Fort Gadsden-- Part 12: Service in Other Wars

Fort Gadsden was used as a forward base during the First Seminole War and held by the United States until 1821 when Spain gave up its claim to Florida.    From 1818-1821, more than 100 U.S. soldiers died at the fort and are buried somewhere on its grounds.

It was again reoccupied on a temporary basis during the Second Seminole War from 1835-1842.

During the Civil War, the Confederates posted a batter of field artillery and a small detachment at the site.  In 1865, a U.S. Navy boat party captured a few sentries there and cannons.  It eventually was a campsite for the 8th Florida Cavalry, CSA.

The next time we go to panama City, Florida, I will have to check this place out.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden-- Part 11: Fort Gadsden Built in 1818

In 1818, General Andrew Jackson arrived with his army at the fort's ruins.  The First Seminole War was raging at the time and he was under orders to invade Florida and punish the Red Stick Creeks and Seminoles responsible for the Scott Massacre of 1817.

he ordered Lt. James Gadsden, an Army engineer, to build a new fort there.  He used the old earthen British water battery, which had survived the 1816 blast, as the river face of his new fort.  The rear was enclosed by a bastion of earth and logs.  Jackson was so impressed by Gadsden's work that he had the fort named after him.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden-- Part 8: Blacks Left in Charge of the Fort

From Explore Southern History blog "Fort Gadsen state Historic Site which has photos and much more information.

Along with the British at the fort, there were some 2,000 Red Stick and Seminole warriors and 100 black soldiers (Colonial Marines), who were mostly made up of free black citizens but who had once been slaves.

These men were equipped, supplied and trained by British officers.

Some of the Colonial Marines based here took part in the failed attack on Fort Bowyer at Mobile Bar (near where Fort Morgan stands today).  Some were even at the Battle of New Orleans.

When the British left in May 1815, , the fort and its massive supply of small arms and ammunition was turned over to the Indians and blacks.  Under the command of Garcon.  Most of the Indians eventually returned to their villages, but Garcon, who had been a sergeant major in the Colonial Marines remained along with 80 yo 100 blacks.

It was during this period that it became known as "Negro Fort."

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden-- Part 7 The British Post on the Apalachicola

From Explore Southern History.com "Fort Gadsden Historic Site" by Dale Cox.

The Battle of Negro Fort took place on July 27, 1816.  It was a brief battle, but resulted in the deaths of 270 men, women and children.

The current Fort Gadsden was originally built by British Major Edward Nicholls (often misspelled Nichols).  It was a very strong fortification built at Prospect Bluff which had been used as an outpost by the British firm of Forbes & Co.

The fort was originally usually referred to as the British Post on the Apalachicola and consisted of an earthwork battery on the river, a strongly-built octagon magazine and arsenal, all surrounded by a palisade and entrenchments.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden-- Part 6: Negro Fort Becomes Fort Gadsden

The fort remained unoccupied for two years.

In 1818, Andrew Jackson instructed Lt. James Gadsden to reoccupy and rebuild Negro Fort.  He dis and the fort became known as Fort Gadsden.

During the Civil War, the fort was occupied by Confederate troops until July 1863, when they evacuated because of a really bad outbreak of malaria.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden-- Part 5: The Battle at Negro Fort

The freedmen in Negro Fort refused to surrender and be returned to slavery and cries of "Give Me liberty or Give Me Death" were heard several times during the ensuing battle.  Cannon fire was exchanged, but the shots of the inexperienced blacks did not find their marks.

A "hot shot" from an American cannon found its way into the fort's powder magazine and resulted in a huge explosion, reportedly heard as far away as 100 miles.  It killed all but 30 of the fort's 300 occupants.

Garson and the Choctow chief were handed over to the Creek Indians who shot him and scalped the chief.  The other blacks were returned to slavery.  The Creeks managed to salvage 2,500 muskets, 50 carbines, 400 pistols and 500 swords from the ruins.  (These numbers seem to be considerably high in my opinion.)
The battle made relations between the Creeks and Seminoles much worse (the Seminoles supported the blacks).  It also tilted superiority to the Creeks with all their new weapons.  The Seminoles also were mad at the United States which was part of the reason for the First Seminole War a year later.

Spain protested this blatant violation of its territory but lacked the power to do anything about it.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden, Fla.-- Part 4: Andrew Jackson Targets the Fort

In September 1815, U.S. Indian Agent Benjamin hawkins sent about 200 soldiers against Negro Fort, but they failed.

Negro Fort was commanded by a black man named Garson and a Choctow chief.  They began launching a series of raids across the Georgia border and the fort became a threat in the eyes of the United States.

In early 1816, the U.S. built Fort Scott on the west bank of the Flint River in southern georgia as a defense against Negro Fort.  Major General Andrew Jackson, commander of the Southern district, decided that he would rather supply Fort Scott by bringing supplies up the Apalachicola River instead of overland.  This would become a good reason and a great excuse to attack Negro Fort.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden, Fla.-- Part 3: British Post, Negro Fort

Before he left Florida, Edward Nicholls built a fort at Prospect Bluff, 15 miles above the mouth of the Apalachicola River and 60 miles below U.S. territory.

 It was originally known as British Post and served as base for British troops (though in Spanish Florida) and actively recruited former slaves into the new Corps of Colonial Marines.  It also was the local rallying point for Seminole Indians for attacks on U.S. territory.

When the British evacuated the fort in the spring of 1815, they left a well-constructed and fully armed fort on the east bank of the Apalachicola River and about 400 Colonial Marines assumed command.  News of the "Negro Fort" attracted 800 black fugitives (runaway slaves) ro the fort who settled around it.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Gadsden-- Part 1: Fort of Many Names

It would appear that I am beginning to write a whole lot about the War of 1812 in western Florida now.  Much of the history so far has involved Nicholls' Post and the Corps of Colonial Marines.

From Wikipedia.

Fort Gadsden is located at Franklin County, Florida, on the Apalachicola River.  The site contains the ruins of two forts and it has been called many names over the years:  Prospect Bluff Fort, Nicholls Fort, Blount's Fort, British Post, Negro Fort, African Fort and Fort Apalachicola.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it is located in the Apalachicola National Forest which is managed by the U.S. Forest Service.

It became a National Historic Landmark in 1972.

--Brock-Perry

The British Corps of Colonial Marines-- Part 2

The 1814-1816 reincarnation of the Colonial Marines saw action from Canada to Georgia.  they proved of great assistance because they had extensive knowledge of the lands where they were formerly enslaved.  They helped the British capture Washington, D.C..

The Colonial Marines also assisted in the British Southern Coastal Campaign and guarded their right flank in attack on and subsequent Battle of New Orleans.

At the end of the war they were transferred to Bermuda.

In 1816, they were ordered to Prospect Bluff, Florida where they defended a Spanish fort overlooking the Apalachicola River (Fort Gadsden).  American troops were threatening the fort which had a lot of escaped slaves who had gone there for protection, so many in fact that it was referred to as Negro Fort.

Major General Andrew Jackson attempted to capture it in July 1816 when he led a flotilla of American gunboats and troops.  They overran the stockade and forced the British force to surrender.  Many of the Colonial Marines were then enslaved again.

--Brock-Perry

The British Corps of Colonial Marines-- Part 1

From the BlackPast.org. site.

The British Corps of Colonial Marines (1808-1810 and 1814-1816)

This group was involved in the Fort Gadsden and Nicholls' Post operations.

This unit was made up mostly of escaped American slaves.  The first years of its existence, 1808-1810)  it was used primarily to garrison Caribbean bases during the Napoleonic Wars.  It was disbanded in 1810.

However, this unit set new standards for the men of African descent and formerly enslaved members.  They received the same training, uniforms, pay and pensions as their Royal marine counterparts.

--Brock-Perry

Nicholls' Outpost-- Part 1

From the Explore Southern History Blog by Dale Cox.

The other British fort built on the Apalachicola River was at Prospect Bluff and Nicholls' Outpost was located upriver at present day Chattahoochee, Florida.  The Post and fort were built as part of a British plan to recruit Red Stick and Seminole Indians to their cause during the War of 1812.

The other fort was 30 miles north of the mouth of the Apalachicola River at the site of present day Fort Gadsden Historic Site. Both forts were built by Edward Nichols of the Royal Marines.   This fort later was referred to as the "Negro Fort."

Nicholls' Post was the smaller fortification of the two and was built on top of a large Indian mound at Chattahoochee Landing in Gadsden County, Florida.

--Brock-Perry

British Built Fort at Chattahoochee, Florida

From the July 27, 2015, WXTL Road Trip: The Beginnings of Chattahoochee" by Georgiaree Godfrey.

Gadsden County dates back to 1821, but the territory was occupied by Native Americans for centuries before that.

Historian Dale Cox said that the British built a fort there on top of the largest Indian mound and it was designed as a forward operating base for what became Fort Gadsden on the lower river,  They planned to use the fort as a launch on an invasion of Georgia during the War of 1812.

Later, Chattahoochee was home to a U.S. Arsenal which is now on the grounds of the Florida State Hospital.  The arsenal was built there because of the vast river system that reached all the way into northern Georgia.

The city's prime location on the Apalachicola River makes it a summer hot spot for boating, fishing and paddling.

--Brock-Perry