East Florida
1763–1822
Left: Red Ensign ofGreat Britain Right: Flag of theSpanish Empire
Status	Colony ofGreat Britain (1763–1783) Colony ofSpanish Empire within theViceroyalty ofNew Spain (1783–1821) Provisionalmilitary government of theUnited States (1821–1822)
Capital	St. Augustine
Governor
• 1763–1784	5 under Britain
• 1784–1821	8 under Spain
• 1821	1 U.S. military commissioner
History
• Treaty of Paris	10 February, 1763
• Transferred to Spain	25 November 1783
• Adams–Onís Treaty	1821
• Merged intoTerritory of Florida	30 March, 1822
Preceded by Succeeded by Spanish Florida Territory of Florida

East Florida (Spanish:Florida Oriental) was a colony ofGreat Britain from 1763 to 1783 and a province of theSpanish Empire from 1783 to 1821. The British gained control overSpanish Florida in 1763 as part of theTreaty of Paris that ended theSeven Years' War. Deciding that the colony was too large to administer as a single unit, British officials divided Florida into two colonies separated by theApalachicola River: the colony of East Florida, with its capital located inSt. Augustine; andWest Florida, with its capital located inPensacola. East Florida was much larger and comprised the bulk of the former Spanish colony and most of the currentstate of Florida. It had also been the most populated region of Spanish Florida, but before control was transferred to Britain, most residents – including virtually everyone in St. Augustine – left the territory, with most migrating toCuba.^[1]

Britain tried to attract settlers to the two Floridas without much success. The sparsely populated colonies were invited to send representatives to theContinental Congress but chose not to do so, and they remained loyal to Great Britain during theAmerican Revolutionary War. However, as part of the 1783 treaty in which Britain officially recognized the independence of thirteen of its former colonies as theUnited States, it ceded both Floridas back to Spain, which maintained them as separate colonies while moving the boundary east to theSuwannee River.

By the early 1800s, Spain had proved uninterested in and incapable of organizing or defending either of the two Floridas much beyond the two small capital cities. American settlers moved into the territory without authorization, causing conflict with theSeminoles, a new Native American culture formed by indigenous refugees from theAmerican Southeast. During theWar of 1812, theAmerican military invaded Florida, occupyingWest Florida while East Florida remained in Spanish hands. American settlers in East Florida further weakened Spanish control in 1812 when a group of Americans, mostly from Georgia, calling themselves the "Patriots", declared the short-livedRepublic of East Florida atAmelia Island with semi-official support from theU.S. government.

Border disputes between the United States and Seminoles in Florida continued after the war. By 1817, much of Spanish West Florida had been occupied and annexed by the United States over Spanish objections, with the land eventually becoming portions of the states ofLouisiana,Alabama, andMississippi. After a decade of intensifying border disputes and American incursions, Spain ceded both Floridas to the U.S. in theAdams–Onís Treaty of 1819. The U.S. officially took possession in 1821; in 1822, all of East Florida and the few remaining portions of West Florida were combined into a singleFlorida Territory with borders that closely approximated those of the current state ofFlorida.

Under the terms of the 1763Treaty of Paris, which ended theSeven Years' War (theFrench and Indian War), Spain cededSpanish Florida to Britain. At the same time, Britain received all ofFrench Louisiana east of theMississippi River, with the exception of New Orleans, from France. Determining the new territory too large to administer as one unit, Britain divided its new southeastern acquisitions into two new colonies separated by theApalachicola River: East Florida, with its capital in the old Spanish city ofSt. Augustine, andWest Florida, with its capital atPensacola. However, most of the Spanish population departed following the signing of the treaty, with the entirety of St. Augustine emigrating toCuba.^[1]

The settlement of East Florida was heavily linked in London to the same interests that controlled Nova Scotia. The East Florida Society of London and the Nova Scotia Society of London had many overlapping members, and Council frequently followed their suggestions on the granting of lands to powerful merchant interests in London.

Perhaps it is strange to think of such dissimilar geographic areas with such opposing climates as having much in common. But if one considers naval and military strategy, one can see that these areas have a common significance, especially when viewed from London by the ministry. Halifax (Nova Scotia) was the command post for both the admiral and general in charge of the American forces.... St. Augustine evoked the same strategic considerations. These posts have been described as the two centers of strength to which the British Army was withdrawn in the late 1760s.^[2]

The apportionment of lands in the new colonies fell to the same group of English and Scottish entrepreneurs and merchant interests, led chiefly by the Scottish slave traderRichard Oswald and the British generalJames Grant, who would later become governor of East Florida. A list of the grantees in both Florida and Canada shows that the plums fell to a well-connected—and inter-connected—group.Lincoln's Inn barrister Levett Blackborne, grandson of SirRichard Levett, a powerful merchant andLord Mayor of London, came in for grants of 20,000 acres (81 km²) in both locales, for instance. Other aristocrats, nobles, and merchants did the same.

The most powerful lubricant between the East Florida speculators and the Nova Scotia speculators was Col. Thomas Thoroton ofFlintham, Nottinghamshire. Thoroton, the stepbrother ofLevett Blackborne, had married an illegitimate daughter of the Duke of Rutland and often lived atBelvoir Castle, where he acted as principal agent to the Duke, who, along with his son, the Marquis of Granby, were heavily involved in overseas ventures. Thoroton frequently acted as the go-between for Richard Oswald and James Grant, particularly after those two gave up their Nova Scotia Grants to focus on East Florida, where a drumbeat of steady speculation (particularly from Andrew Turnbull andWilliam Stork) had fanned the flames of interest in London.^[2] It was not until March 1781 that the Governor of East Florida, Patrick Tonyn, called elections for a provincial legislature.^[3]

East Florida remained loyal to Great Britain during theAmerican Revolution. The colony became a haven forLoyalist refugees andfugitive slaves fleeing to British lines from theSouthern Colonies during theAmerican War of Independence, andseveral military units were established by Loyalists in East Florida.^[4]

Spain participated indirectly in the war as an ally of France andcaptured Pensacola from the British in 1781. In the 1783Treaty of Paris, which ended the war, the British ceded both Floridas to Spain. The same treaty recognized the independence of the United States, directly to the north.

"Governor of British East Florida" was an appointed position. A legislative council did exist which shared power with the governor. The governor could appoint officials but they needed to be approved by the British government. These positions included: an attorney general, chief justice, coroner, etc. An official could be suspended but needed to get the council's consent. A court relating to maritime cases, the East FloridaCourt of Vice Admiralty was created in April 1771. The British province of East Florida had a royal seal, as did the province of West Florida.^[5] The seal for East Florida had on one side a depiction of a fortified town and harbor with the Latin mottoMoresque Viris et Moenia Ponet^[6] ("He will establish customs for men, and walls").^[7]

During the period of British rule in East Florida, the black population came to outnumber the white population in the province by a ratio of 2 to 1. The ratio of blacks to whites in East Florida was lower than in British West Florida but higher than in the other southern British colonies. Those who were white in Florida generally served in the military or worked as overseers, artisans, or merchants. There were very few white yeomen farmers. White residents generally lived in or around St. Augustine with an exception being generally made for overseers and those who resided inNew Smyrna.^[8] Due to the poor treatment ofMinorcans in New Smyrna, some left for St. Augustine, where a large number of them lived in a section of the city known as the "Minorcan Quarter" or the "Greek Quarter".^[9]

It is unclear what the population of East Florida was prior to the American Revolution but it is estimated to have had a population of close to 3,000, making it much larger in population than West Florida, which is believed to have had only several hundred residents.^[10] The British tried to encourage settlement in East and West Florida, thinking it would take pressure off theproclamation line that colonists in the northern British colonies wanted to move beyond. However, this plan was generally unsuccessful as many of those who got land grants did not end up settling on those lands.^[11] By 1783 the population of East Florida was about 17,000.^[12]

During the American Revolution, East Florida sided with the British and became a loyalist haven.^[13] With the end of the Revolution and the handing over of both Floridas to the Spanish, many loyalists were hesitant to leave.^[14] In the end, most of the loyalist and British residents, approximately 10,000 people, left with most of these going to the Bahamas or West Indies and some going to Nova Scotia and England. Another 4,000 people "melted away into the wilderness", with some going as far away as the Mississippi River.^[12]

A town named St. Johns Bluff or St. Johns Town was laid out in 1779 along the St. Johns River. The planned community was the first town to be established on the river.^[15] Most of those who fled to Florida settled at that town and St. Augustine. St. Johns Bluff became a port and had 300 houses in it by the spring of 1783.^[16] With the end of the British period, it was renamed as St. Vincent Ferrer before it was eventually abandoned.^[15] A settlement named Rollestown was established byDenys Rolle 30 miles (48 km) southeast of St. Augustine,^[17] on the east shore of the St. Johns River, south of Deep Creek.^[18]

St. Augustine, the capital of the colony, was much smaller and less advanced than the capitals of the otherThirteen Colonies.^[19]

East Florida did not establish a formal slave code until 1782. Those who were black or of mixed race of European and African origin and could not prove they were free were considered to be slaves. During the American Revolution, many Georgians and Carolinians moved to Florida along with their slaves. The colonial government, along with slave-owners, used slaves to construct defensive fortifications. A militia act that allowed for conscripting slaves as laborers and soldiers was passed in 1781.^[16]

Goods produced and exported in East Florida included sugar, timber, indigo, rice, naval stores, and barrel staves; most of these goods came from plantations along the St. Marys and St. Johns rivers that used slave labor.^[20]

Bernard Romans wrote the first account of Spanishfishing ranchos existing along Florida's southwest coast in 1770.^[21] When the British took control of Florida, they monitored the fisherman but let them continue their activities. GovernorJames Grant was ordered to stop the fisherman from operating but did not enforce that order. At one point the fishing boats were suspected of being a threat to British control, but a complete review in 1767-68 found they were harmless.^[22]

The East Florida Gazette was a pro-loyalist newspaper that was published weekly in St. Augustine from 1783 to 1784. It was founded by a loyalist printer, John Wells, and his brother, William Charles Wells, who had moved to St. Augustine fromCharleston, South Carolina.^[23][24][25] The paper was printed"'...at the Printing-office in Treasury-lane'".^[26] Prior to the establishment of a newspaper, most news came into St. Augustine through gazettes that were published inSavannah, Georgia, and Charleston.^[19]

The Wells brothers also published two books:Nature and the Principles of Public Credit, by Samuel Gale, along withThe Case of the Inhabitants of East Florida, written by John Wells himself.^[26] In 1783, another printer named David Zubly, who was a loyalist refugee from Savannah, Georgia, printed the first book in the colony, a copy ofJohn Tobler'sAlmanack, at his home.^[27]

Under Spanish rule, the provinces of East Florida and West Florida initially remained divided by theApalachicola River, the boundary established by the British.^[28][29][30] However, Spain moved it eastward to theSuwanee River in 1785.^[31][32][33]

Spain continued to administer East and West Florida as separate provinces. The Spanish offered favorable terms for acquiring land, which attracted many settlers from the newly formed United States. There were several territorial disputes between the U.S. and Spain, some resulting in military action, including thePatriot War in 1812 and thefilibuster at Amelia Island in 1817.^[34][35]

An American army underAndrew Jackson invaded East Florida during theFirst Seminole War. Jackson's forces capturedSan Marcos on 7 April 1818; as well asFort Barrancas at West Florida's capital,Pensacola, on 24 May 1818.

James Monroe's secretary of state,John Quincy Adams, defined the American position on this issue. Adams accused Spain of breakingPinckney's Treaty by failing to control theSeminoles. Faced with the prospect of losing control, Spain formally ceded all of its Florida territory to the U.S. under theAdams–Onís Treaty in 1819 (ratified in 1821), in exchange for the U.S. ceding its claims on Texas and the U.S. paying any claims its citizens might have against Spain, up to $5,000,000.

In 1822, the U.S. Congress organized theFlorida Territory, merging East Florida and the portion of West Florida that had remained under Spanish control until 1821.^[36] In 1845, Florida was admitted as the 27th state of the United States.

With the transfer of Florida to Spain, a number of former British subjects decided to stay while some Spaniards came to Florida. St. Augustine had a mix of both residents from the British period and newly arrived Spaniards. The rural areas settled by colonists were described as being "exclusively Anglo".^[37] During the Spanish period, the population of St. Augustine "hovered" at about 3,000 people, with half of its population being black slaves. There were nine Native American towns in Florida, but those towns were not counted in the 1786 census.^[38] In 1786, St. Augustine had a population of about 950 people. Three hundred of whom had some degree of African descent whether they were enslaved or not.^[39]

With the return of the Spanish, the system of plantation agriculture developed in the colony during the British period remained. Although the production levels were not as high as other British colonies, cash crops like indigo, hemp, and rum made in Spanish East Florida led to economic growth there. As a result, St. Augustine became less dependent on theroyal situado (royal financial payments for support). Trade became less restrictive during the second Spanish period as the Spanish monarchies enacted reforms allowing for trade between Spanish and non-Spanish areas, which benefited St. Augustine.^[40]

St. Augustine was the largest port on the Atlantic Ocean south of Charleston. Ships would travel often to Charleston, South Carolina andCap Français in Haiti where goods were traded and crews learned the latest news as well.^[41] East Florida became economically dependent on the United States after Spain started to align with France and declared war on the British in 1796; as a result British trade largely stopped. Charleston began to surpass Havana as St. Augustine's biggest trading partner whileSavannah,Philadelphia andNew York City had become trading partners with the city. East Florida exported oranges, lumber and cotton to the United States while fish, grain and foodstuffs were imported from the United States.^[42]

Spain was concerned about theHaitian Revolution, fearing that ideas of independence could be spread to their own colonies, including Florida, with Governor Quesada doing his best to follow the Spanish government's policy of prohibiting interactions with French possessions, "...forbidding the introduction of French ideas, books, citizens, or slaves originating from French possessions."^[41]

• George Mathews (Georgia), Patriot War of East Florida (1812)
• Mosquito County, Florida
• Spanish colonization of the Americas

• Kotlik, George.East Florida in the Revolutionary Era, 1763–1785 (Athens: NewSouth Books, 2023)online book review
• Seibert, Wilbur Henry.Loyalists in East Florida, 1774–1785 (1929),
• Smith, Roger.Fourteenth Colony: The American Revolution's Best Kept Secret (2011)

• Spalding Plate atA History of Central Florida Podcast

• 1763 establishments in the British Empire
• Colonial United States (British)
• Colonial United States (Spanish)
• Former British colonies and protectorates in the Americas
• Former regions and territories of the United States
• Pre-statehood history of Florida
• Spanish colonization of the Americas
• States and territories disestablished in 1822
• East Florida
• Former Spanish colonies

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