CANTONMENT MORGAN
On Seahorse Key
As the issue of Florida statehood raged in Washington, DC, the 2nd Seminole
Indian War, or Florida, War, raged in the interior of the Florida territory.
When General Zachary Taylor became commander of the forces fighting the
Seminole Indians in the Territory of Florida in 1838, the U.S. Army and Florida Militia
were having little success in driving the roving bands of Indian Warriors out of the
peninsula. Taylor quickly established a chain of 53 new forts and camps, built or
improved 848 miles of road and 3,643 feet of causeways and bridges. This network
helped not only the U.S. Army, but also civilians and Seminoles traverse the northern
and central regions of the Florida territory.
The problem of equal distribution of the forts was solved by Taylor when he
divided North Florida into a series of sections 20-miles square. The area within each
section was guarded by a fort named for the number of the square where the fort
was located.
To effectively man the forts, it was necessary to move troops and supplies into
the heart of the territory. The Withlacoochee River, the Suwannee River, the
Waccasassa River, and other major waterways that emptied into the Gulf of Mexico
all provided river access to the interior.
The Cedar Keys, being strategically located to these rivers, provided the
military with an ideal staging area for the transfer of troops and supplies from larger
vessels to the steamers and smaller vessels that plied the rivers. In addition, the
islands were virtually uninhabited and easily taken over by the government.
The chain of posts posted in the area surrounding the Cedar Keys were: Fort
No. Four on the mainland of the Cedar Keys, occupied from April 1839 until August
1841; Fort No. Three about six miles up the Waccasassa River, occupied from April
1839 through June 1840; Fort Clinch, two miles southeast of Inglis on the
Withlacoochee River, occupied from October 1836 until May 1842; Fort Waccasassa
or Fort No. Eight, at the headwaters of the Waccasassa River, occupied from March
1839 until January 1843; and Fort Fanning, located 5 miles south of Wilcox on the
east bank of the Suwannee River, occupied from November 1838 until January 1843.
A temporary encampment named Cantonment Morgan was located on
Seahorse Key, 3-miles southwest of Depot Key, now present day Atsena Otie. The
post returns, a series of monthly reports on troop and personnel movements filed
with the Adjutant General’s Office in Washington give us what little information
known about this post.
Cantonment Morgan was occupied from July 1841 until December 1842. The
encampment was utilized as a staging area for the receiving, processing and
deploying of troops; a hospital for both military troops and Seminole Indians; and an
internment camp for captured Indians being shipped to the west.
The military units which passed through Cantonment Morgan, their strength,
the names and duties of the officers, the number of officers present and absent, a
list of official communications received and a record of events were recorded for the
period of the official existence of this post. However, the returns for the months of
January and March 1842 are missing.
One of Cantonment Morgan’s post returns shows a General Order 33 was
issued directing commander of the 6th U.S. Infantry to re-occupy Cantonment Morgan
with two companies. Use of the term “re-occupy” would indicate the post had been
active at some prior date.
William Hoffman, Captain of Company “D” did as commanded and Cantonment
Morgan was re-occupied on the 10th day of August 1841 by Companies “D” and “K”
of the 6th U.S. Infantry.
The U.S. government had a compelling reason for establishing a military post
on Seahorse Key - the healthy atmosphere. The Indians were not the only threat to
soldiers in the Territory of Florida. The summer heat or so called “sickly season”
which ran roughly from the end of March to October could reduce the ranks of a
company of soldiers very quickly. Illness and death were rampant throughout the
ranks at all the camps and forts in the interior. However, the returns of Cantonment
Morgan show only three deaths during the occupation of the post.
The “sickly season” also made it hard to recruit citizen soldiers and regulars to
form an effective fighting force. Each company had an officer whose job it was to
recruit volunteers and each month’s return gave the number of recruits needed to
bring the company up to capacity.
At the height of the campaign against the Indians the fighting force was
composed of friendly Creek Indians; Georgia, Alabama, and Florida Volunteers; and
regular U.S. Army. However, as the war dragged on, militia and volunteers from
Georgia and Alabama were becoming harder
and harder to recruit for duty in Florida,
especially after fighting against the Creeks
broke out in their own states. In addition,
citizen soldiers did not feel the commitment
of regular soldiers and each month the post
returns of Cantonment Morgan listed more
and more deserters. As an incentive to
prospective soldiers, the U.S. government
awarded bounty land to certain officers and
soldiers who engaged in military service on
behalf of the United States.
In January 1842, Colonel William J.
Worth, commander of the Army of Florida
stepped up the campaign against the
Indians, putting greater pressure on them to
surrender.
Hot pursuit and continuing
solicitations of Indian leaders slowly
convinced many of the Indians to surrender.
However, there were a good many hold outs who continued to roam the peninsular
rather than be transported to the west.
When a band of 230 Indians were shipped from Fort Brooke to the western
states in February, 1842, Colonel Worth estimated that only 300 Indians remained
on the peninsula of Florida. Thinking the hostilities were coming to a close, Worth
dismissed some of the regular troops, sending them back to the north and then asked
the government for permission to institute a non-pursuit policy.
In April 1842, Colonel Worth went into the interior to meet with three of the
remaining chieftains: Billy Bowlegs, Tiger Tail, and Octiarchie. An arrangement was
made giving these Indians and their followers a reservation in the southern portion
of Florida. In return, they would cease hostilities.
As the hostilities with the Indians subsided, Congress enacted a bill on August
4, 1842 entitled The Armed Occupation Act. The act was designed to entice settlers
to the unsettled parts of the peninsula east of the Suwannee River. Any settler who
would build a dwelling, cultivate five acres of land, live on the land for five years, and
protect it from the Indians would receive 160-acres of land for free.
Although permit no. 188 to Seahorse Key was granted to Samuel Johnson on
February 18, 1843, a decade later, Johnson was forced to relinquish his claim to the
island to make way for the construction of a lighthouse. Construction of the Cedar
Keys Light Station was completed on July 20, 1854 and the light was first exhibited
on August 1st.
To learn more about the 2nd Seminole Indian War, an Open House of the Cedar Keys
Light Station on Seahorse Key will be held on Saturday, August 3, 2013, from 9:30
AM until 2:30 PM. Access to the island is only by boat. Boats to shuttle visitors are
available on the dock at the Cedar Key City Marina.