Black Seminoles march for the Apalachicola

Fighters from the Suwannee prepare to battle the U.S. Army.

by Dale Cox

Abraham was a prominent Black Seminole or Maroon
freedom fighter and "sense bearer" or advisor.
He is portrayed here by Antonio Wright.

The United States Army's attacks on the Creek Indian village of Fowltown ignited outrage across the Florida borderlands. (Please see First Blood at Fowltown and Neamathla battles Arbuckle for details on the two days of fighting at Fowltown).

News that U.S. troops attacked the town in the dark, killing women as well as men, brought warriors across the region to their feet. Any hope that Cappachimico, the principal chief of Miccosukee, and others had of avoiding war with the United States, was now gone. Even leaders friendly to the whites were upset over the unprovoked raids and warned that they might not be able to control their young men.

One group of men who responded to Neamathla's calls for help knew well what it meant to oppose the United States military. They were Maroons or escaped slaves - commonly called Black Seminoles - from Nero's town on the Suwannee River. They were black men for whom every battle was a fight for freedom, and every night brought fears of raids by slave catchers from Georgia or the Carolinas.

The real Abraham as he appeared two decades later.
This engraving by N. Orr appeared in the 1848 book
The Origin, Progress, and Conclusion of the Florida
War, by John T. Sprague.

Among these fighters were survivors of the deadly 1816 U.S. attack on the Fort at Prospect Bluff or "Negro Fort." Abraham, Polydore, and others were in the log and earth fort on the lower Apalachicola River when a heated cannonball from an American gunboat ricocheted off a pine tree and struck one of their three gunpowder magazines. The result was a horrible explosion that killed 270 men, women, and children in an instant. 

Now, just one year later, they grabbed their British-made Brown Bess muskets and started for the Apalachicola, where the Prophet Josiah Francis, an influential Red Stick Creek leader, was raising an army to fight the Americans. The Maroons or Black Seminoles marched with confidence because they still possessed a magazine of arms and ammunition that was removed from the Negro Fort before its destruction.

The number of men under Nero's command is difficult to determine, as estimates by white writers of the time vary wildly. The consensus seems to be that he commanded around 300 well-armed men, many of whom were trained during their time with the British Colonial Marines in 1814-1815. In fact, quite a few probably still wore their British uniforms in 1817, although they were definitely starting to assimilate to the culture of the Alachua Seminoles alongside whom they lived.

The Maroons or Black Seminoles were among hundreds of
warriors who gathered here on the Apalachicola River to
attack any U.S. boats trying to bring supplies upstream.

A large contingent of the black fighters was sent by the Prophet to join a force assembling just below the forks of the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers. The Red Stick chief "Homathlemico" (probably Hoboeithle Mico) commanded the group of 300-400 warriors. In addition to the men from Nero's town, they included angry warriors from Fowltown, a group of Yuchi from the lower Chattahoochee River, and many Red Stick Creeks. Others joined as well.

The plan developed by Francis and the other vital leaders was to blockade all approaches to Fort Scott and prevent supplies from reaching the soldiers there. The Prophet learned well from the Creek War of 1813-1814 that the only way to defeat the U.S. Army was to cut off its provisions. Any boats coming upriver would be attacked and stopped.

Lt. Scott's command was aboard a keelboat similar to the
Aux Arc (pronounced "Ozark"), seen here. The beautiful
vessel will participate in this year's Scott 1817 Seminole War
Battle Reenactments on December 6-8.

The strike force just below the confluence camped around the abandoned War of 1812 British fort that is commonly called Nicolls' Outpost today. Several U.S. reports refer to it as "Fort Apalachicola." It stood atop a large prehistoric Native American mound at today's River Landing Park.

They waited there for an American vessel to appear and offer them a chance to strike back not just for Fowltown but for the destruction of the Negro Fort one year before. The next boat to come into view on this section of the big river would be the keelboat commanded by Lt. Richard W. Scott of the 7th Regiment, U.S. Infantry.

Editor's Note: The Maroons or Black Seminoles played a critical role in the Seminole victory at the Scott Battle of 1817. Antonio Wright will portray the famed leader Abraham this year. More than 1,000 area school students will have a remarkable educational opportunity to learn the real Abraham's story during Education Day activities on Friday, December 6. Wright will be joined this year by Matthew Shack, a descendent of Maroons and noted educator from Gulf Coast State College, who will tell the students more about Black Seminoles and their struggle for freedom.

The annual Scott 1817 Seminole War Battle Reenactment takes place at River Landing Park in Chattahoochee on December 6-8, 2019. Entry is free to all. Click to visit Scott1817.com for more information.

Click play below to enjoy a brief 30-second preview of this year's reenactment: