hostilities maintained by georgia.
mr. madison’s election—his character—desire of people of georgia to enslave exiles—they demand annexation of florida—congress passes a law for taking possession of that territory—general mathews appointed commissioner—declares insurrection—takes possession of amelia island—spanish government demands explanation—the president disavows acts of mathews—governor mitchell succeeds mathews—georgia raises an army—florida invaded—troops surrounded by savage foes—their danger—their retreat—stealing slaves—lower creeks join seminoles—georgia demands their surrender—chiefs refuse—georgia complains—president refuses to interfere—another invasion of florida—towns burned; cattle stolen—troops withdrawn from amelia island—public attention directed toward our northern frontier—lord cockrane enters chesapeake bay—issues proclamation to slaves—dismay of slaveholders—slaves go on board british ships—several vessels enter appalachicola bay—col. nichols lands there with troops—gathers around him exiles and indians—builds a fort, arms it, and places military stores in its magazines—treaty of peace with england—provision in regard to slaves taken away during war—claimants of the exiles encouraged—col nichols delivers fort to the exiles—their plantations, wealth, and social condition—our army—general gaines represents fort as in possession of outlaws—plans for its destruction—correspondence—general jackson’s order—col. clinch’s expedition—met by sailing-master loomis and two gun-boats—fort blown up—destruction of human life—negroes captured and enslaved—property taken—claimed by governor of florida—first seminole war commenced.
when mr. madison assumed the duties of president (march 4, 1809), the exiles were quietly enjoying their freedom; each sitting under his own vine and fig-tree, without molestation or fear. many had been born in the seminole country, and now saw around them children and grand-children, in the enjoyment of all the necessaries of life. many, even of those who fled from georgia after the formation of that colony, had departed to their final rest; but their children and friends had been comparatively free from persecutions since the treaty of colerain, in 1796. discarding all connection with the creeks, and living under protection of spain, and feeling their right to liberty was “self-evident,” they believed the united states to have tacitly admitted their claims to freedom. with these impressions, they dwelt in conscious security, believing no further attempts would be made to re?nslave them. mr. madison had penned the memorable address of congress to the people of the united states, published near the close of the old confederation, in which was reiterated, in glowing language, the doctrines of the declaration of independence; and in the convention that framed the constitution, he had declared “it would be wrong to admit, in that instrument, that man can hold property in man.”
1810.
the people of georgia were not satisfied with the existing state of things. they were greatly excited at seeing those who had once been slaves, in south carolina and in georgia, now live quietly and happily in the enjoyment of liberty, with their flocks and their herds, their wives and their little ones, around them; but they were on spanish soil, protected by spanish laws. the only mode of enslaving them was, firstly, to obtain jurisdiction of the territory; and the annexation of florida to the united states was, accordingly, urged upon the federal government.
1811.
spain had acquired her american territories by conquest, and was too proud to part with them. an excitement, however, was raised in favor of its annexation; and this anxiety to secure the slave interests of the south, soon extended to congress, and infused itself into the executive policy of the nation. a law was passed by the two houses, in secret session, and approved by the president, for taking possession of florida. gen. mathews, a slaveholder of georgia, was appointed commissioner for that purpose. a few malcontents were found in the northeastern part of the territory; their numbers were increased by men of desperate fortunes from georgia; and an insurrection was proclaimed by the acting general. mathews, commanding the insurgents, took possession of amelia island, and of the country opposite to it on the main land. the spanish government, on learning the outrage, remonstrated with our executive, who disavowed the acts of mathews, whom he recalled; and proceeded to appoint general mitchell, the governor of georgia, to act as commissioner, in place of mathews.
mitchell, however, continued to hold military possession of the island and part of the main land, and, in fact, continued to carry forward the policy which mathews had inaugurated. these things occurred while our nation was professedly at peace with spain, and constituted a most flagrant violation of our national faith.
1812.
the executive of georgia, apparently entertaining the idea that his state was competent to declare war and make peace, raised an army, which, under the command of the adjutant general, entered florida with the avowed intention of exterminating the seminoles, who had so long refused to surrender the exiles; while the real object was the recapture and re?nslavement of the refugees. the creeks of the lower towns, however, took sides with the seminoles, in opposing this piratical foray of slave-catchers. the army having penetrated a hundred miles or more into florida, found itself surrounded with hostile savages. their supplies were cut off; the men, reduced almost to a state of starvation, were compelled to retrace their steps; and with great loss the survivors reached georgia. but they robbed those spanish inhabitants who fell in their way of all their provisions, and left them to suffer for the want of food. nor were the georgians satisfied with taking such provisions as were necessary to support life; they also took with them a large number of slaves, owned by spanish masters, with whom they resided.[21]
the people, and the authorities of georgia, were greatly incensed at the creek indians, who had assisted the seminoles in defending themselves; and the governor of that state demanded of the chiefs a surrender of those individuals who had thus offended against the sovereignty of that commonwealth. the chiefs refused to deliver up their brethren, and the governor complained to the president of this disregard of slaveholding comity by the creeks.
the federal authorities appear to have felt very little interest in the matter, and georgia determined to redress her own grievances. the legislature of that state, deeming their interests neglected by the federal government, passed resolutions declaring the occupation of florida essential to the safety and welfare of their people, whether congress authorized it or not; and they passed an act for raising a force “to reduce st. augustine and punish the indians.”
under this declaration of war by the sovereign power of georgia, another army was raised. hunters, trappers, vagabonds, and men of desperate fortunes, were collected from that state, from east tennessee, and from other southern states, to the number of five hundred; and florida was again invaded. this expedition was more successful, in some respects, than the first. they burned two or three of the smaller seminole towns, destroyed several cornfields that had been planted by the exiles, and drove back to georgia large herds of cattle, which they had stolen from the negroes; yet the principal object of the expedition failed: they were unable to capture an individual, or family, of the exiles. there were no spanish inhabitants in that part of florida from whom they could capture slaves, and they were compelled to return without human victims, but with the loss of several individuals of their own party. thus, after a struggle of more than two years (ending may, 1813), the state of georgia found itself unable to conquer florida or the seminoles, or to capture the exiles. further prosecution of the war was given up, the troops were withdrawn from amelia island, and peace was restored.
this extraordinary proceeding, on the part of georgia, appears to have excited very little attention at the time; probably in consequence of the more important operations that were then being carried forward, upon our northern and northwestern frontiers. harrison at tippecanoe, and at maumee; and scott and van rensselaer at queenston, and along the niagara frontier, were gallantly confronting the british army, aided by powerful allies from the various neighboring tribes of savages; and so greatly was the attention of the people of the northern states absorbed in these operations, that they were scarcely conscious of the slave-catching forays carried on by the state of georgia. indeed, during these operations, the public men of that state were among the most vehement advocates for a strict construction of the federal constitution, and for maintaining the american union.
1814.
these transactions upon our southern frontier, called attention of british ministers to the seminoles and the exiles. a hostile fleet entered chesapeake bay, under lord cochrane, who issued a proclamation inviting all persons (meaning slaves), who desired to emigrate from the united states, to come with their families on board his britannic majesty’s ships of war; assuring them of the privilege of entering his majesty’s naval service, or of settling with their families, as free persons, in either of the british west india islands. this proclamation was widely circulated, and spread very general consternation along our southern seaboard: it gave the slaveholders of georgia occasion to look to their own protection, and to secure the fidelity of those bondmen who yet remained in the service of their masters.[22]
gopher john, seminole interpreter.
gopher john, seminole interpreter.
two british sloops of war and some smaller vessels suddenly appeared in appalachicola bay, where they landed a body of troops, under lieut. colonel nichols, of the british army, for the purpose of lending support and protection to the exiles and their indian allies. he opened communications with them, furnished them with arms and ammunition, and soon drew around him a considerable force of indians as well as negroes. his encampment was on the east side of the appalachicola river, some thirty miles above its mouth. in november, he completed a strong fort on the bank of that stream. some eight pieces of heavy ordnance were mounted upon its walls, and its magazine was well stored with the material of war.[23] it was evidently intended as a defense against the forays of slave-catchers, who were not expected to bring with them heavy artillery. the plan was well conceived. even the plundering expeditions authorized by the state of georgia, would have been unable to make any impression on this fortification. but neither nichols, nor the exiles, appear to have anticipated the employment of the united states navy in a piratical work, discarded by most christian nations and people, and allowed to be carried on only upon the african coast.
the british fleet withdrew from the coast of georgia, and the slaveholders of that state were relieved, for a time, from those apprehensions of slave insurrection which had been excited by the proclamation of lord cochrane.
in the meantime the treaty of ghent was ratified, and peace restored to the country. in that treaty the interests of slavery had not been forgotten; and the same stipulations were inserted, in regard to the withdrawal of his majesty’s troops and navy, “without taking or carrying away any negroes or other property of the citizens,” which characterized the treaty of 1782. the owners of slaves who had fled from service under the proclamation of lord cochrane, now determined to obtain compensation for their loss. this general feeling again aroused the cupidity of those whose fathers had once claimed to own those exiles, who fled from georgia some thirty or forty years previously.
in the spring of 1815, colonel nichols and his troops withdrew from florida, leaving the fort, with its entire armament and magazine of military stores, in the possession of the exiles, who resided in the vicinity. their plantations extended along the river several miles, above and below the fort.[24] many of them possessed large herds of cattle and horses, which roamed in the forests, gathering their food, both in summer and winter, without expense or trouble to their owners.
the pioneer exiles from south carolina had settled here long before the colony of georgia existed. several generations had lived to manhood and died in those forest-homes. to their descendants it had become consecrated by “many an oft told tale” of early adventure, of hardship and suffering; the recollection of which had been retained in tradition, told in story, and sung in their rude lays. here were the graves of their ancestors, around whose memories were clustered the fondest recollections of the human mind. the climate was genial. they were surrounded by extensive forests, and far removed from the habitations of those enemies of freedom who sought to enslave them; and they regarded themselves as secure in the enjoyment of liberty. shut out from the cares and strifes of more civilized men, they were happy in their own social solitude. so far from seeking to injure the people of the united states, they were only anxious to be exempt, and entirely free from all contact with our population or government; while they faithfully maintained their allegiance to the spanish crown.
1815.
peace with great britain, however, had left our army without active employment. a portion of it was stationed along our southern frontier of georgia, to maintain peace with the indians. the authorities and people of georgia maintained social and friendly relations with the officers and men of the army. by means of indian spies, the real condition of the exiles was also ascertained and well understood. what means were used to excite the feelings or prejudices of the military officers against these unoffending exiles, is not known at this day. most of the officers commanding in the south were, however, slaveholders, and probably felt a strong sympathy with the people of georgia in their indignation against them, for obtaining and enjoying liberty without permission of their masters.
general gaines, commanding on the southern frontier of georgia, making fort scott his head-quarters, wrote the secretary of war (may 14), saying, “certain negroes and outlaws have taken possession of a fort on the appalachicola river, in the territory of florida.” he assured the secretary, that he should keep watch of them. he charged them with no crime, imputed to them no hostile acts. he was conscious that they had taken possession of the fort solely for their own protection; but he styled them negroes, which, in the language of that day among slaveholders, was regarded as an imputation of guilt; and outlaw was supposed to be a proper term with which to characterize those who had fled from bondage and sworn allegiance to another government.[25]
for more than a year subsequently to the date of this letter, general gaines made the exiles a subject of frequent communication to the war department. in this official correspondence, he at all times spoke of them as “runaways,” “outlaws,” “pirates,” “murderers,” etc.; but in no instance did he charge them with any act hostile to the united states, or to any other people or government.
of these communications the exiles were ignorant. they continued in peaceful retirement, cultivating the earth, and gaining a support for themselves and families. in the autumn of 1815, they gathered their crops, provided for the support of the aged and infirm, as well as for their children. they carefully nursed the sick; they buried their dead; they lived in peace, and enjoyed the fruits of their labor. the following spring and summer found them in this enviable condition.
1816.
while the exiles living on the appalachicola were thus pursuing the even tenor of their ways, plans were ripening among the slaveholders and military officers of our army for their destruction. a correspondence was opened by the secretary of war with general jackson, who commanded the southwestern military district of the united states, holding his head-quarters at nashville, tennessee. various letters and communications passed between those officers in regard to this “negro fort,” as they called it.
power is never more dangerous than when wielded by military men. they usually feel ambitious to display their own prowess, and that of the troops under their command; and no person can read the communications of general gaines, in regard to the exiles who had gathered in and around this fort, without feeling conscious that he greatly desired to give to the people of the united states an example of the science and power by which they could destroy human life.[26]
at length, on the sixteenth of may, general jackson wrote general gaines, saying, “i have little doubt of the fact, that this fort has been established by some villains for the purpose of rapine and plunder, and that it ought to be blown up, regardless of the ground on which it stands; and if your mind shall have formed the same conclusion, destroy it and return the stolen negroes and property to their rightful owners.”[27]
without attempting to criticise this order of general jackson, we must regard a fort thus situated, at least sixty miles from the border of the united states, as a most singular instrument for the purpose of “rapine,” or plundering our citizens. nor could general jackson have entertained any apprehensions from those who occupied the fort. the entire correspondence showed them to be refugees, seeking only to avoid our people; indeed, his very order shows this, for he directs general gaines to return the “stolen negroes to their rightful owners.” the use of opprobrious epithets is not often resorted to by men in high official stations: yet it is difficult to believe, that general jackson supposed these negroes to have been stolen; for, neither in the official correspondence on this subject, nor in the papers accompanying it, embracing more than a hundred documentary pages, is there a hint that these negroes were “stolen,” or that they had committed violence upon any person, or upon the property of any person whatever. they had sought their own liberty, and the charge of stealing themselves, was used like the other epithets of “outlaws,” “pirates” and “murderers,” to cast opprobrium upon the character of men who, if judged by their love of liberty or their patriotism, would now occupy a position not less honorable in the history of our country than is assigned to the patriots of 1776.
nor is it easy to discover the rule of international law, which authorized the executive of the united states, or the officers of our army, to dictate to the crown of spain in what part of his territory he should, or should not, erect fortresses; or the constitutional power which they held for invading the territory of a nation at peace with the united states, destroy a fort, and consign its occupants to slavery. but those were days of official arrogance on the one hand, and popular submission on the other. the exiles, or their ancestors, had once been slaves. they now were cultivating the richest lands in florida, and possessed wealth; they were occupying a strong fortress. many slaves during the recent war had escaped from their masters, in georgia, and some were supposed to be free subjects of spain, living in florida; and if the exiles were permitted to enjoy their plantations and property in peace, it was evident that the institution in adjoining states would be in danger of a total overthrow. these facts were apparent to general jackson, as well as to general gaines and the slaveholders of georgia.
general gaines only awaited permission from his superior to carry out the designs of the slaveholders, who had become alarmed at the dangers to which their “peculiar institution” was subjected. upon the receipt of the order above quoted, he detailed lieut. col. clinch,[28] of the regular troops, with his regiment and five hundred friendly creek indians, under mcintosh, their principal chief, to carry out the directions of general jackson. colonel clinch was directed to take with him two pieces of artillery, for the purpose of cannonading the fort if necessary.[29]
this commencement of the first seminole war was, at the time, unknown to the people of the united states. it was undertaken for the purposes stated in general jackson’s order, to “blow up the fort, and return the negroes to their rightful owners.” historians have failed to expose the cause of hostilities, or the barbarous foray which plunged the nation into that bloody contest which cost the people millions of treasure and the sacrifice of hundreds of human lives.
it was july before the arrangements were fully made by colonel clinch and his savage allies for descending the river, with suitable artillery and supplies, to accomplish the object of their mission.[30] the creeks, having entered into the treaties of new york and colerain, by which they bound themselves, twenty years previously, to return those exiles who fled from georgia, and having failed to perform those stipulations, now cheerfully united with the american army in this first slave-catching expedition undertaken by the federal government.
of these movements the exiles had been informed by their neighbors, the friendly creeks; for, among the lower creeks, were individuals who at all times sympathized with them, and kept them informed of the measures adopted for their destruction. all the families living on the river and in the vicinity of the fort, fled to it for protection. they had no idea of the advantages arising from scientific warfare; they believed their fortification impregnable. colonel nichols had erected it for the purpose of affording them protection, and they had no doubt of its efficiency for that purpose.
such were the delays attending the journey, in consequence of difficulties in transporting heavy guns and provisions, that the troops did not reach the vicinity of the fort until the twenty-fourth of july. in the meantime, commodore patterson, in pursuance of orders from the naval department, had detailed sailing-master loomis, with two gun-boats, to assist in carrying out the order of general jackson.[31]
on the twenty-fourth of july, colonel clinch commenced a reconnoisance of the fort. on the twenty-fifth, he cleared away the brush and erected a battery, and placed upon it two long eighteen-pounders, and commenced a cannonade of the fortress. at the time of this investment, there were about three hundred exiles in the fort, including women and children, besides thirty-four seminole indians:[32] yet in the official report of colonel clinch, he makes no mention of his fire being returned; nor does he say that any of his men were killed or wounded by the occupants of the fort.
on the twenty-sixth of july, sailing-master loomis, with his command, reached a point on the river some two miles below the fort. colonel clinch met him at that place, for consultation, and informed him that his fire had thus far proved ineffectual, and that a nearer approach of artillery by land would be difficult.[33]
judging from the language used in his official dispatch, sailing-master loomis must have entertained some feelings of distrust towards colonel clinch, as they evidently separated in bad temper: yet no officer in the service of the united states ever exhibited greater prudence in his preparations, or more firmness in battle, than colonel clinch. he was, however, a man of kind and humane feelings, and high notions of honor. it has been supposed by many of his friends, that he shrank from the perpetration of the outrage which he had been detailed to commit.[34]
on the morning of the twenty-seventh, loomis, with his boats, ascended the river and cast anchor opposite the fort, while colonel clinch and the creek indians took positions so as to cut off retreat by land. the cannonade was resumed, and the land and naval forces of the united states were engaged in throwing shot and shells for the purpose of murdering those friendless exiles, those women and children, who had committed no other offense than that of having been born of parents who, a century previously, had been held in bondage. mothers and children now shrieked with terror as the roar of cannon, the whistling of balls, the explosion of shells, the war-whoops of the savages, the groans of the wounded and dying, foretold the sad fate which awaited them. the stout-hearted old men cheered and encouraged their friends, declaring that death was to be preferred to slavery.
the struggle, however, was not protracted. the cannon balls not taking effect upon the embankments of earth, they prepared their furnaces and commenced the fire of hot shot, directed at the principal magazine. this mode proved more successful. a ball, fully heated, reached the powder in the magazine. the small size of the fort, and the great number of people in it, rendered the explosion unusually fatal. many were entirely buried in the ruins, others were killed by falling timbers, while many bodies were torn in pieces. limbs were separated from bodies to which they had been attached, and death, in all its horrid forms, was visible within that doomed fortress.[35]
of three hundred and thirty-four souls within the fort, two hundred and seventy were instantly killed; while of the sixty who remained, only three escaped without injury.[36] two of the survivors—one negro and one indian—were selected as supposed chiefs of the allied forces within the fort. they were delivered over to the indians who accompanied colonel clinch, and were massacred within the fort, in the presence of our troops;[37] but no report on record shows the extent of torture to which they were subjected.
we have no reliable information as to the number who died of their wounds. they were placed on board the gun-boats, and their wounds were dressed by the surgeons; and those who recovered were afterwards delivered over to claimants in georgia. those who were slightly wounded, but able to travel, were taken back with colonel clinch to georgia and delivered over to men who claimed to have descended from planters who, some three or four generations previously, owned the ancestors of the prisoners. there could be no proof of identity, nor was there any court authorized to take testimony, or enter decree in such case; but they were delivered over upon claim, taken to the interior, and sold to different planters. there they mingled with that mass of chattelized humanity which characterizes our southern states, and were swallowed up in that tide of oppression which is now bearing three millions of human beings to untimely graves.
sailing-master loomis informed the naval department, through commodore patterson, that the value of the property captured in the fort was “not less than two hundred thousand dollars.” he also stated that a portion of this property was “delivered over by colonel clinch to the indians who had accompanied him, on the express agreement that they should share in the plunder.” another portion of property was held by colonel clinch, as necessary for the use of the troops. a list of the articles thus taken is given in the report: it embraces spades, shovels, pickaxes, swords, sword-belts, pistols and muskets. the remainder of the property was taken on board the gun-boats, and held subject to the order of the secretary of the navy.[38]
the governor of florida demanded, in the name of “his most christian majesty the king of spain,” possession of the property thus captured in the fort; denying the right of either our army or navy to invade the territory of spain, and take and carry away property from its fortifications.
to this claim sailing-master loomis replied, that the property did not belong to the spanish crown, but to the exiles, who were in possession of it, from whom it was taken by conquest. this correspondence between his excellency the governor of florida and the commander of the two gun-boats, was duly transmitted to our government at washington, and may now be found in our national archives.[39]
some twenty-two years subsequent to the capture of this property, and the massacre of those who were in possession of it, a bill was reported in the house of representatives,[40] granting five thousand dollars to the officers, marines and sailors who constituted the crews of those gun-boats, as compensation for their gallant services. whether the honorable chairman of the naval committee who reported the bill, or any member of the house who voted for it, was aware of the true character of the services rendered, is a matter of doubt; but the bill passed without opposition, became a law, and the people of the united states paid that bonus for the perpetration of one of the darkest crimes which stains the history of any civilized nation.[41]
the official correspondence connected with this massacre was called for by resolution, adopted in the house of representatives, and was communicated to that body at the second session of the fifteenth congress. but no action appears to have been proposed in regard to it; nor does it appear that public attention was at that time particularly called to this most wanton sacrifice of human life.
in this massacre, nearly every exile resident upon the appalachicola river, including women and children, perished or was re?nslaved. their homes were left desolate; their plantations, and their herds of cattle and horses, became the property of those who first obtained possession of them. probably one-third of all the exiles at that time resident in florida, perished in this massacre, or were re?nslaved by colonel clinch; yet the atrocious character of the transaction appears to have attracted very little attention at the time. general jackson was popular as a military officer, and the administration of mr. madison was regarded with general favor. no member of congress protested against the transaction, or made known its barbarity to the people; while the ablest members taxed their ingenuity, and brought all their rhetoric to bear, in vindication of those concerned in the outrage.
while mr. clay and others severely condemned the technical invasion of florida, as an act of hostility toward the king of spain, they omitted all reference to this wanton massacre of the exiles: nor have we been able to learn that any member even intimated that the bloody seminole war of 1816-17 and 18, arose from efforts of our government to sustain the interests of slavery; or that our troops were employed to murder women and children because their ancestors had once been held in bondage, and to seize and carry back to toil and suffering those who escaped death in that barbarous massacre. the officers of government, and historians of that day, appear to have avoided all reference to the fact, that the people thus murdered had been far longer in the wilderness than were the children of israel; that they were contending for that liberty which is the rightful inheritance of every human being. indeed, more than twenty years elapsed after this massacre, before a distinguished philanthropist gave to the public the first intimation that such a people as the exiles had existed.
