Negro Fort--Creek Country A-Z

Creek Country A to Z

Creek Country now consists of Georgia and Alabama, but 160 years ago, it was ruled by the mighty Creek Confederacy. Join me as I explore ancient Creek Country from Adela to Zachariah, the Battle of Burnt Corn to the Yamassee War. And everything in between.

N, for Negro Fort

Ever heard of Negro Fort? If you’re African American, perk up, because this is your history.

Negro Fort had a short, but noble, life. It symbolized freedom and what could be. It’s problem? It existed fifty years too early.

Artifacts from the site of the fort.
Bucket and ammunition

Gifted by the British after the War of 1812, Negro Fort sat at the mouth of the Apalachicola River toward center of the Florida Panhandle and housed some three hundred runaways and natives. Well-stocked with arms and ammunition, the fort was a force to be reckoned with.

In fact, its inhabitants grew so powerful and confident, they ventured beyond their walls and the security of Spanish Florida to exact retribution on white Georgia residents. They soon became a threat to America’s welfare, which is exactly why, in 1816, Andrew Jackson set out to conquer it. And what Jackson wanted, Jackson got.

My novel, Warring Spirits, goes inside the fort and, through the eyes of a beautiful runaway, describes life for those who got a taste of freedom then had it removed in a most unexpected way.

But I’m a both-sides-of-the-coin kinda gal. I always tell both sides of every story...

View from lot where Negro Fort stood.
Apalachicola River.

Major Phillip Bailey has been tasked with reducing the fort and returning the slaves to their masters. It’s an unpleasant job, but someone’s got to do it. Conflict arises when his own slave and personal aide, the young Enoch, gets it in his head to take a stab at freedom inside the walls of the impenetrable fort.

Major Bailey is a good man and master whose eyes are opening to the evils of slavery, but Enoch’s had enough. If living—or dying—free means taking up arms against the master he’s loved, so be it.

But shooting his master should be the least of Enoch’s worries.

Of course, no one at Negro Fort in 1816 could have predicted what would bring it down, nor how easy it would be.

Today, only a vague impression in the ground remains where the fort once stood. Its existence and the bravery of those who stood behind its walls have been all but forgotten.

To learn more about Negro Fort, visit this website.

Or better yet, to live the experience, purchase a copy of the novel, Warring Spirits.

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