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“African-Americans in Antebellum Florida” Summary Students will discuss the political changes in Florida from 1784 to 1860 and the effects that these changes had on Florida’s African-American population in pre-Civil War years. Students will also discuss the how slavery changed as an institution with the dominance of Middle Florida in state politics during the 1820’s and 1830’s. Objectives 1) Students will create a timeline detailing contributions made by black Africans and AfricanAmericans in Florida history from the beginning of the second Spanish era in 1784 to 1860; 2) Students will explore racial policies of the Spanish, English, and American colonial territorial governments prior to Florida becoming a state; 3) Students will differentiate between the treatment of slaves in Middle Florida and in East and West Florida after Florida became a part of the United States. U.S. History Event This lesson primarily covers the institution of slavery in Florida from the later years of the eighteenth century to the mid-nineteenth century, just prior to the American Civil War. It is preferred that the students would have already been introduced to slavery of African-Americans during the colonial era and the early years of the United States. This lesson should follow the previous lesson entitled “Africans in Colonial Florida.” Grade Level Middle school or high school Materials Each student will need a copy of Graphic Organizers #1 and #2 and colored pencils. You will need transparencies, an overhead projector, and a large white board with colored markers, as well as transparencies of the Pictures D-E (located in the back of this lesson. Lesson Time This lesson could be completed in a 45-minute class period. However, if you are on a block schedule, it can be adapted to a full block period by allowing students to begin their Processing assignment at the end of the lecture. Lesson Lesson Procedures -The following procedures for this lesson may be adapted to fit individual classroom needs. Please be sure to look over all materials before implementation due to the sensitive nature of the topic. Students should know after the completion of this lesson that while the institution of slavery in Florida had been very different under Spanish colonial rulers when compared with slavery in the surrounding English colonies, attitudes about slavery in Florida changed greatly when Florida became an American possession in 1821. Also, students should know what caused Middle Florida to become the dominant region in state politics before 1860. 1.) Begin the lesson with one of the following preview activities. A) Give the students a short pretest on the material that will be covered in this lesson (provided with lesson in back). B) Write the term “antebellum” on the board in front of the room and have students take a few minutes (no more than 3-5) to come up with a definition to share. Then explain the meaning of the word comes from the Latin word “ante-“, meaning “before,” and “bellum,” the Latin word for “war.” Allow students to share other words that begin with “ante-“ or contain “bellum” (i.e., “bellicose). Ask students to think of why this period in Florida history is called the “antebellum era.” C) Show transparency of Picture A-2-3 (located in back of lesson). Have students write down in words what they think when they see this picture. Discuss their responses, then pose the following question: “Slavery was a terrible tragedy that afflicted our nation and our state for too long. Do you think that all slave owners treated their slaves in this way? What would be some benefits to not doing this to your slaves? Why, then, would some slave-owners treat their slaves in this fashion? 2.) Explain to students that they will now participate in a discovery dealing with the AfricanAmerican experience in antebellum (pre-Civil War) Florida, from the era of the second Spanish period in Florida beginning in 1784 to just before hostilities erupted between the United States (the North, or the Union) and the Confederate States (the South) of America. Encourage students to find differences in treatment and views of AfricanAmericans, free or enslaved, between the Spanish colonial government and the British and later the Americans. In this way, students will recall prior knowledge and use it in a new way. 3.) Pass out Timeline Information Sheet. Students should be encouraged to take notes on this lesson in their notebook while filling in pertinent information on their information sheets. Students will also need to use colored pencils to show the four eras of Florida before the Civil War (the first Spanish colonial era of 1565-1763, the British era of 17631783, the second Spanish era of 1783-1821, and the American era after 1821) on their timelines. Students may need to attach the timeline from the previous lesson. 4.) During this lecture, you may model for students by filling in pertinent information on a master timeline information sheet. Optional: You may also want to keep a transparency for notes for students to copy. 5.) Use the Teacher’s Guide to highlight the main ideas of the lecture. Note: The information in the Teacher’s Guide is meant to serve as background information for you. It is not meant to be read as a script, but rather to be a source from which you can extract the most relevant points to teach your students, depending on what you believe is most important and what should be emphasized in your class. Teacher’s Guide to Lesson –“African-Americans in Antebellum Florida” Introduction: Most historians agree that the issue of slavery was a primary cause of the American Civil War. In the mid-1800s, many people in the North believed that slavery was an evil institution with no place in the future of America. Others believed that slavery was an antiquated agricultural method that should be replaced by automated means. But the wealthy planters in the South disagreed. The labor of their bonded servants enabled them to sell their cash crops on the world market, and sell them very cheaply. In the Upper South, large plantations produced tobacco, wheat, and vegetables, while cotton, rice, indigo, and sugarcane were the main staples of the Deep South, including Georgia and the Carolinas. This made the planter class very rich, and with their increasing wealth, they bought more land to grow more crops, which required more slaves to work. The nation’s economy had evolved in the mid-nineteenth century to include the beginnings of manufactured goods, but it still depended on the plantation crops of the South as well. At the outbreak of war in 1861, cotton accounted for over 58% of the nation’s total exports. The wealthy planters of the South lived like royalty. They owned fine furniture, herds of cattle, and many slaves to do the work in the house and fields. Their main crop was cotton, and they could sell it faster than they could plant it. So the more slaves one owned, the more cotton they could raise. Slaves were the most valuable property a person could own. A field slave was worth at least $200; if trained in carpentry or bricklaying, his worth would be twice that. Because so much of their wealth depended on slave labor, the wealthy planters of the South never considered any other options. In geographic location, Florida was as far south as any American could travel in the 1850s. However, the institution of slavery and attitudes that whites held toward African-Americans, slave or free, were not quite like the rest of the true Deep South. The reasons for this went back hundreds of years, to the beginnings of the Spanish exploration of the New World in the early sixteenth century, which we discussed in the previous lesson. Today, we will continue with the reacquisition of Florida by the Spanish in 1784. Picture A-2-1: Map of the Louisiana Purchase What do you see in this map? Can you locate Florida? What do you recognize about Florida that is the same today as it was two hundred years ago? What was different about Florida in 1804 (it stretched west all the way to the Mississippi)? After 1803, the United States owned all lands immediately north and west of Florida. How do you think the Spanish felt about this development? Do you think that the proximity of Florida to the United States combined with British desires to control New Orleans (boundary between Florida and Louisiana) created tension between the three nations? Map from http://www.tlaupp.com/images/LPterritory.jpg Florida in the Second Spanish Colonial Era (1784-1821): After the American Revolution, England not only gave thirteen of their fifteen North American colonies independence ( East and West Florida were the other two), but they also handed over to the Americans all English-held land east of the Mississippi River (green on the map). After losing all of this land, England saw no reason to keep Florida, so she gave it back to Spain. In 1803, in order to raise funds for a potential war with England, Napolean Bonaparte of France authorized the sale of all French lands west of the Mississippi River (red on the map) to the Americans for $15 million. With such rapid growth from 1783 to 1803, Americans felt that there was no reason that they couldn’t take Florida, also. In possession of its former colony again, the Spanish government attempted to strengthen its hold on Florida. First, the Spanish governor of Florida asked the king to grant lands to Catholic foreigners and those who would convert to Catholicism. In 1790, this was changed to include any foreigner who would swear allegiance to Spain. Each head of household received 100 acres for himself and fifty for every person, white or non-white, attached to the household. This encouraged foreigners to settle Florida. Within a few months, almost 300 whites moved into East Florida, bringing with them about 1,000 slaves. By 1804, 750 new English immigrants swore loyalty to Spain, claimed lands, and brought over 5,000 slaves and 800 family members or white workers with them. Some former Spanish attitudes on slavery returned with the Spanish, as did the old threecaste system, but there were changes as a result of the English influence during their hold on Florida and with the numbers of English and American settlers arriving in Florida. The second Spanish government adopted a harder line towards slaves as it’s the profitability of Florida became more dependent on a plantation economy after 1784. Slaves had to be exploited for intense agricultural cultivation, not freed. However, the new English and American residents of East Florida quickly learned that it was useless maintaining a system that kept slaves disgruntled and resentful, as hundreds of the new bondservants escaped into the surrounding wilderness. So, while fewer slaves were released from bondage in the second Spanish era, they still enjoyed a measure of tolerance not experienced by their counterparts in the southern states of the new American nation. Other former ways changed, too. In 1784, Spain still offered refuge for any runaway slaves from the new United States as long as they converted to Catholicism. That changed in the 1790s with pressure from the new government of the US, as well as from slaveholders in the American South. Spanish authorities, eager to not provoke the land-hungry Americans, decided to end its policy of freedom for runaway slaves. As a result of this change and the new English plantations, the black population of Florida grew from 27 percent in 1786 to 57% in 1814. And while the vast majority were slaves, many free blacks still continued to live and work in the less hostile climate of Florida. In the Spanish colony of Cuba, however, there was some evidence that Spain’s previous genteel outlook on slavery was changing in response to the rising popularity of sugar in Europe. At the beginning of the 19th century, Cuba changed from an undersettled outpost of the Spanish Empire to a booming plantation society of masters and slaves. Because of sugar’s high profits, slaves in Cuba were treated brutally on a scale equal only to the most severe plantations of the American South. Before the sugar boom, Cuba had been much like Florida. Slaves were freed regularly and became valuable members of the community. But the increasing popularity of sugar in Europe caused a change in Cuba’s slave policies. Slaves were no longer freed, and the white slaveholders became virulently prejudiced towards color. In fact, the Cuban colonial government encouraged these new policies by publicizing France’s failure to keep its colony of Haiti in the face of a large slave revolt. In the early 1800s, Spain was also beginning to lose its grip on some of its holdings in South America and Mexico. It was not about to lose one of its more profitable colonies. Was this a sign of changes to come in Florida in the Spanish colonial era of the early 19th century? Apparently not, because there had never been time to develop agriculture in East Florida with the constant threat of invasion by the French, the English, or the upstart Americans. The Spanish government of Florida saw more importance in developing a free caste of blacks that would form militias to help defend Spanish colonial possessions. Though an effort was made to promote some agriculture in East Florida by the allotment of land to non-Spaniards, outside forces such as the encirclement of potential enemies and the temptation of the surrounding wilderness dictated that Spain keep its traditional three-caste social structure. Spanish Florida and the War of 1812: In spite of all attempts to strengthen its hold on Florida, Spain was weaker than it had been when the English took Florida in 1763. Its hold on Florida was made even more precarious by competing elements of continued English interest and influence and Americans moving south across the St. Mary’s River from Georgia. Combined with unruly Indians, runaway slaves, outlaw whites, and independence movements in Spain’s other New World colonies, Florida was becoming unmanageable for Spain. When the United States and England went to war again in 1812, both sides saw Florida as an integral part of their strategy. Some Americans had looked at Florida as a natural extension of their territory in light of the Louisiana Purchase of 1804. Other Americans, particularly plantation owners, were angered by Spain’s weakness in controlling Florida’s native populations, who were conducting raids in Alabama and Georgia, and helping slaves to escape, with the help of their black allies. But the American government supported no significant moves on Florida until English warships and men began appearing on the St. John’s River and around Pensacola Bay, at Spain’s invitation. The English immediately began to supply the Indians and free blacks living in the wilderness with guns and supplies in return for continued raids on Southern plantations. The Indians were also given special instructions to free as many slaves as possible in these raids. In return, the English promised that they would continue to supply the Indians and all the newly released slaves from these raids. As the War of 1812 wound down in late 1814, American forces led by General Andrew Jackson made the English retreat from Pensacola. Jackson and his men then made their way to Mobile and New Orleans. The English forces headed toward the Apalachicola River with a large number of blacks, some of which were still held as slaves by their Spanish owners. On the east bank of the river fifteen miles upstream from the Gulf of Mexico, the English built a fort and supplied it with guns, ammunition, artillery, powder, and shot. They also distributed arms to the local native and free black population. Then the British sailed away, leaving this fort to be manned by a force of 344 blacks. After the war ended in a virtual draw with the Treaty of Ghent in December 1814, the fort remained, making river travel hazardous for all Americans who ventured south from Georgia to the Gulf. The American government demanded that Spanish authorities destroy the fort to no avail. In July 1816, an American gunboat sailed north from the mouth of the river and attacked this “Negro fort,” as it was nicknamed by the Americans. One cannon shot from the river hit the fort’s gunpowder supply, and the resulting explosion killed 270 of the fort’s occupants, while injuring seventy-one. Only three men were unhurt. This incident, and many more Seminole raids on plantations in Georgia and Alabama strengthened the American demand that the Spanish either police its inhabitants more effectively, or give the territory to the United States. The First Seminole War: Late in the summer of 1817, Seminoles and free blacks were rumored to be gathering near Tallahassee. The American government sent a group of soldiers to talk to the large group, but as they arrived in the area, the Indians fired upon the soldiers. The troops then attacked the Indians and destroyed their village. The Indians got their revenge months later, when on November 30, they attacked a supply boat on the Apalachicola River and killed thirty-seven American soldiers, seven of their wives, and four children. Later, the Indians returned, killing or wounding fifty-nine more people. The government of the United States immediately placed Andrew Jackson in charge of American forces in an invasion of Florida on the grounds of controlling Indians. Jackson and his 2,000 troops found two English agitators who were believed to have incited the Seminoles to attack the Americans months earlier. Jackson had both executed. He and his men then approached Pensacola when it was learned that Seminoles were gathering nearby and that the Spanish governor would not allow transportation of American supply boats on the nearby Escambia River. Jackson and 1,200 of his men peacefully occupied the town and a nearby fort. He then returned to Tallahassee. Thus, the First Seminole War was over. Later, however, Jackson convinced a war party of Lower Creek Indians to launch a slave raid into southern Florida. They raided free black settlements and captured about 300 free blacks, returning them to slavery. Approximately 250 blacks escaped further south to the Keys or to Seminole villages around the upper Peace River in present-day Polk County. Though Spain protested this invasion of their territory, both sides knew that the Spanish colonial era was coming to an end in Florida. Florida had become a refuge for runaway American slaves, unruly Seminole Indians, and renegade whites that could not be governed by the Spaniards. The only answer to this for the Americans was to annex Florida, making it a territory of the United States. This was finally accomplished through negotiations on February 22, 1821. Picture A-2-2: Black Seminole Leaders What do you see in this picture? How are the men in the picture dressed? Does one man in this picture look different than the other two? The man in the background is Abraham, a Black Seminole leader. Why do you think that Seminoles and runaway slaves formed alliances in the Florida wilderness? Picture from http://www.texancultures.utsa.edu/seminole/images/floridaone.jpg The American Era Begins (1821-1860): Show the picture of Abraham, a runaway slave who became an influential Black Seminole leader. Ask students the following questions: “What do you see here? Why do you think that he dresses like this? Do you think that he is an influential person among his people?” The Florida that the Untied States received from Spain was still wilderness. Of the roughly 12,000 inhabitants, less than 4,500 were under governmental authority in 1821. Of these 4,500, 800 lived in or near Pensacola while the rest were in that northeastern pocket between the St. Mary’s river to the north and St. Augustine to the south. The 7,500 not under direct governmental influence were mostly free blacks, escaped slaves, or Seminole Indians. This presented a problem for the new American territorial government. Most of these ungoverned individuals had made their homes in the expansive region between the Apalachicola River to the west and the Suwanee River to the east. Within months of Florida becoming an American territory, though, many white settlers from the southern United States began to move into this “unclaimed” area in search of very cheap land. When word soon spread that the soil in this region was perfect for cotton production, many more whites began to move into this area of Middle Florida en masse from Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama. Of course, they brought slavery with them. New Racial Policies: These new planters demanded that Florida’s new government either deport all Indians and free blacks in Middle Florida or restrict them to a reservation further south. They also demanded that a new system of laws and practices different from Spanish customs be enacted. These new planters felt that only in these ways would slaves not be tempted to run away like so many of their predecessors. The Florida government responded by making immediate efforts to implant a new two-caste system of whites and blacks. New laws were passed that restricted the activities of free blacks. In 1827, the territorial government prohibited free blacks from even entering Florida, blaming them for inciting discontent among slaves. More laws were passed in the following years outlawing free blacks from engaging in numerous activities, barring them from jury duty, disallowing them to have a voice in local government, forbidding them to testify against whites in court, and making all interracial marriages illegal. In 1829, the Florida government also attempted to discourage the freeing of slaves. Owners were forced to pay $200 for each slave they freed, and the former slave was forced to leave Florida within thirty days. If the former slave did not comply, they could be resold to a new owner. Furthermore, blacks that had been freed by the Spanish could be sold back into slavery as a punishment for crime or as a way to settle any debt. Free blacks could also be forced to work on manual labor projects, whipped for minor crimes, and restricted to a 9:00PM curfew. Free blacks were not the only African-Americans to experience the negative nature of the new Florida government, either. Gone were the more-civilized Spanish slavery policies. In their place arose a brutal system in which slaves were worked to exhaustion at least six days a week and given very little food or rest. In addition, the freedom of movement that many Spanish slaves had enjoyed was replaced by a strict policy of non-interaction among slave communities. Even punishment for transgressions was made more severe. There are many documented cases of floggings, whippings with a “cat-o’-nine-tails,” brandings, and ears nailed to trees. Many slaves died from these punishments. In some cases, the slave owners would hire white overseers to watch the slaves at work and use whatever methods necessary to get the maximum amount of work from these slaves. Many of these overseers would compete against each other to see which ones could employ the most brutal methods. Perhaps the worst treatment of all, though, was living with the knowledge that at any time, and for whatever reason, one’s family could be broken apart as spouses, sons, and daughters could be sold to slave owners many hundreds of miles away, never to be seen again. “The Boom”: As a result of these new racial policies and the curtailment of freedoms for free blacks, Florida’s population exploded. By 1825, West Florida claimed 5,780 people, while Middle Florida held 2,370. Meanwhile, East Florida could account for 5,077. Five years later, the rapid growth of Middle Florida boomed even more with a census of 15,779, while West Florida held 9,478 and East Florida claimed 8,956. While Florida had been little more than a frontier outpost for the Spanish Empire for over two-and-a-half centuries, it had become an economic bonanza for the United States. And no region was more prized than the cotton-growing region of Middle Florida. By 1825, settlers were already establishing large (slave populations of twenty or more and consisting of at least 500 acres) and small plantations in the area between the Apalachicola and Suwanee Rivers. In this region of Jackson, Gadsden, Leon, Jefferson, and Madison Counties, cotton was king. In fact, this region produced 85 percent of Florida’s cotton within three decades of becoming an American possession. And this large-scale production required slave labor. In 1830, 60 percent of all slaves in Florida lived in these five counties; by 1860, it was 70 percent. As production increased, this cotton kingdom grew, eventually stretching beyond the Suwanee River south and east to around present-day Ocala and Gainesville. The Second Seminole War: This extreme growth in such a short time with the accompaniment of new laws regarding free blacks and slaves was bound to result in friction with the original inhabitants of Middle Florida. As more and more armed Seminoles and blacks were pushed out of plantation lands and further into the swamps, the likelihood of a fight increased. Free blacks living in villages away from white settlements grew increasingly agitated as white slave catchers raided their settlements and captured men, women, and children for profit. Finally, in 1823, the United States negotiated a treaty with Indian leaders. This agreement, the Treaty of Moultrie Creek, created a reservation for Seminoles and blacks living among them from about present-day Ocala down to southern Polk County. Soon, however, many white settlers began to move into this area as well. That, and legislation aimed against the Seminoles and other tribes living in the southern United States, began to stir up hard feelings among the Seminoles and their black allies. Upon seeing the enactment of new slavery codes and laws restricting the liberties of former slaves coupled with the violation of treaties setting aside lands for Indians and their AfricanAmerican allies, free blacks living in unsettled areas felt that the intention of the new government was to capture them and sell them into slavery. So they prepared themselves for a battle to the death to protect themselves and their families. In late 1835, about 1,600 blacks lived within the lands originally set aside for them and the Seminoles. Over 1,100 slaves toiled on plantations immediately north and east. When war broke out in December between U.S. troops and Seminole and black warriors, many slaves who had been secretly armed by free blacks revolted on their plantations. This Second Seminole War quickly became what may have been the largest slave uprising in United States history. Possibly over a thousand slaves left their plantations and joined the struggle against the policies of the United States, and fought with such fervor that many American soldiers claimed that the most fierce Indian warriors could not match their black counterparts in battle. Many Black Seminole leaders actively participated in this seven-year conflict, influencing other African-Americans to fight and causing other Seminole and Creek warriors to join the fray as well. Eventually, though, the U.S. Army’s overwhelming resources and supplies caused the Seminoles to stop fighting. Black Seminole leaders were also instrumental in negotiating a settlement to end the war. Instead of being captured and sold back into slavery, they made the U.S. government allow all Black Seminoles to accompany their Indian allies to Oklahoma, where many still live today. Middle Florida Becomes the Seat of Power: With the end of the Second Seminole War in Florida and the forced removal of all Indians and Black Seminoles, white planters in Middle Florida could concentrate on settling more land and buying more slaves without the threat of another large-scale slave revolt or Indian war. The peace of the pre-Civil War years from 1845 to 1860 caused another settlement boom. In 1845, almost 70,000 people lived in Florida, counting 34,000 slaves. In 1860, this jumped to almost 62,000 slaves in a total population of over 141,000, with the vast majority of the slaves living in Middle Florida. As a result of this increase in population centered on the cotton-producing regions, Middle Florida became the most powerful region in Florida, both economically and politically. Many Middle Florida elites began the push for statehood in the late 1830s. Seeing cheap land and the benefits of an expanded slave-based economy and federal aid in the building of roads and infrastructure, especially the building of a railroad, these leaders actively pursued the idea of Florida’s admittance into the Union. Despite the objections of people in East Florida who did not relish the idea of federal taxes and the increased power base in Middle Florida, Florida became the 27th state in 1845. Though the new policies toward slaves and free blacks legislated in the first half of the 19th century were severe, there was resistance from several groups, most notably from families that were holdovers from the Spanish era in eastern and western Florida. As Middle Florida grew stronger in the years after Florida became an American possession, East and West Florida chafed at its increased significance. Many of the older slave-owning families in northeast Florida still held political office, served as delegates to the territorial government, and owned the best tracts of land situated on the best waterways along the St. John’s River and its tributaries. Aware of the power that they held, these slave owners, especially in East Florida, actively disobeyed the law of the land in regards to slavery codes. They still released many slaves from bondage without paying the required $200 or enforcing the mandatory 30-days-to-leave policy for newly released slaves, married some former slaves, and still understood the value of a free black class in society. Furthermore, many slave owners in East and West Florida still allowed their slaves the opportunity to make extra money by working odd jobs such as carpentry, masonry, timber cutting, or fishing. Other owners rented their slaves out and paid a portion of the wages earned to the slave directly. And the old Spanish task-oriented system of work was still prevalent; for instance, if a slave was required to work in the timber industry, instead of cutting trees down all day with no set limit until dusk, he was given a quota to meet. Upon reaching that quota, such as ten trees on a typical day, that slave was then free to tend to their own business. Many slaves produced over their quotas in order to earn extra wages. Opportunities still abounded for slaves outside of Middle Florida. Many slaves did not work in cotton production in East and West Florida. Their services were needed in other endeavors, such as cattle-herding and railroad construction. Other slaves worked as handymen, fisherman, cooks, and artisans. Many slave owners in East and West Florida taught their slaves to read and write to better enable them to manage stores and other businesses, and also instructed them in mathematical principles to better enable them to do these jobs. This practice was totally opposite of other slave-holding areas throughout the American South. By the 1850s, however, even East and West Florida’s stubbornness and noncompliance in following the slave codes of Florida began to subside. The power of the Middle Florida planters grew, and some of the original holdovers of the old Spanish regime began to die off. More than any other cause, the increase of white farmers and laborers emigrating from other areas into East and West Florida spelled the end of some of the more tolerant attitudes toward slaves and blacks in general. Combined with slave revolts in other southern states and increased competition for jobs between free blacks and whites, East and West Florida became very similar to the rest of the South prior to the Civil War. Activities “African-Americans in Antebellum Florida”-Pre-Test Directions: Answer the following questions to the best of your ability using any prior knowledge you may have about the experiences of black slaves and free blacks in Florida before the Civil War. 1. Africans were first introduced to Florida by the ______________. a. Spanish b. English c. Americans d. trick question; they weren’t 2. Spanish attitudes and policies toward slaves were influenced by: a. the belief that all humans deserved to be treated decently b. the belief that slavery was just a temporary condition and subject to change c. the teaching of the Catholic Church which stated that everyone had a redeemable soul d. all of the above 3. True or false. The Spanish believed that society should be made up of three classes, or castes; whites, freed slaves, and bondservants. 4. True or false. When Florida was an English colony, many slaves were freed and allowed to become members of the community. 5. The second Spanish colonial era in Florida was marked by: a. harsher treatment of slaves than under the English government b. repeated raids by Seminole Indians and former slaves into Georgia and Alabama, where more slaves were freed from bondage c. the American Revolution d. slavery becoming a federal crime 6. Florida became a territory of the United States in 1821. As a result: a. many people left Florida, moving north to Alabama and Georgia b. Americans moved south to take advantage of the ideal soil, making Florida a leading cotton-producing state c. the War of 1812 started d. Andrew Jackson became president 7. Florida’s years as an American territory and later a state: a. saw the end of slavery b. saw repeated attacks by the Spanish and English c. saw a major slave revolt led by runaway slaves and Indians and the emergence of Middle Florida d. saw the beginnings of immigration from Europe 8. The institution of slavery after 1821 was ______ __________ when compared to the Spanish era. a. less harsh b. more harsh c. the same (Answers to pre-test) 1. a 2. d 3. True 4. False 5. b 6. b 7. c 8. b Timeline Information Sheet A. 1784- Great Britain gives Florida back to ____________ after losing the Revolutionary War to thirteen English colonies. B. 1812-1814- The War of 1812 between the United States and Great Britain occurs; ________________ invade Florida from the north in attempts to take Florida from Spain. Free blacks fight to defend Florida. C. 1815- The British establish the “___________ _________” 15 miles upstream of the Gulf of Mexico on the Apalachicola River; American gunboat attacks in July 1816. Out of 344 people defending the fort, 270 are killed, 71 injured. D. 1817- The First _______________ War begins and ends. E. 1821- Florida becomes a territory of the ________________ ______________ in the Adams-Onis Treaty. F. 1835-1842- The Second __________________ War, which could also have been the largest slave revolt in American history. G. 1845- Florida becomes the ____ state. H. 1830- Population of Florida is 35,000 (16,000 slaves) 1845- Population of Florida is 70,000 (34,000 slaves) 1860- Population of Florida is 141,000 (62,000 slaves) (Answers to Timeline Information Sheet) A. Spain B. Americans C. Negro Fort D. Seminole E. United States F. Seminole G. 27th Homework Assignments (Processing): here are some ideas to use for processing information. Feel free to offer some or all, and let your students decide which one (s) they will complete. 2.) Have students create an illustrated (and colored) acrostic poem titled “Slavery in Florida.” The poem should include complete statements and it should show understanding of the differences in the slavery policies practiced by the Spanish colonials in Florida and the English/Americans. 3.) On the students’ Graphic Organizer #2 (map of Florida in the American era), have students create a T-chart showing some of the major differences in slavery as practiced in the Spanish era and during the English/American era. Students may also show the differing attitudes held by the Spaniards and the Anglos (English and Americans). 4.) On the timeline passed out in class, have students draw and color a symbol for each entry that reflects understanding of the topic. For instance, maybe a quick sketch of the Castillo de San Marcos for the establishment of St. Augustine in 1565. Another option is to have students pick one or two entries and create elaborate pictures for those entries. (continued from previous lesson) 5.) Have students use pictures of slaves working in cotton production and in other jobs to create perspective drawings or collages showing the differences between slaves in East and West Florida to slaves in Middle Florida after 1821. 6.) On a grading scale of “A” to “F”, ask your students to grade Spain, England, and the United States separately on their policies and attitudes toward slavery and blacks in general before the Civil War. Each colonial government should receive an individual grade, and the student should be able to present evidence explaining their decision. Assessment Assessment Questions 1.) (Show the picture of a white man whipping a slave- Picture A-2-3) Based on your knowledge of slavery in Spanish Florida as opposed to slavery after Florida became an American territory, which era and location do you think is represented by this picture? a. Spanish East Florida b. Spanish West Florida c. American East Florida d. American Middle Florida Picture from http://www.americaslibrary.gov/assets/aa/tubman/aa_tubman_youth_2_e.jpg 2.) Why did Spanish racial attitudes “hang on” in East and West Florida years after Florida became an American territory? What were some ways in which the people of East and West Florida resisted the laws toward blacks that were established by the territorial government in Tallahassee? 3.) In your opinion, why was Middle Florida never settled by the Spanish? What were some obstacles encountered by the first Americans to move into Middle Florida? How did Middle Florida so quickly become the seat of power in territorial government, as opposed to East or West Florida? 4) Why do you think Tallahassee was chosen as the new capital of Florida by the Americans, instead of the old Spanish capitals of St. Augustine and Pensacola? 5) (Show the picture of the entryway to the plantation at left –Picture A-2-4) Here we see a typical old plantation house in the Deep South. In what region of Florida would one be more likely to see plantations in the antebellum era? a. West Florida b. Middle Florida c. East Florida d. South Florida Picture from http://www.resortsgreathotels.com/articles/litchfield/lit.jpg V. Resources Colburn, David R., and Landers, Jane, Eds. The African-American Heritage of Florida. University Press of Florida: Gainesville, FL. 1995. Gannon, Michael, Ed. The New History of Florida. University Press of Florida: Gainesville, FL. 1996. Landers, Jane. Black Society in Spanish Florida. University of Illinois Press: Urbana, Illinois. 1999. Porter, Kenneth W. The Black Seminoles: History of a Freedom-Seeking People. University Press of Florida: Gainesville, FL. 1996. Rivers, Larry Eugene. Slavery in Florida: Territorial Days to Emancipation. University Press of Florida: Gainesville, FL. 2000. Tebeau, Charlton W. A History of Florida. University of Miami Press: Coral Gables, FL. 1971. http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/snhtml/snhome.html -Oral histories of former slaves http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Bluffs/3010/slavery.htm -property value of West Florida’s slaves http://www.flahum.org/flheritage/flslavery.html -Slavery and its aftermath in Florida http://www.oldhouseweb.net/stories/Detailed/10378.shtml -Kingsley Plantation http://www.cr.nps.gov/goldcres/sites/kingsley.htm -same as above http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/photos/industry/kingsl/kingsl.htm -pictures of the Kingsley Plantation