Address to Tallahassee Kiwanis Club nrem/court Jame;> B " 
/ \ & Whitfield of the Florida Supreme 
TALLAHASSEE, Feb. 29 .— Following 
Interesting address on Florida history 
was delivered here at the recent meet- 
ing ol the Tallahassee Klwants club by 
Justice James B. Whitfield of the Flor- 
ida supreme court: 
"About twenty years after the discov- 
ery of America by Columbus in 149 1 , 
Juan Ponce de Leon, a Spanish officer, 
landed on the Atlantic coast at a point 
south of the mouth of the St. Johns 
river early In the year of ! 513 , and pro- 
clalmed the right of Spain to the coun- 
try by virtue of discovery, Indians be 
ing then the only inhabitants. The 
country was called Florida, perhaps - 
cause the shore was sighted on Easter 
Sunday, called Pascua Florida In tm. 
Spanish language, or because of the 
abundant native flora. In 
1528. the first landing of white men 
on Pensacola bay was made. DeSota 
landed at Tampa bay May 25. 1539. St. 
Augustine was founded in 1565. Ther 
were also important trading ports on 
the Apalachicola, Suwannee and other 
rivers. For more than two centuries the 
kingdom of Spain claimed sovereignty 
over and maintained settlements in the 
territory called Florida which originally 
extended from the Atlantic ocean to 
the Mississippi river. In the course of 
time the town of St. Marks on the 
gulf was established and for many 
decades it was the commercial port for 
all the country north, east and west 
extending into Georgia. Fort San Luis, 
two miles west of Tallahassee, was one 
of the principal Spanish towns. It was 
fortified and was in the midst of the 
Indian Fowl Towns. 
From 1163 to 1783 the Floridas were 
under the dominion of Great Britain, 
the territory east of the Apalachicola 
river being called East Florida, and all 
west of that river was called West 
Florida. 5 American State Papers p. 
756. 
Treaty of Amity. 
The Treaty of Amity, Settlement and 
Limits dated February 22, 1819, bS 
which Spain ceded to the United States 
the provinces then known as East and 
West Florida, was ratified, approved 
and proclaimed as effective on Febru- 
ary 22, 1821, at Washington, D. C. By 
virtue of an act of congress approved 
March 3, 1821, the president of the 
United States, James Monroe, appoint- 
ed Maj. Gen. Andrew Jackson as gover- 
nor of the Floridas, and authorized 
him to receive the Floridas from Spain 
and to establish a government under 
the constitution and laws of the Unit- 
ed States, subject to the authority ol 
the president under the act of congress. 
General Jackson appointed Maj. Robert 
Butler to receive East Florida, which he 
did at St. Augustine on July 10, 1821; 
and on July 17, 1821, West Florida was 
transferred to General Jackson at Pen- 
sacola. Formal proclamalton of the 
charge of governments was made and 
the laws of the United States were put 
into force. By ordinance Governor 
Jackson divided the provinces into two 
, ' 1__J Of 
ert Butler was 
eral. Having es: 
in the Floridas, 
tober, 1821, ret 
leaving George 
acting governor 
Pensacola, land 
secretary and a 
Florida and EUglus Fromentln of 
Louisiana, Judge for West Florida. Rob- 
— ^-“lointed surveyor gen- 
lished a government 
[drew Jackson, in Oc- 
ned to Tennessee. 
01 ton, secretary and 
ff West Florida at 
G. D. Worthington, 
>8 governor of East 
Florida at St. Augustine. 
The two Floridas were rormed Into 
the territory of fforlda by an act of 
congress approved March 30, 1822. 
The Tallahassee .section was in East 
Florida, afterwards in Escambia coun- 
ty, then in Jackson county, later In 
GadBden county end finally in Leon 
county which later county at first ex- 
tended from the Pcklockonee river to 
the Suwannee river and from the Geor- 
gia line to the Gulf of Mexico. Since 
then several other counties have been 
formed from the original Leon county 
Governors of Florida. 
Governor Jackson having resigned as 
governor of the Floridas was succeed- 
ed by William P. Puval, then Judge of 
East Florida, who became the first 
governor of the territory of Florida. 
The other territorial governors were 
John H. Eaton, R. K. Call, Robert Ray- 
mond Reid and John Branch. Governor 
Eaton and Governor Branch had been 
members of the Andrew Jackson cabi- 
leen a United States 
Branch had also 
. :th Carolina. R. K 
/eroor of the terrl- 
ibert Raymond Reid 
In Georgia and also 
,,, -‘he first territorial 
legislative councT.mct in Pensacola 
on the second Monday in June. 1822. 
J. C. Bronough was president and John 
C'oppington Connor, clerk of the first 
council. During the session of the 
council yellow fever appeared in Pen- 
sacola and both the president and the 
clerk of the council died of the fever. 
The subsequent sessions of the first 
council were held at a nearby county 
place. Edmond Law was chosen presi- 
dent and Robert Mitchel clerk of the 
council. The second council met in St. 
Augustine on the first Monday in May 
1823, George Murray was president and 
F. J. Fatlo clerk. Beginning on the sec- 
ond Monday In November, 1824, the an- 
nual meetings of the territorial legis- 
lative council were held in Tallahassee, 
the seat of government. Joseph M. Her- 
nandez of St. Augustine was president 
and Samuel Fry clerk of the third leg- | 
lslative council at Tallahassee. Latei 
Joseph M. Hernandez became the first 
delegate from the territory of Florida 
to the United States congress. George 
Walton was secretary of the territory of 
Florida and acted as governor in the 
absence of the governor. He was suc- 
ceeded by W. M. McCarty. Another sec- 
retary of the territory of Florida was 
James D. Westcott who was afterwards 
United States senator from Florida, 
1845-1849. George K. Walker was sec- 
retary under Gov. John H. Eaton and 
acted as governor in 1 the absence of the 
. i l- ovine rtf T, n O T.P.l “ 
net and each had 
senator. Govern 
been governor __ 
Call was twice 
tory of Florida, 
had been a Judga 
in East Florida. 
by the Semlnoles, who as "run-away” 
Creeks (muskokis) came into Florida 
long after the raids of devastation and 
depopulation of the country by forces 
from colonial South Carolina, in the 
early part of the Eighteenth century, 
in retaliation for a Spanish expedition 
against Charleston. It was not until 
about 1808 that tha Semlnoles in- 
habltated the country around Talla- 
hassee, where they occupied and 
themselves later deserted the "old 
fields" of their predecessors Following 
the activities of the military forces un- 
der Major General Andrew Jackson at 
St. Marks and to the north of it, and 
in his march to the "old town” In- 
dian settlements on the Suwannee 
liver, the subsequent treaty of Moul- 
trie Creek, September 18, 1823. and 
finally by result of ihe Indian was of 
1835-1842 the Semlnoles were remov- 
ed from the vicinity of Tallahassee, 
and eventually from Florida except the 
few hundred Semlnoles who now oc- 
cupy reservations in the southern end 
of the peninsular. 
The Fowl Towns 
In the year 1750, a noted Creek chief, 
Secoffee. with many follows settled In 
Alachua and in i808 another band 
of Creeks settled In the Tallahassee 
section where the Mickasukie tribe al- 
ready In possession soon Joined the 
Creeks called Semlnoles in antagonism 
to the advance of the white immi- 
grants In the Tall all a.'bPr section of 
Florida, the Indian villages were 
known as the Fowl Towns. It was from 
the towns destroyed by General aJck- 
made upon the white settlements m 
Georgia and Alabama, that resulted in 
the destruction of the Indian towns by 
United States troops under Major Gen- 
eral Andrew Jackson in 1318. Among 
the towns destroyed by General Jack- 
son were, Cahallahatchee, two milet 
north from Lake Lafayette; Tallahame, 
Chefixico's Town on the south side „ 
of Lake Lafayette; Tapalea on TallinJ- 
hatchee creek, and Ben Burgers’ tow! 
on Lake Ayavalla, now Lake Jacksoi^ 
presumably southwest of the presen 
citv of Tallahassee. 
tlon became a part of Tallahassee. The 
southwest quarter of the section on 
which Tallahassee is located, was at 
first conveyed to Gadsden county be- 
fore Leon county was formed and it Is 
known as the county quarter. 
Principal Meridian. 
The Tallahassee principal meridian 
was established in 1924, under the au- 
thority contained in a letter dated 
July 9, 1824, from the commissioner 
of the general land office of the Unit- 
ed States to Col. Robert Butler. United 
States surveyor general for Florida, ap- 
pointed under the authority of Section 
6 of the act of congress approved May 
8, 1822. (3 Stats, at Large, 718). In the 
letter Colonel Butler was directed to 
survey the lands near the seat of 
government of the territory of Florida 
and to initiate the surveys thereof 
upon the southeast corner of the lo- 
cation selected by the governor of the 
territory under the provisions of the 
act of congress of May 24, 1824, (4 
Stats. At Large 30), for the seat of 
government. Later in that year 1924, 
the Tallahassee base and meridian were 
surveyed from the authorized initial 
point at the southeast corner of the 
location selected for the seat of gov- 
ernment. such point being "situated 
about a mile southwest from the de- 
serted fields of Tallahassee, about a 
mile south nf the Ocklocknee and Tal- 
lahassee trails at a point where the old 
Spanish road is intersected bv a small 
trail runn’ng south westwftrdlv. The 
point of Intersection of the Tallahas- 
see principal meridian and the parallel 
base line so established is at longitude 
84 16' 42" west P-om Greenwich and 
latitude 30 deg. 28’ north from the 
equator. At Greenwich, a southeastern 
borough of London. England, is sit- 
uated the Royal Observatory of Green- 
wich. from the meridian of wh'ch geo- 
granhers and navigators of nearly all 
nations count their longitude. 
■PS 
Jackson divided the provinces into tw° acted as governs if XV +pi- 
counties, Escambia being west and St. governor. Other secretaries ° f th ® , 
Johns being east of the Suwannee riv- ritory of Florida weie. John P. Div , 
T nnnl nnrl n/JmlnJotfClllffP flf- TnOOnV) TV/TCfJfl.fl tS £Ulfl ThOltiaS Xl* 1JU\ • 
er. Local courts and administrative of- 
ficers were established by Governor 
Jackson and ordinances were adopted 
and proclaimed by him for the govern- 
ment of the Floridas and for the en- 
forcement of health regulations. Wil- 
liam P. Duval of Kentuoky was ap- 
pointed _Untted_StatesJudge^oi^Eas „ 
Joseph McCants and Thomas H. Duval 
Davis Floyd, Charles H. Austin and H. 
L. Rutgers were treasurers. John. Y 
Gary, Thomas Brown and John , Miller 
were auditors. 
Seat of Government. 
A territorial act to provide for es 
tablishing a seat of government in the 
1 "territory of Florida, adopted by the 
The Indian mounds that apnear s 
often in this section of the countr 
are perhaps the products of the anc : \ 
ent Indians who inbabitated the 1 
long before the Creeks or Semlnoles 
came to Florida. Arrow heads made 
of flint and pieces of pottery and other 
lSdhis th stUr r bXi|ec7perhaps 0 |? the 
as 
■f£$ 
State of Florida, and by statute given 
the name "Tallahassee' that relates t0 
Ihe language and history of Indian 
inhabitants prior to the coming of the 
llr on E hiy P ri S 824, Robert Butler, sur- 
veyor general was instructed to cause 
fhp south cast corner of the quarter 
section selected by the governor un- 
der the first section of act of COI JS r ®ss, 
Mav 24 1924, for the permanent seat 
of government to be fixed as the point 
from which the principal meridian and 
parallel shall run.' 
1 By this means the intersection of 
the old Spanish road and the Indian 
trail became the initial point of the 
established Tallahassee Meridian and 
Parallel Base Line. The spot is now 
permanently marked by ari appropriate 
monument in the southeastern part 
of the city of Tallahassee. 
A Spanish town called San Luis lo- 
fai.Pfi two miles west of the city ot 
