Page 56 - John Anderson

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fled the embarkation camp. Part of the reason for their departure
was the presence of slave catchers anxious to steal the Indians’ black
allies.
The war resumed, but serious fighting did not take place until late
autumn. Due to the heat, rains, and rampant disease, the army was
forced to withdraw from active campaigning for the summer months.
Much of Florida was covered with water, making the few roads
available impassible and breeding millions of mosquitoes that spread
deadly diseases. General Jesup, feeling betrayed by the Seminoles
after their flight from the embarkation camp, instituted the policy of
taking Indian leaders captive when they came in for negotiations
under a flag of truce. Under this policy he was able to capture the
tribe’s most famous war leader, Osceola, Chief Micanopy, and several
other important Seminole leaders. After Osceola’s subsequent death
in prison at Fort Moultrie in Charleston, SC, Seminole leadership
passed between Coacoochee (Wildcat), Alligator, Ote Emathla
(Jumper), Halleck Tustennuggee, Holata Micco (Billy Bowlegs) and
Abiaka (Sam Jones).
In the autumn of 1837 Jesup brought unprecedented force against
the Seminoles. Over 9,000 troops were sent from all over the nation.
The navy patrolled the coasts and rivers and supplied sailors and
marines to man forts and other installations. By promising the Black
Seminoles freedom in the west, Jesup also succeeded in splitting
many black warriors away from the Indians. Using his overwhelming
force, Jesup swept the peninsula from north to south, driving the
Seminoles before him. The campaign culminated on Christmas Day,
1837, with the Battle of Okeechobee, the largest engagement of the
war. The American force, led by Col. Zachary Taylor, claimed victory,
but suffered horrendous casualties. In truth, the battle was a draw,
both sides having accomplished what they had intended. Taylor
became a general and a national hero, while the Seminoles managed
to buy time for their families to escape into the Everglades.
After another pair of smaller battles in late January 1838, Jesup
realized the futility of trying to capture the remaining Seminoles, only
numbering around a thousand individuals, in the trackless
Everglades. He expressed his views to Secretary of War Joel Poinsett,

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