Category Florida History
John D MacArthur State Park -overview
An overview of the John D Mac Arthur State Park in Palm Beach County
Zachary Taylor and The Battle of Lake Okeechobee
On a recent Florida History Podcast we discussed future President Zachary Taylor and his military actions at the Battle of Lake Okeechobee which took place in December 1837. You can listen to the Florida History Podcast on Anchor (which hosts our show), Spotify, Google, Apple Podcasts, Radio Public, Breaker, Overcast, Castro or Pocket Casts. Overcast, Castro, Spotify, Radio Public and Breaker have App Store apps for […]
Growth in Florida in the 19th Century
A fantastic video which you can see in the Silver River Museum in Ocala.
Florida’s Rivers – 1989 WFSU Documentary
Features an interview with the one and only Marjorie Harris Carr, who did as much as anyone to protect Florida’s fragile ecosystems.
Culture of St Augustine in 1780
This is an excerpt from my book Florida and the American Revolution Food and drink in 1780 St Augustine St Augustine was bustling population wise during the war yet only had about 400 homes, leading to many exiles living on the periphery of the town or outside it entirely. The town boasted about 40 taverns, […]
Resentment of American Colonists toward Florida
This is an excerpt from my book Florida and the American Revolution. In recent years thanks to HBO’s wonderful, John Adams miniseries, a revival of interest in John Dickinson who was expertly played by Zeljko Ivanek has occurred. Dickinson opposed the Declaration of Independence as we learn in the miniseries. But before and after July […]
St Augustine and the Civil Rights Act of 1964
In commemoration of 60th Anniversary of Lyndon B. Johnson signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it is timely to recall the critical role Florida played in the passage of Civil Rights legislation- specifically St Augustine which the epicenter of MLK Jr. and Southern Christian Leadership Council (SLC) activity during the Senate filibuster of the […]
East Florida as a Tory safe haven
The following is an excerpt from my book Florida and the American Revolution Following the British defeat at Yorktown, loyalists began flooding into East Florida. In 1782 alone, over 6,000 refugees fled to East Florida. The assumption in this period was that East Florida would remain part of the British Empire, even though West Florida […]
The final naval battle of the American Revolution – off the Florida coast
This is an excerpt from my book Florida and the American Revolution. The final naval battle between British and Patriot forces took place off the Florida coast in March 1783. Robert Morris had arranged a shipload of Spanish gold and silver to be taken from Havana to Philadelphia. Captain John Barry sailed in the USS […]
The Florida Squeeze 