Fort Mose Historic State Park

After visiting Castillo de San Marcos National Monument in the morning, I headed a few miles north to Fort Mose Historic State Park. As the name implies, this is not part of the National Park Service system, but rather, one of Florida’s State Parks. Unlike the very busy Castillo in the heart of St. Augustine (even for a Monday in November, it was crowded), Fort Mose had only a couple of cars in the parking lot when I arrived.

Escaped slaves arriving in St. Augustine were given their freedom provided they joined the local militia. Because the threat to the area came from the British to the north, a settlement enclosed by a small fort was constructed north of St. Augustine to be inhabited by those newly freed people. A fully independent community was formed and the fort did provide the first line of defense when the British attacked in 1740.

Ultimately, the militia was forced back to the Castillo where they were welcomed to stay for the two-month siege. Fort Mose was destroyed by the British, so most of its residents remained in St. Augustine after the conflict ended. As I mentioned in my post about the Castillo de San Marcos, the Spanish offer to the escaped slaves was not entirely altruistic. It was not too long after the former Fort Mose residents set up homes in St. Augustine that they were “encouraged” to rebuild Fort Mose and move back there. They did so.

The fort and surrounding settlement were eventually abandoned after the Seven Year’s War resulting in Florida going to Great Britain. Many inhabitants of Fort Mose moved to Spanish-held Cuba, carrying on life there. Left to the tides and elements, the fort disappeared completely.

In the latter half of the 20th century, archaeologists came to the old site, and using modern electronic equipment and aerial photos, were able to establish where the fort was. Well, actually, they determined where both forts were, as it seems the rebuilt fort was in a different location than the original.

Some parts of the fort were now under water. The land was low and swampy, and the water constantly changed course and eroded as it did. However, archaeologists were still able to find relics from the settlement and develop an idea of life at Fort Mose.

As I mentioned, the park had only a few other visitors. Though there is no cost to enter the park and walk around (there is a boardwalk to an overview of the forts’ locations), there is a $2 charge to enter the visitor center. I paid it as it seemed worthwhile to support the park. Inside there was a short film about the history, very well done, and an impressive though small museum. The museum had some state-of-the-art exhibits using motion sensors to play short audio recordings pertinent to the exhibit as you walked past it. These were often done as first-person recollections of known residents, describing some aspect of life. All in all, well worth the price of admission.

The entire park can be seen in 90 minutes including the museum, video, and walking the boardwalk. I certainly recommend a stop here for anyone in the area, as it delves into a part of North American history seldom taught.

Steve