Benjamin Franklin’s East Florida Warning
byOn July 25, 1768, Benjamin Franklin set his friend, Charles-Guillaume-Frédéric Dumas, straight. Dumas, a man of letters who would later serve as an American…
East Florida
March to Independence: The American Revolution in the Southern Colonies, 1775–1776
byBOOK REVIEW: March to Independence: The American Revolution in the Southern Colonies, 1775-1776 by Michael Cecere (Yardley, Pa.: Westholme Publishing for Journal of the American Revolution…
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Phraseology and the “Fourteenth Colony”
byThe phrase “fourteenth colony” describes a province in British North America that did not revolt alongside the original thirteen colonies. Such a province usually…
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The Odyssey of Loyalist Colonel Samuel Bryan
byColonel Samuel Bryan is thought to be the highest-ranking Loyalist officer to remain in the United States after the Revolutionary War. Despite being a…
This Week on Dispatches: George Kotlik on Bartram’s Travels in Florida
byOn this week’s Dispatches, host Brady Crytzer interviews historian of colonial Florida and JAR contributor George Kotlik on botanist William Bartram’s travels in East Florida during…
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Following William Bartram’s Footsteps in Northeast Florida
byFrom 1765 to 1766, botanist John Bartram explored Florida, the new southern territory Britain acquired after the Seven Years’ War. William Bartram, his son,…
Five Women of British East Florida
byIn the male-dominated historical record of East Florida during the era of the American Revolution, a few women stand out as noteworthy. Most women…
Robert Bisset’s East Florida Holdings
byCaptain Robert Bisset arrived in East Florida in 1767. Immediately upon his coming, he set to work on establishing himself as a planter. For…
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Seventeen Testimonies Seal New Smyrna’s Fate, 1777
byIn March 1777, while Andrew Turnbull was away in England, several Minorcans escaped New Smyrna and fled to St. Augustine, East Florida. They hiked seventy…
This Week on Dispatches: George Kotlik on Texas and the American Revolution
byOn this week’s Dispatches, host Brady Crytzer interviews historian and JAR contributor George Kotlik on Texas’s contributions to the Patriot cause. Throughout the latter…
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The Connolly Plot
byDuring the Revolutionary War, Pittsburgh was a place of constant political and economic intrigue, double-dealing, subversion, back-stabbing, disloyalty, and treachery. One of the earliest…
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Minorcans, New Smyrna, and the American Revolution in East Florida
byBeyond Florida’s state boundaries the history of New Smyrna is seldom mentioned.[1] Well known to the locals of New Smyrna Beach, the region’s settlement by…
The East Florida Gazette, 1783–1784
byEast Florida only had one newspaper in the colony’s entire history. The newspaper went live during the final year of the American War for…
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Bernard Romans and the First Attempt at Fortifying the Hudson River
byLord Stirling was not happy. The American brigadier general[1] was on a mission from George Washington to inspect the newly built fortifications in the Hudson…
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James Moore’s Commission in the East Florida Rangers
byUnder the leadership of Royal Governor Patrick Tonyn, East Florida remained in the hands of the British Crown during the Imperial Crisis, not an…
2
David Holmes, Timothy Barnard, and Questionable Loyalties
byWith the Revolutionary War in full swing by August 1776, George Galphin penned a letter to his nephew, Timothy Barnard. Galphin started his letter…
This Week on Dispatches: Robert Davis on Georgia and the American Revolution
byIn this week’s Dispatches host Brady Crytzer interviews distinguished historian Robert “Bob” Davis about Georgia’s unique role in the American Revolution as the colony that…
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James Grant’s American Confession
byIn American history, the name James Grant became synonymous with advocacy for British supremacy in colonial matters. For much of Grant’s early military career,…
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William Taylor: Loyalist Refugee in East Florida
byDuring the War for American Independence, displaced Loyalists from the southern colonies sought refuge in East Florida. Due to a large influx of refugees,…
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Patrick Tonyn: Britain’s Most Effective Revolutionary-Era Royal Governor
byEven among historians of the American Revolution, the name of East Florida’s royal governor, Patrick Tonyn, is all but unknown. However, Tonyn proved himself…
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“The Celebrated and Notorious” Ned Turner
byDeep in South Carolina’s back country the Loyalist world came apart in the fall of 1781. British occupation ended with their retreat into the…
Daniel McGirth, Banditti on the Southern Frontier
byThe story repeated itself time and again across the southern districts of Georgia. Alarms raised loudly across a broad area with tales of imminent…
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The Loyalist Exodus of 1778
byIn March 1778, several hundred South Carolina Loyalists began a march to the British province of East Florida to seek refuge from persecution and…
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John Houstoun and the 1778 Expedition to East Florida
byAt the time of the revolution, John Houstoun was one of four brothers from a prominent plantation owning family in Georgia. Unlike Patrick and…