Three Seminole wars in Florida lasted from 1817 to 1858, the longest, bloodiest, and most costly of all the Indian wars fought in the United States. They were of major concern to the entire nation and often had international implications as the United States struggled with the European powers for control of the continent. In fact, the Seminoles were allies of both Britain and Spain and hostile to the young, expanding republic.
General Andrew Jackson, fresh from his victory over the British at New Orleans in 1815, led the first conflict, which was part of the plan to drive Spain from the Florida Territory. The second took the lives of 1,500 U.S. soldiers and countless Indians over seven years. The third war was fought on the eve of the Civil War in an attempt to remove the surviving Seminoles from their homes in the Everglades.
Unlike the Plains wars, the Seminole wars were soon forgotten, an embarrassment in their brutality. While the government side is well documented, there is little from the Seminoles. Here is an opportunity for archaeologists to help document this tragic episode in American history. Surely, this well written history will not be the last word on one America’s darkest eras.
