs made every effort to rally them, but without success.
During the battle General Call, Colonel John Warren, and Major James
G. Cooper, with a number of volunteers, crossed the river at imminent
peril, and the two latter immediately engaged and fought with the most
determined bravery. General Call had formed the volunteers that last
crossed into two parallel lines, placing one above and the other below
the crossing place, for the purpose of protecting the troops on the
other side and those who were recrossing with the dead and wounded. He
therefore did not reach the field until the enemy were repulsed,
though his services were eminently useful in directing the crossing.
Clinch at this time was not advised of the disaster to Major Dade's
command.
The term of service of the volunteers having expired, General Clinch
marched them, on January 2d, to Fort Drane and disbanded them. In this
last-named engagement the regulars and volunteers, numbering, all
told, two hundred and twenty-seven men--under the able leadership of
Clinch, Major Campbell Graham, Major Fanning, Colonel John Warren,
General Richard K. Call, Cooper, and Lieutenant George Read--succeeded
in defeating over seven hundred Indians who had chosen their ground
and were protected by the swamps and hammocks. The volunteer officers,
to whom great credit was due, were Major (afterward Brigadier General)
Leigh Read, whose horse was shot under him, Colonel John Warren,
Colonel Parkhill (of Richmond, Va.), Colonel William J. Mills, Major
Cooper, Captain Martin Scott, and Captain William J. Bailey. The
services of General Call and Majors Gamble and Wellford were of great
value. General Clinch makes mention of Major J.S. Little his
aid-de-camp, Captains Gustavus S. Drane, Charles Mellon, and Gates,
Lieutenants George Henry Talcott, Erastus A. Capron, John Graham,
William Seaton Maitland, and Horace Brooks, of the United States army,
and Colonel McIntosh, Lieutenants Youman, Stewart, Nathaniel W.
Hunter, Cuthbert, and Adjutant Joseph A. Phillips, of the Florida
volunteers, of the officers of the medical staff. Special mention was
made of Drs. Richard Weightman, Hamilton, Philip G. Randolph, and
Brandon. The returns of the killed and wounded were as follows:
REGULARS.
Killed, 2 artificers and 2 privates 4
Wounded, 1 captain and 2 lieutenants 3
Two sergeants and 4 corporals 6
Private soldiers 43
--
52
VOLUNTEERS.
Wounded, Colonel Warren, Major Cooper, and Lieutenant Youman 3
Private soldiers 4
--
7 59 = 63
Previous to and immediately after this engagement the Indians divided
themselves into small parties for the purpose of devastating the
country. They made their appearance simultaneously in the southern
part of the peninsula as far north as Picolata and from the extreme
east below St. Augustine to the west, carrying off everything that was
useful to them and destroying the remainder. At New River, on the
southeast side of the peninsula, they murdered the wife, children, and
teacher in the family of Mr. Cooley, carrying off provisions and
horses, and setting fire to the house on their departure.
The settlements in that neighborhood were abandoned, the inhabitants
taking refuge near the lighthouse on Cape Florida; but they had been
there only a short time when, the Indians making their appearance,
they were compelled to seek shelter and protection elsewhere.
The ruthless destruction of property and of lives on the east side of
the peninsula was heartrending. Their principal ravages, however, were
on the east side from St. Augustine to the south. Major Benjamin A.
Putnam, with a small detachment of men, marched into this country with
a view to drive the Indians away. He was met by an overpowering number
of the savages, and forced to retreat. In fact, no part of the State
seemed to be free from these murderous savages.
General Clinch made requisitions on the Governors of Georgia, South
Carolina, and Alabama to aid the Floridians in their unequal warfare
with the savages. It was felt by the citizens of Florida that the
Government at Washington showed great apathy, if not real
indifference, to their condition. A meeting was called in Charleston,
S.C., early in January, for the purpose of aiding the people of
Florida with men and means, but General Eustis informed the meeting
that General Clinch had sufficient force and supplies under his
command to subdue any number of Indians and negroes that could be
brought to oppose him. On January 12th, intelligence having been
received from General Clinch asking for six hundred men, the committee
conferred with General Eustis and requested him to send a company of
United States troops with arms and ammunition for the defense of St.
Augustine. This was granted, and the citizens of Charleston chartered
a steamboat and placed on board one thousand bushels of corn, one
hundred barrels of flour, thirty barrels of beef, twenty barrels of
pork, and ten tierces of rice. On January 20th another meeting was
called to raise volunteers for Florida. The banks of Charleston
subscribed twenty-five thousand dollars as a loan to the Government.
The committee dispatched a schooner, loaded with corn, rice, bread,
beef, pork, and military and hospital stores, and sent a physician to
attend the sick.
Four companies of volunteers were put in motion on the 27th for St.
Augustine--viz., the Washington Light Infantry, Captain Ravenel;
Washington Volunteers, Captain Finley; German Fusileers, Captain
Timrod; and Hamburgh Volunteers, Captain Cunningham. These volunteer
companies arrived at St. Augustine on January 30th, and were at once
sent out to scour the country for hostile Indians; they were, however,
relieved from duty on February 12th, on the arrival of the South
Carolina militia and United States troops under Major Reynold Marvin
Kirby. These troops were placed on the same duty as their
predecessors, but there was no engagement with the hostile Indians
until the latter part of March. An instance of the chivalric spirit of
the South Carolina volunteers is worthy of mention. On requisition of
the Governor for three companies to be furnished for Florida, Colonel
Chesnut, of Camden, called out his regiment. After telling them what
was wanted, he requested those who desired to volunteer in defense of
their suffering neighbors to step forward. The whole regiment marched
forward and tendered their services. At the same time four thousand
dollars were contributed for their equipment.
On receipt of the intelligence of the Dade massacre in Savannah, a
company of Georgia volunteers at once embarked for Picolata. A meeting
of the Richmond Blues and Richmond Hussars, of Augusta, was called for
the purpose of rendering aid. The city council appropriated the
necessary funds to supply arms and ammunition. The ladies of Augusta
volunteered to make the uniforms, and in less than a week these
volunteers were on their way to Picolata. These companies were
composed of the _élite_ of the city. Supplies of all kinds were sent
by Mayor Joseph Beard to Fort Drane and the posts on the St. John's,
which were poorly equipped with ordnance and quartermaster's stores.
He also sent a six-pounder cannon with necessary equipments of grape,
canister, and round shot, ten thousand rounds of musket ball and
buckshot cartridges, and a general supply of needful articles. Further
supplies were drawn on their arrival at Picolata.
This action of Quartermaster Beard was most fortunate, as it was found
that the military posts, by the neglect of the War Department or its
subalterns, had been reduced to such an extremity that in case of
attack they must necessarily have been shorn of the means of defense,
and would have fallen into the hands of the enemy. Nothing but the
timely arrival of supplies saved these posts from destruction.
There were no means of transportation at Picolata, and the
quartermaster procured horses at Jacksonville for the purpose of
forwarding one of the six-pounders to Fort Drane. Four of the horses
on arrival were found unfit for service, but, fortunately, General
John M. Hernandez was able to furnish ten chicken carts, and the
quartermaster was authorized to make impressments for transportation.
The Richmond Blues, one hundred and twelve strong, with the Camden and
Glynn mounted volunteers, numbering twenty-seven, and the Darien
Infantry of about thirty, under command of Captains Robertson, R.
Floyd, and Thomas S. Bryant respectively, took up line of march as an
escort to the two six-pounders, ordnance stores, twenty-five wagons
and carts laden with provisions, and passed through the heart of the
enemy's country, arriving on February 15th, without obstruction, at
the garrison of Fort Drane.
Supplies under the same escort were at once forwarded to Fort King.
Subsequently the following-named companies of Georgia volunteers
arrived in Florida: The Hancock Blues, Captain A.S. Brown; State
Fencibles, Captain J.A. Merriwether; Macon Volunteers, Captain Isaac
Seymour; Morgan Guards, Captain N.G. Foster; Monroe Musketeers,
Captain John Cureton; Washington Cavalry, Captain C.J. Malone; Baldwin
Cavalry, Captain W.F. Scott. Major Ross, with several companies of
mounted men from Georgia, arrived later, but owing to the advanced
season, much to their disappointment, did not enter the field.
Going back to January 15th, General Edmund Pendleton Gaines, who was
on a tour of inspection through the Western Department, first heard of
the troubles in Florida, and at once called on the Governor of
Louisiana and requested him to hold in readiness a body of volunteers
for service in subduing the Seminole Indians.
He also wrote to the adjutant general at Washington, urging that no
time be lost in succoring the troops in Florida, and saying, from his
knowledge of the Seminole character, that at least four thousand men
would be required to subdue them, protected and aided by a strong
naval force.
At that time the United States was divided into two military
departments by a line drawn from the southern part of Florida to the
northwestern extremity of Lake Superior. The Eastern Department was
under the command of General Winfield Scott, and the Western under
that of General Gaines, and by reference to a map it will be seen that
the line passed directly through the theater of hostilities in
Florida. The meeting of these two distinguished generals was purely
accidental. General Scott was in Washington when the news was received
of General Clinch's engagement with the Seminoles. After dispatching
his letter to the adjutant general, General Gaines proceeded to
Pensacola for the purpose of getting the co-operation of the naval
forces at that station. He found, however, that Commodores Dallas and
Bolton and Captain Webb had received orders to direct their attention
to the inlets of Florida, whence they had sailed. He received here the
most alarming intelligence of the state of affairs in Florida. He
proceeded to Mobile on January 18th, and there learned that Fort
Brooke was invested by the Indians and the garrison in great danger of
being cut off and slaughtered. He at once sent an express to General
Clinch, supposed to be at Fort King, stating that he would arrive at
Fort Brooke about February 8th with seven hundred men, and requested
General Clinch to take the field and march southward and form a
junction with him at Fort Brooke.
As the crisis demanded immediate action, and General Scott being
present to receive the instructions of the Government in person, he
was charged with the direction of the campaign without regard to
department boundaries. General Gaines had left his headquarters at
Memphis, Tenn., on a tour of inspection through his department, and it
was very uncertain when or where the orders and instructions of the
Government would reach him; and as the immediate services of an
officer of high rank of mind and discreet judgment were required to
maintain the neutrality of the United States during the war between
the Texans and Mexicans, General Gaines was selected for that
important duty. However, the official dispatches did not reach General
Gaines until he had already taken the field in Florida and marched
from Fort Brooke to Fort King, within ninety-five miles of where
General Scott had established his headquarters.
In pursuance of this plan, Lieutenant-Colonel David E. Twiggs was
ordered to receive into service the eight companies of volunteers
requested of the Governor of Louisiana, adding them to the command of
such regular troops as might be in the vicinity of New Orleans, all
to be held in readiness for a movement to Tampa Bay. The troops were
mustered into service on February 3d. General Gaines having arrived in
New Orleans on January 27th, chartered three steamers to convey the
troops and stores. The Legislature of Louisiana had appropriated
eighty-five thousand dollars for the equipment of her volunteers, and
on February 4th the chartered steamers, with the Louisiana volunteers
and one company of regulars, were under way, and on the same day
another steamer, with Colonel Twiggs and Companies B, E, G, H, I, and
K of the regulars, left New Orleans. The vessels arrived safely at
Hillsboro Bay, four miles distant from the garrison, on February 8th,
9th, and 10th, and the troops were immediately disembarked and camped
just outside of the fort.
The fort was a triangular work formed by pickets with blockhouses at
the apex, the base resting on the bay and flanked on the west by
Hillsboro River. It was found that there were at the fort about two
hundred regular troops, composed of Companies A, B, C, and H of the
Second Artillery, and Company A of the Fourth Infantry, with Majors
Francis S. Belton, Richard Augustus Zantzinger, and John Mountford,
Lieutenants John Breckenridge Grayson, Samuel McKenzie, John Charles
Casey, Thomas C. Legate, Edwin Wright Morgan, Augustus Porter Allen,
and Benjamin Alvord, and Surgeons Henry Lee Heiskell and Reynolds.
Major Belton was the commanding officer of the post.
General Gaines, having received instructions at Pensacola from the
Secretary of War to repair and take charge of the forces which were
assembling on the Mexican frontier, announced the fact to Colonel
Twiggs; but the troops, on hearing this, manifested great
dissatisfaction, and insisted that as they had volunteered to go under
the command of General Gaines, he in good faith should be their
leader. Following is the text of the letter of the Secretary of War to
General Gaines:
"WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, _January 23, 1835_.
"SIR: I am instructed by the President to request that you
will repair to some proper position near the western frontier of the
State of Louisiana, and there assume the personal command of all the
troops of the United States which are or may be employed in any part
of the region adjoining the Mexican boundary.
"It is not the intention of this order to change at all the
relations between yourself and the military departments under your
command, to require your personal presence at a point where public
considerations demand the exercise of great discretion and
prudence...."
The pressure not only from the troops in the field but from outside
sources was so great that General Gaines felt it his duty to enter the
field. Besides, that was thought a propitious time to begin active
operations, as the day before the arrival of the Louisiana troops the
friendly Indians had engaged the hostiles in a battle about four miles
from Fort Brooke. Although at this date, as before mentioned, General
Scott in Washington had been ordered to assume command in Florida,
General Gaines was entirely ignorant of such order.
Orders were accordingly issued assigning officers to their respective
duties. Captain Ethan A. Hitchcock, First Infantry, was announced
Assistant Inspector General of the Department, and Lieutenant James
Farley Izard, of the Dragoons, to be Acting Brigade Major. The
artillery and infantry of the United States army, together with the
Louisiana volunteer forces under Adjutant-General Persifor F. Smith,
were to constitute "the light brigade." (Here is an instance of a
staff officer being assigned to command troops.) The whole force to be
under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel David E. Twiggs, Fourth
Infantry.
The Louisiana volunteers were divided into two battalions, the first
composed of the companies of Captains Burt, Lee, Williams, Rogers, and
Thistle, under Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Lawson, Surgeon. (Here is
another case of a staff officer and surgeon ordered to the command of
troops.) The second battalion was composed of the companies of
Captains Samuel F. Marks, William H. Ker, Magee, Smith, Abadie, and
Barr, under Major Marks, the regiment to be commanded by Colonel
Persifor F. Smith. Orders for marching were issued on the 13th, the
troops to be supplied with forty rounds of ammunition and ten days'
rations, five of which were to be carried in haversacks. During the
Florida campaign the only articles drawn by the private volunteer
soldiers were bread or flour, pork or beef, while only a few drew
salt, sugar, and coffee. Major Richard M. Sands, of the Fourth
Infantry, and Captain Barr's company of volunteers, amounting in all
to one hundred and sixty men, were detailed for the protection of the
fort, under command of Major Sands.
The army marched in three columns, equidistant one hundred yards, with
a strong advance and rear guard. The center column was composed of
one company of volunteers as advance guard, under command of Brigade
Major Izard. Seven companies of United States artillery and infantry,
under command of Lieutenant-Colonel William Sewell Foster; the baggage
train, led by Captain Samuel Shannon; six companies of Louisiana
volunteers as rear guard, under command of Lieutenant-Colonel Lawson.
Right column: Four companies of artillery acting as light infantry,
under command of Major Belton. Left column: Four companies of
Louisiana volunteers, under command of Major Marks. The entire command
consisted of nine hundred and eighty effective men, exclusive of the
detachment under Major Sands, which, added to the force, would make it
eleven hundred and forty men.
The Quartermaster's Department at the post was in a very bad
condition, destitute of nearly everything that was necessary for the
comfort of the troops. There was great scarcity of ordnance stores,
but, happily, an abundant supply of subsistence stores.