When the United States acquired Florida from Spain in 1821
tensions escalated rapidly. American settlers and slaveholders viewed the Seminoles and their Black allies as threats to security, property, and expansion. Raids, real and alleged, along the Florida–Georgia border fueled calls for military intervention. The U.S. government sought to impose control through treaties that limited Seminole land and mobility, beginning with the Treaty of Moultrie Creek in 1823. This agreement forced the Seminoles onto a reservation in central Florida, disrupting traditional patterns of subsistence and movement. While framed as a peaceful arrangement, the treaty increased dependency on government supplies and heightened internal stress within Seminole society.The wetlands of the Everglades increasingly became a refuge as pressure mounted. Unlike American settlers, who saw swamps as obstacles to progress, the Seminoles understood the Everglades as a homeland that offered concealment, resources, and strategic advantage. Canoe travel through sawgrass marshes and narrow waterways allowed Seminole bands to move quietly and quickly. Tree islands provided elevated ground for camps and gardens, while dense vegetation limited visibility and hindered pursuing soldiers. This intimate knowledge of the environment would prove decisive during the Seminole Wars.
The First Seminole War began in 1817, before Florida officially became a U.S. territory. American forces, led by Andrew Jackson, entered Spanish Florida to pursue Seminoles and recapture escaped enslaved people. Villages were destroyed, crops burned, and inhabitants displaced. Although the conflict was relatively brief, it set a precedent for military intervention and demonstrated the U.S. government’s willingness to violate foreign sovereignty to achieve its goals. For the Seminoles, it was an early warning that their autonomy and homeland were under serious threat. shutdown123