In this newsletter:

• Soon on to the Columbia River
• Securing the Gulf Coast
• FREE eBook Giveaway - The Declaration of Independence

Greetings History Buffs! We've returned from a glorious Alaska adventure cruising with American Cruise Lines. Travel is amazing, but home is also great! Early next week, we head to the Columbia River. It should be a beautiful time of year to be cruising on the brand new modern riverboat "American Encore."

BIG NEWS

Watch next week's newletter as we'll share the first of two big announcments. An odd teaser: This week's feature below is about the bizarre series of U.S. acquisitions across the Gulf Coast and Florida. That plays a role in our upcoming reveal. Hmmm.

SECURING THE GULF COAST

Why were the Gulf Coast and Florida so important to America’s future?

For the past few weeks we have explored how the Louisiana Purchase and the Mississippi River system were key to the nation's early westward expansion. But in the early 1800s, Spain still controlled the Gulf Coast stretching east of New Orleans. Control of Mobile Bay, Pensacola, and eventually all of Florida became essential for protecting the Mississippi River, defending American commerce, and preventing European powers from threatening the southern frontier.

Rather than acquiring the entire region at once, the United States gradually absorbed it. In 1810, American settlers in the Baton Rouge district rebelled against Spanish rule and briefly created the Republic of West Florida. President James Madison soon declared the region part of the United States, arguing that it had already been included in the Louisiana Purchase. Spain disagreed. Then, in 1813, American military forces seized the Spanish fort at Mobile Bay, extending U.S. control farther east along the Gulf.

Spain’s control of Florida also was weakening. Frontier violence, disputes involving Seminoles and Creek refugees, escaped enslaved people, and Andrew Jackson’s 1818 invasion demonstrated how difficult the province had become for Spain to defend.

Negotiations finally produced the Adams–Onís Treaty of 1819. Spain ceded Florida and relinquished its claims to West Florida. Spain received no purchase payment but the the United States absorbed up to $5 million of claims held by American citizens against Spain.

The result was about much more than adding Florida to the map. The United States had gradually secured Baton Rouge, Mobile, Pensacola, and eventually the entire peninsula, strengthening its control of the lower Mississippi and the Gulf approaches to New Orleans.

The Louisiana Purchase opened the continental interior; securing the Gulf Coast helped protect it. And that was only the beginning of Florida’s remarkable history which features Spanish explorers, pirates, Seminole resistance, Civil War conflict, railroads, tourism, and explosive twentieth-century growth. I explore that larger story in Florida History Highlights.​

FREE eBook GIVEAWAY

This weekend's free eBook goes back to the beginning to consider how and why 13 colonies broke away from their homeland. The Declaration of Independence. CLICK HERE. Throughough the past six months, this book has occasionally resurged back into several Amazon Top 10 categories!

Free book giveaways attract new readers and increase book reviews. PLEASE REVIEW any of my books quickly and easily here: CLICK HERE.

We're feeling the first breaths of autumn. Hope its coming your way soon. Ahhh. Have a great week!
Bill and Laura