Spanish West Florida ( Spanish : Florida Occidental ) was a province of the Spanish Empire from 1783 until 1821, when both it and East Florida were ceded to the United States .
146-739: The region of West Florida initially had the same borders as the erstwhile British colony . Much of its territory was gradually annexed by the United States in the West Florida Controversy . At its greatest extent, the colony included what are now the Florida Parishes of Louisiana , the southernmost parts of Mississippi and Alabama , as well as the Panhandle of Florida . Whereas Southeastern Louisiana and present-day coastal Mississippi and Alabama were annexed either prior to or during
292-603: A list of other reasons . The United States and Spain held long, inconclusive negotiations on the status of West Florida. In the meantime, American settlers established a foothold in the area and resisted Spanish control. British settlers, who had remained, also resented Spanish rule, leading to a rebellion in 1810 and the establishment for 74 days of the Republic of West Florida. In West Florida from June to September 1810, many secret meetings of those who resented Spanish rule, as well as three openly held conventions, took place in
438-507: A church in 1606, but not a priest. Espogache is not mentioned in Spanish records after 1606. A missionary was resident at the Santa Clara mission in 1616, but the mission does not appear in Spanish records after that year. In 1677 some of the former residents of Tupiqui were living at Zapala, while many had joined other Guale and Yamassee who moved to English-held territory. Ospo or Talapo/Tulapo
584-417: A church located at Olatayco. The two places appear to have been adjacent to each other, or the names may have been variant names for the same place. Hann suggests that "Olacayco" was based on "Holato" (chief) "Yco". Hann quotes Deagan as saying Olacayco/Alatico were "probably Cascange towns". By 1603 the church at San Pedro was old enough that the governor proposed building a new church. Bishop Altamirano visited
730-459: A clay floor. Plank and wattle and daub walls often enclosed at least part of the church.{{efn| Herbert Eugene Bolton , John Tate Lanning , and other historians believed, from the mid-19th century into the early 20th century, that tabby ruins in coastal Georgia and northeastern Florida were the remains of Spanish missions, even though local residents had earlier identified the ruins as those of 18th century sugar mills and cotton barns. The fact that
876-615: A few months later. Cabrera suspected English influence in the hostility shown the missionaries. Threats from Cabrera led to at least the Christianized residents of the town moving south to a point west of the Flint River just above where it joins the Chattahoochee. A mission named San Carlos de Sabacola was established in the town before 1686. The mission last appears in Spanish records in 1690. The mission town may have included Chatots from
1022-623: A fusion between San Felipe de Alabe and San Pedro de Atulteca that resulted in the mission of San Felipe de Athulutheca. A mission of San Diego de Satuache, first noted in 1616, may have been the northernmost mission in Guale province. Lanning placed Satuache near the mouth of the Edisto River , in South Carolina. Worth places Satuache near the mouth of the Ogeechee River. In 1662 Chicimeco attacked
1168-895: A great-granddaughter of Fulwar Skipwith, donated the original copy of the constitution of the West Florida Republic and the supporting papers to the Louisiana State Archives in Baton Rouge. Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond also holds an archival collection of documents from British West Florida and the Republic of West Florida, some of them dating back to 1764. Governors under British rule: Governors under Spanish rule: 30°39′N 88°41′W / 30.650°N 88.683°W / 30.650; -88.683 Spanish missions in Florida Beginning in
1314-691: A lack of progress in converting the Guale, the Jesuits withdrew from the Georgia coast and, in 1570, established the Ajacán Mission in what is now the state of Virginia. All of those missionaries were killed a few months later. The surviving Jesuit missionaries were withdrawn from Spanish Florida in 1572. There are indications that a Franciscan friar was resident in Tupiqui on the Sapelo River in 1569–1570, and that in
1460-410: A northern boundary for Florida. Spain insisted that its West Florida claim extended fully to the 1767 boundary at 32° 28′, but the United States asserted that the land between 31° and 32° 28′ had always been British territory. This sparked the first West Florida Controversy . Negotiations in 1785–1786 between John Jay and Don Diego de Gardoqui failed to reach a satisfactory conclusion. The border
1606-414: A resident missionary, usually in the chief town of a chiefdom. A doctrina typically included a church, a residence for the missionary, and a kitchen. Visitas were stations with a cross and some sort of rudimentary chapel, often open-air, in outlying villages, which were visited by a missionary, but had no resident missionary. Churches at doctrinas typically had wood posts supporting a roof of thatch over
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#17328447546591752-560: A total of 700 to 800 inhabitants in Ibi Province, but the first mention of an established mission in the province, San Lorenzo de Ibihica ( hica was Timucuan for "village", so Ibihica meant "village of Ibi"), was in 1630. Hann believes that the mission was established in 1612 or soon thereafter, as additional Franciscan missionaries entered La Florida that year. There is no mention of a mission in Ibi after 1630 (the next list of missions after 1630
1898-680: Is now southwestern Georgia. The town of Sabacola , or Sabacola el Menor, located just below where the Chattahoochee and Flint rivers join to form the Apalachicola River , was the site of a mission called La Encarnation a la Santa Cruz, or just Santa Cruz, from 1674 to 1677. Fearing attack from the Chisca in western Florida, with whom the Apalachee were fighting, the inhabitants of Sabacola moved north, probably in 1677. A new town of Sabacola el Grande
2044-573: Is now the Southeastern United States , although Spain never exercised long-term effective control over more than the northern part of what is now the State of Florida from present-day St. Augustine to the area around Tallahassee , southeastern Georgia , and some coastal settlements, such as Pensacola, Florida . A few short-lived missions were established in other locations, including Mission Santa Elena in present-day South Carolina , around
2190-401: Is one report of Spanish soldiers being sent into Mocama Province in 1622 or 1623 to round up Christian natives who had fled the missions to live in the woods (called Indios Cimarrones ), and return them to the missions. Later in the 1620s, a Spanish expedition found that all canoes had been removed from crossing places normally used for travel in the province. In the middle of the 17th century
2336-749: The 1763 peace treaty . West Florida extended from the Apalachicola River to the Mississippi River , with its capital at Pensacola. In 1779, Spain entered the American Revolutionary War on the side of France but not the Thirteen Colonies . Bernardo de Gálvez , governor of Spanish Louisiana , led a military campaign along the Gulf coast , capturing Baton Rouge and Natchez from the British in 1779, Mobile in 1780 and Pensacola in 1781 . In
2482-402: The 1783 Paris peace treaty , Great Britain returned both Florida colonies to Spanish control. Instead of administering Florida as a single province, as it had prior to 1763, New Spain preserved the British arrangement of dividing the territory between East and West Florida ( Florida Oriental and Florida Occidental ). When Spain acquired West Florida in 1783, the eastern British boundary was
2628-583: The American Revolutionary War , the Governor of West Florida was Peter Chester . The commander of British forces during the war was John Campbell . The colony was attacked in 1778 by the Willing Expedition . Spain entered the American Revolutionary War on the side of France , but not the Thirteen Colonies . Bernardo de Gálvez , governor of Spanish Louisiana, led a military campaign along
2774-587: The Apalachee . In 1698, the settlement of Pensacola was established to check French expansion into the area. Beginning in the late 17th century, the French established settlements along the Gulf Coast and in the region as part of their colonial La Louisiane , including Mobile (1702) and Fort Toulouse (1717) in present-day Alabama and Fort Maurepas (1699) in present-day coastal Mississippi . After years of contention between France and Spain, they agreed to use
2920-497: The Cajun culture forming. West Florida West Florida ( Spanish : Florida Occidental ) was a region on the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico that underwent several boundary and sovereignty changes during its history. As its name suggests, it was formed out of the western part of former Spanish Florida ( East Florida formed the eastern part, with the Apalachicola River as
3066-634: The Dungeness wharf, has been identified as the probable site of Tacatacuru, the town in which San Pedro was situated, but the site of the mission appears to have eroded away. San Buenaventura de Guadalquini was a mission on St. Simon's Island. Guadalquini was first mentioned in Spanish records in 1606, while the mission of San Buenaventura was first mentioned in 1609. While some authors have placed San Buenaventura de Guadalquini on Jekyll Island , and considered its residents to be Guale, Hann notes that no Spanish records identified them as Guale, and records from
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#17328447546593212-681: The Florida Territory on March 30, 1822, by combining East Florida and the rump West Florida east of the Perdido River and establishing a territorial government. It was then admitted to the Union as a state on March 3, 1845. West Florida had an effect on choosing the location of Florida's current capital. At first, the Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida determined to rotate between
3358-414: The Florida Territory . The area known as West Florida was originally claimed by Spain as part of La Florida , which included most of what is now the southeastern United States. Spain made several attempts to conquer and colonize the area, notably including Tristán de Luna 's short-lived settlement in 1559, but it was not settled permanently until the 17th century, with the establishment of missions to
3504-506: The Gulf of Mexico coast. Following Spain's losses to Great Britain during the Seven Years' War , Spain ceded its Florida territory to Britain in 1763. British administrators then divided the territory into two colonies: East Florida , including the Florida peninsula with the capital at St. Augustine, and West Florida , to which was appended part of the territory received from France under
3650-562: The Isle of Orleans . However, under the treaty that had concluded the French and Indian War ( Seven Years' War ) in 1763, Britain obtained immediate title to all of French La Louisiane east of the Mississippi River . This included the land between the Perdido and Mississippi. Spain also ceded to Great Britain its territory of La Florida , in exchange for Cuba , which the British had captured during
3796-617: The Mayaca people , a non-Timucuan speaking tribe south of the Agua Fresca, and resumed efforts among them, and their relatives, the Jororo, in the late 17th century. This district, which became known as the Mayaca-Jororo Province, occupied an area to the south of Lake George , on the upper (southern) St. Johns River. The Timucua-speakers, most of whom were brought into the mission system in
3942-533: The Mississippi and Apalachicola Rivers, with a northern boundary which shifted several times over the subsequent years. Both West and East Florida remained loyal to the British crown during the American Revolution , and served as havens for Tories fleeing from the Thirteen Colonies . Spain invaded West Florida and captured Pensacola in 1781, and after the war Britain ceded both Floridas to Spain. However,
4088-717: The Mobile District of West Florida to the Mississippi Territory on May 14, 1812, although this decision was not effected with military force until nearly a year later. (See Major Gen. James Wilkinson's role .) According to one historian, "The incorporation of West Florida into the Orleans district represents the emergence of infant American imperialism by the newly constructed union. Using force, not negotiations, Claiborne and his army, with Madison's proclamation, forced Skipwith and his sympathizers to accept foreign rule." By
4234-469: The Muscogee and Yamassee peoples, who in turn began attacking the missions of Spanish Florida. In 1680, a Muscogee war party attacked the mission of Santiago de Ocone on Jekyll Island, but was repelled. A party of 300 warriors led by English officers attacked the mission town of Santa Catalina on St. Catherines Island, but six Spanish soldiers and 16 Guale musketeers successfully defended the mission. Following
4380-623: The Natchez District and the Tombigbee District . The appended area included approximately the lower halves of the present states of Mississippi and Alabama . Many new settlers arrived in the wake of the British garrison, swelling the population. In 1774 the First Continental Congress sent letters inviting West Florida to send delegates, but this proposal was declined as the inhabitants were overwhelmingly Loyalist . During
4526-544: The Perdido River (the modern border between Florida and Alabama) as the boundary between French Louisiana and Spanish Florida. Before 1762, France had owned and administered the land west of the Perdido River as part of La Louisiane . The secret Treaty of Fontainebleau , concluded in 1762 but not made public until 1764, had effectively ceded to Spain all of French Louisiana west of the Mississippi River, as well as
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4672-464: The Perdido River to the Mississippi River, which the Americans believed had been a part of the old province of Louisiana when the French agreed to cede it to Spain in 1762. The Spanish insisted that they had administered that portion as the province of West Florida and that it was not part of the territory restored to France by Charles IV in 1802, as France had never given West Florida to Spain, among
4818-512: The Province of Carolina , along with their Creek allies, killed or kidnapped much of the remaining native population of Spanish Florida except in areas near St. Augustine and Pensacola. The network of missions was virtually destroyed by Carolina Governor James Moore 's incursions into northern Florida between 1702 and 1709, a series of attacks that were later called the Apalachee massacre . Dozens of missions and surrounding villages were abandoned by
4964-550: The Tacatacuru chiefdom on Cumberland (San Pedro) Island (abandoned in 1573). De Avilés had only four priests in his initial company, and three of those ministered to the garrisons at St. Augustine, Santa Elena, and San Mateo (on the site of the captured Fort Caroline). De Avilés asked the Society of Jesus to send missionaries to convert the natives. In the meantime, he appointed particularly pious lay persons at each presidio to instruct
5110-519: The War of 1812 , the land which makes up present-day Florida was not acquired until several years later. It became the Florida Territory of the United States in 1822. Spain was the first European state to colonize the Florida peninsula, expanding northward from Cuba and establishing long-lasting settlements at St. Augustine , on the Atlantic coast, as well as at Pensacola and San Marcos (St. Marks), on
5256-564: The Westo , threatened the Guale missions in 1661. There may have been a confrontation between Spanish soldiers and the Chichimeco, resulting in the capture of some Chichimeco. The establishment of an English colony at Charles Town in 1670 eventually resulted in severe disruption to the missions in Spanish Florida. The English traded firearms and other manufactured goods in exchange for skins to
5402-604: The mission road in northern Florida that connected St. Augustine and Apalachee Province. San Pedro de Mocama last appeared in Spanish records in 1655. Guales and Yamassees moving south along the coast may have pushed the Timucuan Mocamas to move south soon after that date, perhaps to Amelia Island. Yamassee people were forced out of Tama Province by raids conducted by Westo, and settled in or near mission towns. San Pedro do Mocama mission appeared on Spanish lists until 1659. The mission of San Phelipe (or Felipe) de Athulteca
5548-560: The mission system they had left behind when the British gained control of Florida in 1763. The Spanish adopted a policy that allowed for religious freedom among those who lived there, but did not permit them to practice any faith other than Roman Catholicism in public. The Spanish aided the migration of the French Acadians to the colony's Louisiana bayous by subsidizing their "transportation, maintenance, and financial aid" between 1783 and 1785 and their migration to Louisiana resulted in
5694-468: The secret treaty of October 1, 1800, between France and Spain, known as the St. Ildefonso treaty, Spain returned to France in 1802 the province of Louisiana as at that time possessed by Spain, and such as it was when France last possessed it in 1769. (In contrast, Madison's 1810 proclamation alluded to the time of France's original , not last, possession.) It is important that in the transfer of Louisiana to
5840-639: The 1570s Theatine friars established a mission in the town of Guale, but little has been found about those missions in Spanish records. The missions at the presidios were staffed by the Jesuits . Due to the hostility of the Native Americans, which resulted in the killing of several of the missionaries, the Jesuits withdrew from the mission field in La Florida in 1572. Franciscan friars entered into La Florida in 1573, but at first confined their activities to
5986-529: The American government without conditions. Skipwith and several of his unreconciled legislators then departed for the fort at Baton Rouge, rather than surrender the country unconditionally and without terms. At Baton Rouge on December 9, 1810, Skipwith informed Holmes that he would no longer resist but could not speak for the troops in the fort. Their commander was John Ballinger, who upon the assurance of Holmes that his troops would not be harmed, agreed to surrender
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6132-563: The Apalachee Province. In 1602, San Pedro de Mocama was reported to have 300 resident Christians, while 792 were reported to attend mass there on major feast days. A number of visitas were recorded as attached to San Pedro early in the 17th century, on San Pedro (Cumberland) Island and elsewhere. Puturiba, where a mission had been established in 1595, was listed as a visita with a church building under San Pedro. Olatayco and Alatico were reported as visitas under San Pedro in 1604, with
6278-598: The Apalachicola River, but Spain moved it eastward to the Suwannee River in 1785. The purpose was to transfer San Marcos and the district of Apalachee from East Florida to West Florida. When British West Florida surrendered to the Spanish, civilian residents of Pensacola were given the option of staying or leaving with most opting to leave. Pensacola primarily functioned as a British military garrison and most of its inhabitants were directly or indirectly involved with
6424-494: The Baton Rouge district. Out of those meetings grew the West Florida rebellion and the establishment of the independent Republic of West Florida, with its capital at St. Francisville, in present-day Louisiana, on a bluff along the Mississippi River. Early in the morning on September 23, 1810, armed rebels stormed Fort San Carlos at Baton Rouge and killed two Spanish soldiers "in a sharp and bloody firefight that wrested control of
6570-543: The Christianized Mocama on Cumberland Island, including their chief, were evacuated to St. Augustine after the Guale Uprising, but had returned to the island in about six months. The mission at Ibi was also abandoned, but Ibi people visited towns near San Pedro. Guale attacked Cumberland Island again later that year (1598), burning some villages and killing three people. While some of the friars left Florida after
6716-576: The Florida peninsula, and in the interior of Georgia and Alabama . The missions of what are now northern Florida and southeastern Georgia were divided into four main provinces where the bulk of missionary effort took place. These were Apalachee , comprising the eastern part of what is now the Florida Panhandle ; Timucua , ranging from the St. Johns River west to the Suwanee ; Mocama , the coastal areas east of
6862-639: The Georgia coast, including at Puturiba near the northern end of Cumberland Island (in Mocama Province), and five in Guale Province, at Tupiqui on the Sapelo River, Asao at the mouth of the Altamaha River , Talapo (or Ospo) on the mainland near Sapelo Island , Tolomato on the mainland near St. Catherines Island , and on Guale (St. Catherines) Island. Another mission was established in Ibi (Yui) Province
7008-469: The Georgia coast. The Spanish were unable to protect the missions from the English, their native allies, and the pirates. By 1686, all of the Spanish missions north of the St. Marys River had been abandoned. The people of Santa Isabel de Utinahica were moved to St. Simons Island in the middle of the 17th century. The declining Oconi population was bolstered by moving other Timucua people from southern Georgia to
7154-407: The Georgia coast; San Felipe on Cumberland Island, Santa Buenaventura de Guadalquini on Jekyll Island, Santo Domingo de Asahó on St. Simons Island, San José de Zapala on Sapelo Island, and Santa Catalina on St.Catherines Island. "San Pedro became Santa Clara de Tupiqui in the 1690s." The mission of Santa María de Los Angeles de Arapaha had been established by 1630 on the Alapaha River . After
7300-430: The Guale Uprising, others expressed confidence in the progress of missions in other provinces. The mission of San Pedro on Cumberland Island served seven towns on the island, with 384 baptized converts, and many others were receiving instruction in the faith. The Franciscans also reported that there were 1,200 converts in Guale Province who could be won back if the province could be brought under Spanish control again. Peace
7446-419: The Guale complained that it was difficult to convert the natives to Christianity because they did not remain resident in one place, but moved to be near food resources as they became seasonally available. A Jesuit missionary, Father Pedro Martinez, and three companions attempted to establish a mission at Tacatacuru that year, but all four were killed by the Tacatacuru. Discouraged by the killings at Tacatacuru and
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#17328447546597592-484: The Guale, who turned back. Only a small party of Guale men entered the mission village. They were discovered before they could kill anyone and were driven off. The mission effort on the Georgia coast was greatly reduced. The friar at Puturiba was sent to Spain to report on the killing of the friars. The missions in Guale Province had been destroyed in the revolt, and missionaries did not return to Guale Province for several years. The friar at Tacatacuru, and at least some of
7738-428: The Gulf Coast , capturing Baton Rouge and Natchez from the British in 1779, Mobile in 1780 , and Pensacola in 1781 . In the 1783 Treaty of Paris ending the war, the British agreed to a boundary between the United States and West Florida at 31° north latitude between the Mississippi and Apalachicola Rivers. However, a separate Anglo-Spanish agreement, which ceded both Florida provinces back to Spain, did not specify
7884-443: The Perdido River that was not already in the possession of the United States, with authorization to use military and naval force as deemed necessary. On April 14, 1812, Congress authorized the portion of the territory west of the Pearl River to be incorporated into the state of Louisiana, which would be formally created on April 30, but it was not formally attached until the state's legislature approved it on August 4. The U.S. annexed
8030-416: The Rigolets formed the eastern boundary of the republic. On October 27, 1810, U.S. President James Madison proclaimed that the United States should take possession of West Florida between the Mississippi and Perdido Rivers, based on a tenuous claim that it was part of the Louisiana Purchase. (See The U.S. claim , below.) The West Florida government opposed annexation, preferring to negotiate terms to join
8176-403: The Spanish, who Hann believes later become known as Yuchis , attacked western Timucua and Apalachee missions around 1650. In 1651 Governor Vallecilla sent a Spanish soldier to Guale to determine if Chiscas were threatening that province. At least one patrol by Spanish soldiers and Guale warriors fought Chiscas and chased them away from Guale. People that the Spanish called "Chichimeco", likely
8322-705: The St. Johns running north to the Altamaha River ; and Guale , north of the Altamaha River along the coast to the present-day Georgia Sea Islands . These provinces roughly corresponded to the areas where those dialects were spoken among the varying Native American peoples, thus, they reflected the territories of the peoples. Missionary provinces were relatively fluid and evolved over the years according to demographic and political trends, and at various times smaller provinces were established, abandoned, or merged with larger ones. There were also ephemeral attempts to establish missions elsewhere, particularly further south into Florida. The priests and religious that traveled with
8468-414: The Suwanee as far as the Aucilla River , was added, and the Timucua province covered the majority of north central Florida. The coastal area south of the Mocama Province and St. Augustine was known as La Costa ; though this area had some Timucua speakers, it did not see much missionary activity, perhaps because it was less densely populated. There were also a few missions established to the north and west of
8614-522: The Timucua and reached the Apalachees in the vicinity of modern Tallahassee by 1633. Before de Avilés left Florida for the final time in 1572, he requested missionaries be sent by the Franciscans. The first Franciscan friars arrived at Santa Elena in 1573, and over the next few years a few Franciscans served in Spanish Florida, primarily in the garrison towns of St. Augustine and Santa Elena. Four Franciscan priests arrived in Florida in 1584, and another twelve arrived in Spanish Florida in 1587, one year after
8760-419: The Timucuan Rebellion of 1656, Governor Robelledo order the people of Arapaha be moved to the mission Santa Fé de Potano along the trail connecting Sy. Augustine to Apalachee Province. The mission of Santa Fé had lost most of its population, and its chief had been executed following the Timucua Rebellion. Most of the people transferred to Santa Fé from Arapaha soon fled to the woods, as the population of Santa Fé
8906-416: The Union. Governor Fulwar Skipwith proclaimed that he and his men would "surround the Flag-Staff and die in its defense". William C. C. Claiborne was sent to take possession of the territory, entering the capital of St. Francisville with his forces on December 6, 1810, and Baton Rouge on December 10, 1810. Claiborne refused to recognize the legitimacy of the West Florida government, however, and Skipwith and
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#17328447546599052-424: The United States on February 19, 1821, the treaty took effect, thereby establishing the current boundaries. President James Monroe was authorized on March 3, 1821, to take possession of East Florida and West Florida for the United States and provide for initial governance. As a result, the U.S. military took over and governed both Floridas with Andrew Jackson serving as governor. The United States soon organized
9198-478: The United States, the identical language in Article 3 of the 1800 St. Ildefonso treaty was used. The ambiguity in this third article lent itself to the purpose of U.S. envoy James Monroe , although he had to adopt an interpretation that France had not asserted nor Spain allowed. Monroe examined each clause of the third article and interpreted the first clause as if Spain since 1783 had considered West Florida as part of Louisiana. The second clause only served to render
9344-423: The attacks, the governor of Spanish Florida ordered a withdrawal from the northern part of Guale Province, including the native residents of the mission towns. The Guale did not want to leave, and many fled into the woods, some even joining the raiding Muscogee and Yamassee. By 1684 most of the northern Guale had gone over to the English side. At the same time, pirates began raiding the remaining Spanish missions along
9490-411: The border), along with lands taken from French Louisiana ; Pensacola became West Florida's capital . The colony included about two thirds of what is now the Florida Panhandle , as well as parts of the modern U.S. states of Louisiana , Mississippi , and Alabama . Great Britain established West and East Florida in 1763 out of land acquired from France and Spain after the Seven Years' War . As
9636-405: The borders of the modern U.S. state of Florida; rather, it comprised the Florida parishes of today's Louisiana. Within months it was annexed by the United States, which claimed the region as part of the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. In 1819, the United States negotiated the purchase of the remainder of West Florida and all of East Florida in the Adams–Onís Treaty , and in 1822 both were merged into
9782-474: The chief of Coveta , one of the four "mother towns" of the Muscogee Confederacy, of the request. On hearing of the arrival of the missionaries, the chief traveled to Sabacola and forced the missionaries to leave three days later. Juan Márquez Cabrera , who had become governor of Spanish Florida in 1680, sent missionaries back to Sabacola in 1681, with an escort of seven Spanish soldiers. The missionaries baptized 36 residents of Sabacola before being forced out again
9928-520: The chief of Ocone asked for a delay until their crops had been harvested, the governor sent soldiers to seize the chief, burn the villages, and force the people to move to St. Augustine. However, most of the people fled to the woods, while a few may have taken refuge at the San Pedro mission. Ocone disappeared from Spanish records after this. Known records are sparse for Mocama Province between 1609 and 1655. The Mocamas may have been hard hit by epidemics that struck Spanish Florida in 1614 through 1617. There
10074-408: The distance of the St. Johns River in Florida. It included some of the earliest missions to be established, and served the Mocama , a Timucuan -speaking group of the coastal areas. Important missions established in the Mocama Province were San Juan del Puerto , among the Saturiwa chiefdom, and San Pedro de Mocama , among the Tacatacuru . The Timucua Province was initially established to serve
10220-405: The district of Apalachee from East Florida to West Florida. In the secret Treaty of San Ildefonso of 1800, Spain agreed to return Louisiana to France; however, the location of the boundary between Louisiana and West Florida was not explicitly specified. After France sold Louisiana to the United States in 1803, another boundary dispute erupted. The United States laid claim to the territory from
10366-417: The earlier mission of San Carlos de los Chacatos in present-day Jackson County, Florida . San Felipe was a mission on Cumberland Island listed in 1676. It was probably located on the former site of San Pedro de Mocama. Hann suggests that the inhabitants of the mission were Christianized Guale and pagan Yamassee, with the former Mocaman residents having moved south to what is now Florida. Native peoples to
10512-483: The early conquistadors notwithstanding, the 1549 expedition of Father Luis de Cancer and three other Dominicans to Tampa Bay was the first solely missionary effort attempted in La Florida . It ended in failure with de Cancer being clubbed to death by the Tocobaga natives soon after landing, which diminished Catholic interest in La Florida for sixteen years. The first Spanish missions to La Florida, starting with
10658-456: The early 1700s and their locations lost, as was much of the former route of El Camino Real. As a result, only a few mission sites in Florida have been found and positively identified. After French Huguenots under René Goulaine de Laudonnière established Fort Caroline on the St. Johns River in 1564, Phillip II , King of Spain, commissioned Pedro Menéndez de Avilés to drive the French out of Spanish Florida and to provide missionaries to
10804-521: The first clause clearer. The third clause referred to the treaties of 1783 and 1795, and was designed to safeguard the rights of the United States. This clause then simply gave effect to the others. According to Monroe, France never dismembered Louisiana while it was in her possession. (He regarded November 3, 1762, as the termination date of French possession, rather than 1769, when France formally delivered Louisiana to Spain.) After 1783, Spain reunited West Florida to Louisiana, Monroe held, thus completing
10950-586: The following year. In 1597, the Spanish visited Tama, their name for the area west of Guale Province. Gonzalo Méndez de Canço , governor of Florida, proposed establishing a mission in Tama, but was refused permission to do so because the area was considered to be too far from St. Augustine. Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe de Tolomato was in a Guale town on the mainland north of Asao and Talaxe. The Franciscan friar Pedro Corpa arrived in Spanish Florida in 1587, and may have been resident at Tolomato beginning in that year. Corpa
11096-476: The formerly Spanish Florida, and retained the old Spanish capital of St. Augustine . West Florida comprised the land between the Mississippi and Apalachicola Rivers, including land from what had been Spanish Florida and French Louisiana, with Pensacola designated as its capital. The northern boundary was arbitrarily set at the 31st parallel north . Many English Americans and Scotch-Irish Americans moved to
11242-570: The fort marched out and stacked their arms and saluted the flag of West Florida as it was lowered for the last time, and then dispersed." The boundaries of the Republic of West Florida included all territory south of parallel 31°N, east of the Mississippi River and north of the waterway formed by the Iberville River , Amite River , Lake Maurepas , Pass Manchac, Lake Pontchartrain , and the Rigolets . The Pearl River with its branch that flowed into
11388-482: The fort. The Orleans Territory governor, William C. C. Claiborne and his armed forces from Fort Adams landed 2 miles (3.2 km) above the town. Holmes reported to Claiborne that "the armed citizens ... are ready to retire from the fort and acknowledge the authority of the United States" without insisting upon any terms. Claiborne agreed to a respectful ceremony to mark the formal act of transfer. Thus, at 2:30 p.m. that afternoon, December 10, 1810, "the men within
11534-460: The foundation of St. Augustine in 1565, were attached to presidios , or fortified bases. Between 1559 and 1567, ten presidios were established at major harbors from Port Royal Sound in modern South Carolina to Pensacola Bay on the northern Gulf of Mexico in an attempt to prevent other European powers from establishing bases on land claimed by Spain. Most of the presidios were unsustainable; San Mateo (near modern-day Jacksonville, Florida)
11680-468: The garrison. At the time of the transfer of West Florida to the Spanish from the British the population of Pensacola excluding its military garrison was about 300. The population of Pensacola would grow, with the civilian population in 1788 being 265 and increasing to 572 by 1791. However, when Spain went to war in April of 1793 some residents left, reducing the population to 400. With the loss of Spanish Louisiana,
11826-404: The general withdrawal from Guale. The mission of Santa Clara was established there in 1595. The Franciscan friar Blas Rodríguez was killed in the Guale Uprising, and the mission was destroyed. Tupiqui may have been rebuilt after 1603, and Tupiqui and Espogache may have been merged. The mission in Tupiqui did not have a resident priest in 1606, and was served by the missionary at Talaxe. Espogache had
11972-486: The historic capitals of Pensacola and St. Augustine. The first legislative session was held at Pensacola on July 22, 1822; this required delegates from St. Augustine to travel 59 days by sea to attend. To get to the second session in St. Augustine, Pensacola members traveled 28 days over land. During this session, the council decided future meetings should be held at a half-way point to reduce the distance. Eventually, Tallahassee , site of an 18th-century Apalachee settlement,
12118-560: The immediate vicinity of St. Augustine. The Franciscans began taking their mission to the Guale and Timucua along the Atlantic coast in 1587. Starting in 1606 the Franciscans expanded their mission efforts westward across northern Florida along a primitive but lengthy road known as El Camino Real . The road and the network of missions stretched across the Florida panhandle through the territory of
12264-431: The island, and its location is not known. When Franciscan missionaries returned to St. Catherines Island, a church was built at the chief's town in 1604, but Fray Pedro de Ibarra did not take up residence there until the next year. The mission was an important source of food for St. Augustine until it was abandoned. The Spanish and Guale successfully repelled an attack on the mission by English and Yamassee forces in 1680, but
12410-422: The lack of defined boundaries led to a series of border disputes between Spanish West Florida and the fledgling United States known as the West Florida Controversy . Because of disagreements with the Spanish government, American and English settlers between the Mississippi and Perdido rivers declared that area as the independent Republic of West Florida in 1810. No part of that short-lived republic lay within
12556-570: The late 16th and early 17th centuries, were initially seen by the Spanish as living in a dozen or so provinces, with the Acuera , Ibi , Mocama, Potano , Timucua (in its restricted sense, north of the Santa Fe River, and east of the Suwannee River), Utina , Yufera , and Yustaga provinces becoming major components of the mission system. During the 17th century, as Timucuan populations declined and
12702-418: The legislature eventually agreed to accept Madison's proclamation. Congress passed a joint resolution, approved January 15, 1811, to provide for the temporary occupation of the disputed territory and declaring that the territory should remain subject to future negotiation. On February 12, 1812, Congress secretly authorized President James Madison to take possession of the portion of West Florida located west of
12848-550: The locations of Spanish missions were consolidated along the road between St. Augustine and Apalachee, most of these provinces were gradually consolidated in Spanish usage into a Timucua Province stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Aucilla River. The Mocama Province included the coastal areas of southeastern Georgia and northern Florida from St. Simons Island south to St. Augustine , extending westward to approximately
12994-682: The middle St. Johns River, from roughly present-day Palatka south to Lake George . Similarly, the missions among the Potano , centered on what is now Gainesville , were considered part of the Potano Province, while missions to the Acuera , who lived around the Ocklawaha River , were part of the Acuera Province. Most of these areas were eventually considered part of the larger Timucua Province, in some cases because native populations had declined to
13140-435: The middle of the 17th century clearly show them to have been Mocama. Guadalquini was near the southern end of St. Simon's Island, with the rest of the island occupied by Guale people. Ashley, et al. suggest that all of St. Simon's Island was originally occupied by Guale, but that Mocama had displaced them from the southern end of the island after the Guale Uprising. In 1602, a couple of missionaries visited five villages with
13286-452: The mission at San Pedro in 1606, confirming natives on both visits. San Pedro was named as a mission with a resident friar in 1655. There is some evidence that the San Pedro mission was moved south into what is now Florida sometime between 1650 and 1675. and that the mission San Felipe de Athuluteca was later established on its old site. A site at the south end of Cumberland Island, just north of
13432-493: The mission period in Spanish Florida. By the 1630s, all of the surviving residents of outlying villages in Mocama Province had been relocated to the principal town of a chiefdom, and the visitas were abandoned. Spanish soldiers were sometimes stationed at missions to protect them from pirates and from English and French raids. The missionaries reported that the soldiers interfered with their work by acting inappropriately with
13578-412: The mission towns of San Pedro de Mocama and San Buenaventura de Guadalquini were responsible for providing transportation by canoe, if needed, and food to Spanish officials and soldiers travelling along the coast between St. Augustine and Guale Province. The mission at San Pedro de Mocama last appeared in Spanish records in 1655. A smallpox epidemic in Spanish Florida that year may have largely eliminated
13724-538: The mission was then abandoned, and many of the mission residents moved south. A site on Wamassee Creek in the middle part of the west side of the island has been identified as the location of the mission. The Guale towns of Asao (or Asaho) and Talaxe were on the mainland near the mouth of the Altamaha River in the later part of the 16th century. A Franciscan mission was established in Asao in 1595, and abandoned in 1597 after
13870-579: The mission. The mission of Santa María de los Angeles de Arapaje was listed in the 1630s in the Arapaha chiefdom. Some time between 1630 and 1655 the Oconi and Ibihica missions were merged. The Spanish later ordered the combined Ibi and Oconi to move to the coast. When they refused, the Spanish destroyed the town. Timucua people living around the Alapaha, Oconee and Ocmulgee rivers may have been moved south to missions along
14016-482: The missionary's attempts to suppress polygamy, killed him. Other villages joined the rebellion, and four other missionaries were also killed. The missionary at Talapo (Ospo), escaped death, but was enslaved and physically abused for ten months before being rescued. A Guale war party tried to attack the Mocama missions on Cumberland Island, but the presence of a Spanish ship anchored near the island may have discouraged most of
14162-513: The missions, were scattered. Some were resettled in missions closer to St. Augustine, some retreated into the woods, some were captured and sold as slaves in Charleston, and some joined the native allies of the English. The attacks on the missions in 1680 were carried out by about 300 Chichimeco , Uchise , and Chiluque warriors, aided by English instructors (likely helping with the provision and maintenance of firearms). The force initially attacked
14308-498: The native inhabitants. In 1565, de Avilés founded St. Augustine and defeated the French. He quickly established a number of strong points, or presidios along the coast from Santa Elena in South Carolina down the length of the Florida peninsula and up the Gulf coast of Florida to Tampa Bay . Two of the presidios were in what is now the state of Georgia, on Guale (St. Catherines) Island (abandoned after three months) and at
14454-472: The natives on Christianity. De Aviles sent a secular priest to the town of Guale in 1566 to preach to the natives, but that priest was soon recalled and sent to Santa Elena. All of the presidios , except for St. Augustine and Santa Elena, were abandoned within four years. The first Jesuit missionaries arrived in Florida in 1566, soon followed by others. Jesuits started missions at the towns of Guale (on St. Catherines Island) and Tupiqui. Jesuit missionaries to
14600-470: The natives. Converted natives received a Christian name at baptism, and adopted at least some Christian customs. Many also learned Spanish. The Spanish used the term "province" for the territory of a tribe or chiefdom. There was no fixed definition of province boundaries. As tribes and chiefdoms lost population and importance, the provinces associated with them would no longer appear in the records. Other provinces expanded to take in their territories. Most of
14746-517: The newly acquired territory was too large to govern from one administrative center, the British divided it into two new colonies separated by the Apalachicola River. British West Florida included the part of formerly Spanish Florida, which lay west of the Apalachicola, as well as parts of formerly French Louisiana; its government was based in Pensacola. West Florida thus encompassed all territory between
14892-556: The north of Guale Province, armed and encouraged by the English in the Province of Carolina, attacked the missions at Guadalquini and Santa Catalina in 1680. Another attack on missions in Georgia occurred in 1684. As a result, all of the Spanish missions in Gulae were withdrawn, and by 1685 there were no missions remaining north of the St. Marys River . Residents of the mission towns, as well as unconverted Yamassees, who often established towns near
15038-422: The only sizeable Spanish settlement in La Florida . The mission system functioned for decades, as the Spanish convinced most village leaders to provide food and labor in exchange for tools and protection. Regular waves of European-borne disease along with conflict with Carolina colonists to the north weakened the system as the 1600s progressed. It collapsed in the aftermath of Queen Anne's War , when colonists from
15184-592: The people known to the Spanish as the Timucua (called the Northern Utina by modern scholars), who spoke the "Timucua proper" dialect. Eventually, however, it absorbed several other Timucua-speaking provinces and became the largest of all the Florida mission districts. Following shortly after the success of the Mocama missions, the Spanish established missions among the Agua Fresca (Eastern Utina or Freshwater Timucua) along
15330-411: The people of Guadalquini moved to the mainland, taking most of their food stores with them, and left ten men under a sub-chief to defend the town. When the pirates arrived at Guadalquini, the defending force retreated to the woods. The pirates burned the church and convent (priest's house) and left. The mission was then moved to a site on the north side of the St. Johns River (in present-day Florida), which
15476-483: The people taken into the mission system were Timucua speakers. Three major groups that spoke other languages were also taken into the mission system. The Guale Province was the territory the Guale , and covered what is now coastal Georgia and the Sea Islands north of the Altamaha River . The Guale were among the first people to be taken into the mission system, in the 1580s. Later in the 17th century, Guale Province
15622-420: The pirates sacked several missions and other towns along the coast north of St. Augustine, mainly in present-day Florida, but including the mission of San Phelipe on Cumberland Island. The Spanish government began planning to move the remaining missions along the Georgia coast closer to St. Augustine. Before the missions could be moved, pirates returned to the area in 1684. Learning of the pirates' presence, most of
15768-620: The point that they could no longer support multiple missions. (The missions in Acuera Province were abandoned after the Timucua rebellion of 1656, although non-Christian Acueras continued to live there for another 40 years.) At this stage the Timucua Province included the area between the St. Johns and Suwanee rivers. Later, the Yustaga Province, which served the Yustaga who lived to the west of
15914-612: The population grew further to 1,000 by 1810 and peaked in a census taken on June 13, 1813 at 3,063 people. Between where Pensacola ended and the American settlements began, control of the land was left to several Native American tribes: the Cherokee, the Chickasaw, the Choctaw and the Creek, which altogether had a population of 45,000. With the arrival of the Spanish in West Florida, they did not revive
16060-400: The population of the mission, with any survivors relocated closer to St. Augustine. By 1675 it was reported that only Yemassee lived on St. Catherines Island, while the inhabitants of Nombre de Dios mission near St. Augustuine were described as being Mocama. In 1674, the bishop of Santiago de Cuba, the diocese that included Spanish Florida, visited the missions in Florida, including four along
16206-422: The presidio and town at Santa Elena had been abandoned. The Franciscan missionaries were assigned to native towns, primarily near St. Augustine, but including a mission on Cumberland Island, San Pedro de Mocama , established in 1587. Few of those Fransciscans remained in Spanish Florida for very long, with only five left in 1592. More Franciscans arrived in 1595, and six more missions were established that year along
16352-406: The province as France possessed it, with the exception of those portions controlled by the United States. By a strict interpretation of the treaty, therefore, Spain might be required to cede to the United States such territory west of the Perdido as once belonged to France. The Spanish continued to dispute the annexation of the western parts of its West Florida colony, but their power in the region
16498-432: The region from the Spanish." The rebels unfurled the flag of the new republic, a single white star on a blue field. After the successful attack, organized by Philemon Thomas , plans were made to take Mobile and Pensacola from the Spanish and incorporate the eastern part of the province into the new republic. Reuben Kemper led a small force in an attempt to capture Mobile, but the expedition ended in failure. Support for
16644-522: The resident friar was killed in the Guale Uprising. A new mission, San Domingo, was established in Asaho by 1604. Asao and Talaxe apparently merged at some point, as the mission was later referred to alternately as San Domingo de Asao and San Domingo de Talaxe (or Talaje). Bishop Altamitano confirmed 268 Guale converts at the mission in 1606. A Spanish report indicates that the British Fort King George
16790-455: The residents of Ospo. In 1597, the missions in Guale Province suffered a disaster known as the Guale Uprising or Juanillo's Revolt. Juanillo was a Guale in Tolomato, who had been converted to Christianity, but refused to give up his multiple wives. When Fray Pedro de Corpa , the friar at the mission, tried to force Juanillo to be monogamous, Juanillo, along with two other Guale men who resented
16936-605: The revolt was far from unanimous. The presence of competing pro-Spanish, pro-American, and pro-independence factions, as well as the presence of scores of foreign agents, contributed to a "virtual civil war within the Revolt as the competing factions jockeyed for position." The faction that favored the continued independence of West Florida secured the adoption of a constitution at a convention in October. The convention had earlier commissioned an army under General Philemon Thomas to march across
17082-510: The river as part of the trail connecting St. Augustine with Apalachee Province . There is no record of any of the Ocone being moved to San Diego de Laca, however. The mission Santiago de Ocone appears only on a 1655 list of missions visited by an official. That year, Governor Diego de Rebolledo ordered the people of Ocone and neighboring villages to move to the mission of Nombre de Dios near St. Augustine, which had lost most of its population. When
17228-486: The ruins were built after the establishment of the Georgia Colony by Great Britain was not fully accepted by historians until late in the 20th century. While missionaries conducted some services at visitas , converted residents of visita villages would go to the doctrina on important feast days. In 1620, 32 doctrinas in Spanish Florida served more than 200 towns and villages. Native populations declined throughout
17374-507: The second half of the 16th century, the Kingdom of Spain established a number of missions throughout Spanish Florida ( La Florida ) in order to convert the Native Americans to Roman Catholicism , to facilitate control of the area, and to obstruct regional colonization by other Protestants, particularly, those from England and France . Spanish Florida originally included much of what
17520-596: The territory at this time. The Governor of West Florida in November 1763 was George Johnstone ; his lieutenant governor, Montfort Browne , was a major landowner in the province who heavily promoted its development. Seven General Assemblies were convoked between 1766 and 1778. In 1767, the British moved the northern boundary to the 32° 28′ north latitude, extending from the Yazoo to the Chattahoochee River , which included
17666-469: The territory between the Mississippi and Perdido rivers, as the title to that territory had passed immediately from France to Britain in 1763. Finding this new territory too large to govern as one unit, the British divided it into two new colonies, West Florida and East Florida , separated by the Apalachicola River , as set forth in the Royal Proclamation of 1763 . East Florida consisted of most of
17812-594: The territory, subdue opposition to the insurrection, and seek to secure as much Spanish-held territory as possible. "Residents of the western Florida Parishes proved largely supportive of the Revolt, while the majority of the population in the eastern region of the Florida Parishes opposed the insurrection. Thomas' army violently suppressed opponents of the revolt, leaving a bitter legacy in the Tangipahoa and Tchefuncte River regions." On November 7, 1810, Fulwar Skipwith
17958-430: The time to take up residence in those provinces. The Cascangue/Ycafui do not appear in Spanish records after 1602. A missionary apparently was assigned to the Ocone by 1645, although there is no name given for the mission. That year, Governor Benito Ruíz de Salazar Vallecilla ordered that the Ocone be relocated to San Diego de Laca, on the St. Johns River. That village was responsible for providing ferry services across
18104-438: The town of Colon on St. Simons Island, which was inhabited by heathen (un-Christianized) natives, killing some of the inhabitants. Spanish and Mocamas from the nearby mission of San Buenaventura de Guadalquini went the aid of Colon, and drove the attackers away. The same group attacked the mission of Santa Catalina de Guale on St. Catherines Island a few days later. Pirates attacked St. Augustine in 1683. After that attack failed,
18250-531: The town of Huyache, which was about five leagues north of Satuache and did not have a mission. The residents of Satuache then moved south to Santa Catalina de Guale on St. Catherines Island. They remained part of the Santa Catalina community through two more moves southwards. The mission of Santa Isabel de Utinahica was located at the junction of the Ocmulgee and Oconee rivers. A people called " Chisca " by
18396-408: The town. Holmes persuaded all except a few leaders, including Skipwith and Philemon Thomas, the general of the West Florida troops, to acquiesce to American authority. Skipwith complained bitterly to Holmes that, as a result of seven years of U.S. tolerance of continued Spanish occupation, the United States had abandoned its right to the country and that the West Florida people would not now submit to
18542-557: The war. As a result, for the next two decades, the British controlled nearly all of the coast of the Gulf of Mexico east of the Mississippi River. Most of the Spanish population left Florida at that time, and its colonial government records were relocated to Havana, Cuba . Spain, meanwhile, failed to make good by occupancy its title to Louisiana until 1769, when it took formal possession. For six years, therefore, Louisiana as France possessed it, and as Spain received it, included none of
18688-454: Was a Guale town in the northern part of Guale province. The Franciscan missionary in Ospo in 1697 was Francisco Dávila. He was the only missionary in Guale to survive the uprising, but was held captive and abused for ten months. Ospo and Talapo are not mentioned in Spanish records after 1606. A cacique named Antonio Hospo, living among Guale people on Amelia Island in 1695, may have been a survivor of
18834-401: Was a mission on St. Catherines Island in 1587, although Hann notes that a report from 1588 stated that there were no missions on the Georgia coast north of San Pedro de Mocama on Cumberland Island. A mission was established at the village of Asopo on the island in 1595, but abandoned two years later when both of the resident friars were killed in the Guale Uprising. Asopo was not the chief town of
18980-516: Was built on the former site of Talaxe. Sometime before 1675, the mission was moved to St. Simons Island, with about 30 inhabitants, where it was still known as San Domingo de Asaho or Asajo. In the 1680s, as the mission system in Georgia collapsed, some of the town's residents joined the Yamassee at the "Scotch colony at Santa Elena", while others moved to Amelia Island, where a town was briefly called Asao or Tupique. A mission called San Pedro de Atulteca
19126-418: Was called Señor San Felipe Althuluteca in 1680. Further troubles caused the mission to move again in the 1680s to the southern end of Amelia Island in the present-day state of Florida. The mission of San Felipe de Alabe was reported in 1616, located north of Tupique. It was one of the most northern of Guale missions in Georgia. A mission of San Felipe was present in 1655. Hann states that there may have been
19272-442: Was destroyed by the French, the entire garrison at Tocobago was wiped out, and most of the other presidios were abandoned due to a combination of hostility from the native inhabitants, difficulty in providing supplies, and damage from hurricanes. By 1573, the only remaining presidios in La Florida were at St. Augustine and Santa Elena on Paris Island, South Carolina . Santa Elena was abandoned in 1587, leaving St. Augustine as
19418-534: Was elected as governor, together with members of a bicameral legislature. Skipwith was inaugurated on November 29, 1810. A week later, he and many of his fellow officials still lingered at St Francisville preparing to go to Baton Rouge, where the next session of the legislature was to consider his ambitious program. The impending U.S. takeover apparently came as a surprise to Skipwith when the Mississippi Territory governor, David Holmes , and his party approached
19564-402: Was established by 1616 in the Guale town of Tuluteca, which was (presumably) on the mainland four leagues north of the mission of Santa Catalina de Guale on St. Catherines Island. The mission also appears on a list in 1647, but in 1655 had changed to San Felipe. Sometime before 1675, the mission had moved to Cumberland Island, which no longer had any Mocama residents. It retained the same name, and
19710-603: Was established by 1675. The original inhabitants of Cumberland Island had probably been evacuated by then, and the island reinhabited by heathens. Mission San Pedro de Potohiriba (possibly an alternate form of Puturibe) was established in western Timucua Province by 1657, probably serving Yamassee. In 1605 there were 300 Christians in San Pedro Province (partly in Florida), with 308 being confirmed in 1606 by Bishop Altamirano. The Guale mission of Nuestra Señora Guadalupe de Tolomato
19856-537: Was finally resolved in 1795 by the Treaty of San Lorenzo , in which Spain recognized the 31° parallel as the boundary. Spain continued to maintain East and West Florida as separate colonies. When Spain acquired West Florida in 1783, the eastern British boundary was the Apalachicola River , but Spain moved it eastward to the Suwannee River in 1785. The purpose was to transfer the military post at San Marcos (now St. Mark's ) and
20002-496: Was founded for the descendants of settlers of the period. Its objective included to "collect and preserve records, documents and relics pertaining to the history and genealogy of West Florida prior to December 7, 1810." In 1993, the Louisiana State Legislature renamed Interstate 12 , the full length of which is contained in the Florida Parishes, as the "Republic of West Florida Parkway". In 1998, Leila Lee Roberts,
20148-657: Was founded on the Chattahooche River a few leagues south of the falls at present-day Columbus , which was in the territory of the Lower Towns of the Muscogee Confederacy . Some residents of Sabacola had become Christians when the town was located in Florida, and requested that missionaries be sent to them. Spanish missionaries attempted to establish a mission in Sabacola in 1697. The Christians of Sabacola had not informed
20294-606: Was in 1655). Also in 1602, a missionary visited Cascangue (also called Ycafui), which had about 1,100 people in seven or eight villages. Another missionary visited the Ocone, who were described as living on an island in a laguna , which may mean a lake, pond, or lagoon. Hann concludes that they lived on the eastern edge of the Okefenokee Swamp. While some of the people in those provinces were interested in learning about Christianity, and sometimes visited friends in towns that did have missions, there were no missionaries available at
20440-422: Was moved to near St. Augustine in 1658. The Salamototo mission was moved to the site of an old Saturiwa town in 1658. No mention of Guale in Spanish records after 1735. Just 70 Mocamas were reported as living at two missions in 1675, San Buenaventura de Guadalquini and San Juan del Puerto on the St. Johns River in present-day Florida. Late in the mission period Spanish missionary activity briefly entered what
20586-504: Was named Santa Cruz de Guadalquini. Missions in Spanish Florida were initially organized around the existing native political groupings. Typically, five to ten towns or villages would be associated in a chiefdom, with one of the towns serving as the seat of the chief. Two or more of the chiefdoms might be allied, sometimes with one of the chiefs acting as a paramount chief over other chiefdoms. Mission stations of two types were established by Spanish missionaries. Doctrinas were stations with
20732-559: Was restored in Guale in 1603, and new missions had been established as San José de Zapala on Sapelo Island, San Buenaventura de Guadalquini on St. Simons Island, and Santa Catalina de Guale on St. Catherines Island by the end of that year. In 1606, Juan de las Cabezas Altamirano , bishop of the Diocese of Santiago de Cuba (whose see was in Havana ), visited Florida and confirmed 1,652 native converts in Guale Province. Some sources state there
20878-536: Was selected as the midpoint between the former capitals of East and West Florida. The portions of West Florida now located in Louisiana are known as the Florida Parishes . The Republic of West Florida Historical Museum is located in Jackson, Louisiana , run by the Republic of West Florida Historical Association. In 1991, the lineage society "The Sons & Daughters of the Province & Republic of West Florida 1763–1810"
21024-570: Was sometimes referred to as extending southward and including the region otherwise known as Mocama . The Apalachee Province included the Apalachee people, who spoke a Muskogean language , and were brought into the mission system in the 1630s. It occupied the easternmost part of what is now the Florida Panhandle , along the Gulf of Mexico coast from the Aucilla River to the Ochlockonee River . The Spanish established one early mission among
21170-463: Was the resident missionary at Tolomato in 1597 when the Guale Uprising started, and was the first of the missionaries killed by the rebels. Some of the residents of Tolomato may have settled in Espogache by the time a mission was established there. Tupiqui was a Guale town three leagues north of Tolomato on the mainland. Jesuit missionaries had tried to establish a mission there in 1569–1570, but left in
21316-526: Was too weak to do anything about it. They continued administering the remainder of the colony (between the Perdido and Suwannee Rivers) from the capital at Pensacola. On February 22, 1819, Spain and the United States signed the Adams-Onís Treaty . In this treaty, Spain ceded both West and East Florida to the United States in exchange for compensation and the renunciation of American claims to Texas . Following ratification by Spain on October 24, 1820, and
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