Snow flurries in Two Egg, Florida (1/23/2016)

Anna Ruby Falls - Helen, Georgia

Anna Ruby Falls in Helen, Georgia, is one of the most picturesque and photographed waterfalls in the United States.

Visit Cheaha State Park in Alabama!

Check out the brand new video Cheaha State Park courtesy of www.twoegg.tv!

Buried Alive: True story of a woman who came back from the grave.

Here is a bizarre story from Washington County, FL about a woman who was accidentally buried alive only to be exhumed by grave robbers!  She then went on to live 35 more years and have 3 children.

Ghost of Sketoe's Hole (Newton, AL)

Alabama's Ghost of Sketoe's Hole (the "Hole that will not stay filled") is the focus of the latest mini-documentary from Two Egg TV!

Scott Massacre of 1817 - Chattahoochee, FL

Electric mist at haunted Bellamy Bridge near Marianna, FL

Creek chief gives account of the Battle of New Orleans

Fanciful drawing of the capture of the Prophet Francis in 1818

Louisiana is commemorating the 200th anniversary of the Battle of New Orleans this weekend (1/8-1/11), with yesterday marking the bicentennial of Andrew Jackson's stunning victory. 

Over the next couple of days I will share some little known bits of history associated with the battle that I think you might fight to be of interest. Be sure to watch for them on the main page at http://southernhistory.blogspot.com.

While much has been written about the significance of the monumental battle, few historians have done more than note that a delegation of Seminole and Red Stick Creek chiefs and warriors were among those that observed the fighting from behind the British lines.

Lt. Col. Edward Nicolls, Royal Marines
He accompanied the chiefs and warriors at New Orleans.

The Royal Navy had transported the American Indians to New Orleans from the Apalachicola River in Florida, believing that it would impress upon them the might of the King's forces if they could view firsthand the expected destruction of Jackson's army and the capture of the city. Things did not go as anticipated, with the British suffering more than 3,200 casualties compared to only 19 by Jackson's army (yes, that's 19). Please click here to learn more.

Among the Florida chiefs and warriors watching the battle were the Seminole leaders Cappachimico and Hopoi Micco of Miccasukee and the Red Stick Creek prophet, Josiah Francis. Several other chiefs and warriors were also there.  While he never specified which of these individuals spoke with him about the battle, U.S. Agent for Indian Affairs Benjamin Hawkins described a conversation with one of them in a letter to Governor Peter Early of Georgia:

Living history demonstrators Christopher Kimbell (L) and
Lionel Young (R) represent the Prophet Francis and Col.
Bennjamin Hawins at a recent marker unveiling.

An Indian I know a “Red Stick” chief sent me word he was with the British in their battles against Jackson. “They were beaten in every battle by night and by day. Their large Vessels could not come near the land, they sent their troops in barges who were attacked as they were landing, and at night after landing. He saw the decisive battle on the 8th. The Americans had double ditches which were not discovered til they got up to the first, the first who attempted to storm the works were driven back with great loss. A second attempt was made, which met a similar fate, when the Commander in Chief went forward with his best troops, who met with a greater loss, he was killed and the next in command. The ground appeared to him covered with dead wounded and the British had many wounded who retreated in action or were carried off. - Col. Benjamin Hawkins to Gov. Peter Early, February 12, 1815.

The British brought the stunned chiefs and warriors back to the Apalachicola River after the battle. They had witnessed a slaughter even greater than the one Jackson had inflicted on their own countrymen at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, Alabama.

They remained loyal to the British during the months following the Battle of New Orleans, but with less enthusiasm than before. 

Please click here to learn more about the Battle of New Orleans: http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/neworleansbattle.html.

First U.S. settlement was in Georgia?

St. Augustine, Florida

An array of cities and communities lay claim to being the "first" settlement or "oldest city" in the continental United States.

St. Augustine and Pensacola, both in Florida, engage in a bit of friendly rivalry over which is the nation's oldest city. The first settlement at Pensacola Bay, the remains of which have yet to be found, was planted by Tristan de Luna in 1559. The colony was a disastrous failure and was soon abandoned, with the modern city of Pensacola dating from a second more successful attempt in 1699. St. Augustine, meanwhile, was founded by Pedro Menendez in 1565 and has been there ever since. At 450 years old, the historic old city has been occupied for about 134 years longer than Pensacola.

Fort Caroline
Reconstructed French fort in Jacksonville, FL

Other communities also claim to be the "first." Paris Island, SC, for example, was first settled by France in 1562, the same nation that built Fort Caroline in Jacksonville, FL, two years later.The first English settlement in the United States was Sir Walter Raleigh's Roanoke in North Carolina, but its population disappeared in a mystery that has never been solved.

 Finally there is Jamestown. Established in 1607 it was the first permanent English settlement in the United States. The Pilgrims of Plymouth Rock were latecomers among early settlers, not arriving in Massachusetts until 1620.

The Georgia Coast

While each of these settlements has its own claim to fame and while St. Augustine is without doubt the oldest continuously occupied city in the United States, none of them was the actual first.

There were American Indians here for thousands of years before the arrival of the first European explorers, of course. Others believe that Vikings visited New England or even made it as far inland as Minnesota and Oklahoma!  There is a popular old legend in Alabama and other states that Prince Madoc of Wales explored and planted settlements long before Juan Ponce de Leon discovered the land that would become the United States in 1513.

Savannah River

With due respect to all of these claims and communities, the actual first recorded European/African settlement in the continental United States was in Georgia.

Named San Miguel de Gualdape, the colony was founded by Spanish explorer and slave trader Lucas Vasquez de Ayllon some four decades before either Pensacola or St. Augustine.

Ayllon had heard glowing reports of a wonderful land somewhere northwest of the Bahamas that was ideal for settlement and populated by American Indians of giant stature that would make desirable slaves for the Spanish. He sent an exploring party of two ships to find this land and report back. The scouts sailed north from Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas and reached land on June 24, 1521, at a place they called the Jordan River.

Coxspur Lighthouse with Tybee Island in the distance

No one knows exactly where the Jordan River was located. Some have speculated that it was either the Santee or Waccamaw Rivers in South Carolina, with the latter appearing most likely. The explorers captured 60 Indian slaves and took them back to the Spanish settlements in the Caribbean where they told fantastic stories of a marvelous new land.

Lucas Vazquez de Ayllon signed a contract with the King of Spain in 1523, agreeing to settle this new land. He second a second exploring party out in 1525 as he assembled the people, livestock and materials needed to found a permanent colony.

San Miguel was somewhere in the marshes
and islands of the Georgia coast.

The major expedition assembled by Ayllon consisted of 6 ships, 600 colonists (including women and children), cows, sheep, pigs and around 100 horses. The colonists included African slaves. Owned by Ayllon and other wealthy participants in the venture, they became the first slaves introduced into North America by Europeans.

The ships set sail in mid-July 1526 and reached land on August 9. The flagship Capitana immediately ran aground and went to the bottom, taking with it vital supplies for the success of the colony.

Ayllon was disappointed with the true appearance of the coast, which differed dramatically from the glowing descriptions provided by his exploring parties. Quickly deciding that the Jordan River was not suitable for permanent settlement, the conquistador sent out additional scouting parties to find a better place. Based on the reports of these explorers, he ordered a move south to the coast of what is now Georgia.

Looking downstream toward Sapelo Sound at Darien, Georgia.

There in September 1526, the Spanish established the city of San Miguel de Gualdape. The exact site has not been found but most scholars believe it was either on Sapelo Sound or Tybee Roads.

The situation quickly became desperate. The loss of so many supplies in the sinking of the Capitana doomed the colony and the settlers were stalked by hunger and disease. The local Guale Indians decided they didn't like the Spanish and soon started to attack them. The African slaves joined in, staging uprisings and setting fire to the homes of colonists. Ayllon died of an unknown illness and the town descended into chaos.

Unable to feed themselves or withstand the cold winter, the colonists gave up. They began to evacuate San Miguel in late October and the last of them sailed away in November 1526. The city of San Miguel de Gualdape, the first Spanish settlement in the continental United States, lasted only two months.

The site that caused such difficulty for Ayllon and his colonists is somewhere in the coastal islands and marshes of Georgia. The entire coast is now a major tourist destination that is noted for its historic sites, beautiful vistas and eco-tourism opportunities. Savannah and the islands of the Georgia Coast are widely regarded as one of the most beautiful places in the world.

To read more about some of the locations mentioned in this post, please follow these links:

• St. Augustine, Florida
• Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park in St. Augustine, Florida
• Pensacola, Florida
• Fort Caroline in Jacksonville, Florida
• Ribault Monument in Jacksonville, Florida
• Savannah, Georgia
• Tybee Island, Georgia
• Golden Isles of Georgia
• Jamestown, Virginia
• Heavener Runestone in Heavener, Oklahoma

Marker to be placed at British War of 1812 fort site in Florida

Nicolls' Outpost stood atop this large American Indian mound
at River Landing Park in Chattahoochee, Florida.

 A new historical marker will be unveiled on November 9th to mark the site of the northernmost advance of British forces on the Gulf Coast during the War of 1812.

The marker is being placed at River Landing Park in Chattahoochee, Florida, on the site of Nicolls' Outpost, a fort built at the head of the Apalachicola River by British troops in November 1814. Its site marks the northernmost point reached by British forces during the Gulf Coast Campaign best remembered for the Battle of New Orleans.

The Apalachicola River from the site of the fort.

The marker is being placed by Chattahoochee Main Street, the City of Chattahoochee and the West Gadsden Historical Society. The new panel was funded through the sales of The Early History of Gadsden County and The Scott Massacre of 1817. No tax money was used in the purchase of the marker. 

Nicolls' Outpost was built by Royal Colonial Marines and a large force of Creek and Seminole warriors ahead of a planned British invasion of Georgia. The War of 1812 ended before that invasion could take place, but the site near the point where the Chattahoochee and Flint Rivers (today's Lake Seminole) flow together to form the Apalachicola marked the northernmost movement of a large British force during the Gulf Coast Campaign of 1814-1815.

The Apalachicola River at Chattahoochee, Florida

The outpost was one of two British forts build on the Apalachicola during the war. The other stood on Prospect Bluff at today's Fort Gadsden Historic Site in the Apalachicola National Forest.

Please click here to read more about the history of Nicolls' Outpost.

Chattahoochee Main Street will host an unveiling ceremony at River Landing Park on November 9th at 3 p.m. Eastern (2 p.m. Central). Living history participants will be on hand to represent the Creek Prophet Josiah Francis and U.S. Agent for Indian Affairs Benjamin Hawkins, both of whom played important roles in the history of the fort. There will be performances of 19th century music, special comments, light refreshments and other activities.

The public is encouraged to attend!

4th of July Fireworks are underway!

4th of July Fireworks for 2014 are underway!

4th of July fireworks are underway across the South!

Tonight (Saturday, 6/28/2014) is the first big night of the week-long celebration, with shows scheduled for Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. More shows continue tomorrow with the big weekend set to get underway on Wednesday, July 3rd.

As always, you can check out locations, times and dates for the best fireworks in each state in the South by visiting www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fireworks.

British arrive on the Gulf Coast, 200 years ago today

Union Jack flies over the Gulf Coast

Today marks the 200th anniversary of the arrival of British forces on the Gulf Coast as the War of 1812 shifted south.

The warships HMS Orpheus and HMS Shelburne arrived at Apalachicola Bay on May 10, 1814. Florida was then Spanish territory and Spain was ostensibly neutral in the conflict between the United States and Great Britain, but the British prepared to land on the Apalachicola to open a southern front against U.S. forces.

The commander of the expedition, Captain Hugh Pigot, had been directed to land a small force of British Royal Marines and a massive stockpile of arms and ammunition at the mouth of the Apalachicola River. The weapons would be delivered to Seminole and Creek warriors in order to secure their allegiance to the British.

Waters off Apalachicola Bay where the British arrived

To achieve this goal, Pigot ordered Brevet Captain George Woodbine of the Royal Marines to enter the river and make contact with any chiefs in the vicinity:

You are hereby directed to proceed up the river Appalachicola and endeavour by every means in your power to procure an interview with the Chiefs of the Creek Nation. You will inform them that the Orpheus Frigate has arrived on the coast with two thousand muskets, ammunition, &c. &c. for them, and...should cavalry be able to act inform me what arms and furniture they stand in need of. - Captain Hugh Pigot, Royal Navy, to Brevet Captain George Woodbine, Royal Marines, May 10, 1814. 

Apalachicola Bay, Florida

The British had come to Apalachicola Bay at the request of Chiefs Thomas and William Perryman, who lived on the lower Chattahoochee River in what is now Seminole County, Georgia, and Jackson County, Florida. The two leaders had headed a delegation that met with a British officer in September 1813 to request military support from the British. They had recently learned of the American attack on Red Stick Creek warriors at Burnt Corn Creek in what is now Alabama and were concerned that the United States was preparing to open an indiscriminate war on Creek towns, including their own.

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park

By the time their request was delivered to the Bahamas and then on to London, the Creek War of 1813-1814 had erupted into a full scale conflict between the Red Stick faction of the Creek Nation and the United States. When the British arrived at Apalachicola Bay 200 years ago today, they were unaware of the devastating defeat inflicted on the Red Sticks by the army of Major General Andrew Jackson at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend. Thousands of Red Stick warriors and their families were fleeing into Florida.

Site of the British Post at Prospect Bluff

Over the days ahead, the British established a depot at Prospect Bluff on the lower Apalachicola River. This post would later be known as the "Negro Fort" and finally as Fort Gadsden. It would play a major role in the history not only of Florida, but of the entire United States.

To learn more about the fort, please visit: www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortgadsden.

Later in the year 1814, the British built a second fort at the head of the Apalachicola where the City of Chattahoochee stands today. Often overlooked or confused with the post on the lower river, this outpost was intended to serve as a base of operations for a major British invasion of Georgia.

Learn more about it at www.exploresouthernhistory.com/nicollsoutpost.

I will follow the history of the British invasion of the Gulf Coast over coming days, weeks and months so be sure to check back often here at http://southernhistory.blogspot.com.

Surrender Anniversary in the Carolinas

Bennett Place State Historic Site
Durham, North Carolina

149 years ago today (April 26, 1865), Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston surrendered to Union General William Tecumseh Sherman. The surrender was carried out at what is now Benton Place State Historic Site in Durham, North Carolina.

Johnston's surrender was the largest of the War Between the States (or Civil War) and came after his army waged one last brutal fight at the Battle of Bentonville. The Confederate attacks came close to wiping out one wing of Sherman's larger army. The tide of the battle turned when Sherman rushed reinforcements to the field and Johnston called off the attacks and withdrew.

Road by which Johnston approached Bennett Place

By early April 1865, he had moved his army into positions at Hillsborough about 35 miles northwest of the state capital of Raleigh. The Union army took Raleigh and moved into positions there. Johnston and Sherman faced each other from the two cities when news arrived of the surrender of General Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of North Virginia at Appomattox Court House, Virginia.

Johnston now found himself in a critical position. With Sherman's much larger army just 35 miles away in Raleigh, he knew that if he continued to fight he could expect Union General Ulysses S. Grant to push down from the north. His small army would be swallowed up.

Restored farm and monument at Bennett Place.

His situation became even more stressful when President Jefferson Davis, fleeing south after the fall of Richmond, ordered the veteran general to continue the fight. Davis, in fact, told Johnston that if he could not defeat the armies arrayed against him, he should break up his own force and turn his men into guerrillas who would continue the war for years if need be.

Rather than launch a guerrilla war that would flood the South with blood, Johnston decided to meet with General Sherman. He sent a letter through the lines, Sherman responded, and the two generals met near Durham, about half-way between their armies. They decided to find a house where they could sit down and talk, but the first home-owner they approached refused to let Sherman set foot in his house. They moved on to the Bennett Place, home of James and Nancy Bennett, who consented to allow the generals to meet in their home.

Table at which the surrender document was prepared

On the next day, April 18, 1864, Johnston agreed to surrender the Army of Tennessee. Sherman offered him extremely liberal terms. When the proposed surrender terms reached Washington, D.C., however, Union officials said no. The North was then outraged over the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and Sherman's humane terms were refused by his superiors. He accordingly notified Johnston that he would have no choice but to continue the fight in 48 hours.

Johnston knew that he had no hope of defeating Sherman, so on April 26, 1865, he surrendered the Confederate Army of Tennessee and all Confederate forces east of Alabama on the harsh terms demanded by the politicians in Washington.

To learn more about the surrender at Bennett Place, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/bennettplace.

Azaleas near PEAK at Callaway Gardens in Georgia

Callaway Gardens

If you have been wondering when will be the best time to see the azaleas at Callaway Gardens, now is the time!

Located at Pine Mountain, Georgia, the gardens feature some of the most spectacular azalea gardens in the world. This year's blooms may be the most spectacular ever.

Conceived in 1930 by Cason J. Callaway after he and his wife found a rare wild azalea growing on overworked farm land, Callaway Gardens have emerged to become one of the most beautiful gardens anywhere. They cover more than 16,000 acres of rolling mountain terrain at Pine Mountain between Atlanta and Columbus.

A highlight each spring is the Callaway Brothers Azalea Bowl, a massive azalea garden that explodes with color. The cold wet winter was very good for the azaleas and officials at the gardens say that this may be the best year for azaleas in their more than 80 year history.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/callawaygardens1 or www.callawaygardens.com.  Here is a special video invite from Edward Callaway:

Muskogee Azalea Festival begins but blooms running slow

Muskogee Azalea Festival
Muskogee, Oklahoma

The 2014 Muskogee Azalea Festival is underway in Muskogee, Oklahoma. The annual festival begins on April 1 of each year.

The severe winter, however, is likely to have an impact on the blooms this year. Record-breaking cold and ice in Oklahoma over the winter has stunted the azaleas and slowed the blooming season. Officials with the Muskogee Parks Department report that the buds are just beginning to show and the blooms are running well behind this year.

There are still plenty of reasons to go!  Honor Heights Park is beautiful every spring, even more so with the recent addition of its new Butterfly Papilion & Gardens. Parks officials indicate that the tulips will be especially beautiful this year. Other plants and trees will be in bloom as well and the azaleas will be later this month.

The main day of this year's Azalea Festival will be April 12. The annual parade will step off at 11 a.m. in downtown Muskogee, followed by a day of events at Honor Heights Park.

For more information on the 2014 Muskogee Azalea Festival, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/okmuskogeeazalea.

"Noah": A Southern Christian's Review

I saw the new Russell Crowe movie "Noah" last night and thought you might find some thoughts about it to be of interest.

First, I am a Christian and I grew up attending a small Baptist church in the Florida Panhandle. If you aren't familiar with the culture of the Panhandle, it is as Southern as you can get. Most of us came of age doing farm work, attending public school, going to church when the doors were open and saying "please" and "thank you" to all. We were taught the great stories of the Bible as part of our culture, just as we were taught to open doors for others and to show respect to our elders.

The story of Noah and the Ark was always one of my favorites. Like thousands of children before and after, I marveled at the thought of a giant flood that brought so much water onto the face of the earth that even the tops of the highest mountains were covered. I pondered how Noah managed to get all of the animals into the ark and what it must have been like for him to build a gigantic boat in a dry place while his friends and neighbors ridiculed his efforts.

Because I have always loved this wonderful story, I was among the first in line to see the new film from director Darren Aronofsky. I had seen Mr. Aronofsky mention on television that he was an Atheist and that "artistic liberties" had been taken with the story, so I approached it with an open mind. Unlike many who showed up for the screening that I attended, I did not expect the movie to be overly true to the Biblical account of the Great Flood. It was good that I went with such low expectations.

Perhaps the best way to explain Aronofsky's strange vision of Noah is to compare his film with the story of the real Noah as told in Genesis. Let's start with the account of what led to the Great Flood and building of the ark as told in Genesis Chapter 6 of the King James Bible:

(5) And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
(6) And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.

The movie portrays this "wickedness of man" from an environmentalist standpoint. Basically, as Aronofsky portrays it, Noah as a child witnesses men hunting down one of the last scaly dog-looking creatures to eat and is appalled to see humans eating animals instead of only plants. An industrial culture has spread across the face of the earth, destroying all of the forests and ruthlessly mining the ground for minerals and glowing rocks.

Back to Genesis:

(7) And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
(8) But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.

God never speaks in the movie and is referred to only as "the Creator." The movie's theory is that "the Creator" determines upon a flood to sweep man from the face of the earth so it will be a paradise for the animals and only the animals.

Moving ahead in Genesis:

(12) And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
(13) And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

In the movie, as noted above, God decides not to destroy the earth, but to wash it clean with water so that it will become a paradise for the animals. "The Creator" of the movie never speaks to Noah, but instead Noah has a dream of a coming flood. Finally, the corruption of man in the movie is the destruction of the environment; in the Bible it was man's obsession with violence.

(14) Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch in within and without with pitch.
(15) And this is the fashion which thou shalt make it of: The length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth of it fifty cubits, and the height of it thirty cubits.
(16) A window shalt though make to the ark, and in a cubit shalt though finish it above; and the door of the ark shalt though set in the side thereof; with lower, second and third stories shalt thou make it.

Simple enough. In the movie, though, God (or "the Creator") never speaks to Noah. Noah obtains the plans for the ark after crossing a region inhabited by fallen angels who have been turned into rock monsters. He then visits his grandfather (Methuselah) on what appears to be the last green mountain on earth. Methuselah gives Noah drugged tea, which causes Noah to hallucinate and see the plans for the ark. Methuselah also provides the last seed from the Garden of Eden, which when planted causes a great forest to grow overnight. The giant fallen angel rock monsters then help build the ark.

(17) And, behold, I, even I, do bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; and every thing that is in the earth shall die.
(18) But with thee I will establish my covenant; and thou shalt come into the ark, thou, and thy sons, and thy wife, and thy sons' wives with thee.
(19) And of every living thing of all flesh, two of every sort shalt thou bring into the ark, to keep them alive with thee; they shall be male and female.

The movie's version is that all mankind - including Noah and his family - will be destroyed. Noah builds the ark strictly for the animals. Only one of this sons has a wife and the other two spend great time worrying about where they will find wives. Meanwhile. Tubal Cain (the Biblical discoverer of the process for forging metal) arrives with his vast army and threatens Noah. The birds, snakes and animals arrive to fill the ark.

Moving on to Genesis  Chapter 7:

(13) In the selfsame day entered Noah, and Shem, and Ham, and Japheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah's wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark;
(14) They, and every beast after his kind, and all the cattle after their kind, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and every fowl after his kind, every bird of every sort.
(15) And they went in unto Noah into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life.
(16) And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in.

Back to the movie: The animals go into the ark pretty much as described in the Bible, but two of Noah's sons go in without wives contrary to the account given in Genesis. Meanwhile, Tubal Cain and his army launch an attack on the ark but the giant fallen angel rock monsters join Noah in battling to save the boat. As the fallen angel rock monsters are destroyed by Tubal Cain's army, they burst forth into the light. The door to the ark is never closed by God, but by Noah who comes in and out multiple times as the battle for the ark takes place.

(17) And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased, and bare up the ark, and it was lift up above the earth.
(18) And the waters prevailed, and were increased greatly upon the earth; and the ark went upon the face of the waters.

The flood is accurately portrayed in the movie, although Tubal Cain manages to chop a hole in the side of the ark as the water is rising. He slips in and hides among the animals where one of Noah's sons finds him and feeds him.

The movie then moves on to a fight to the death between Tubal Cain and Noah for control of the ark and the women aboard it. One of Noah's sons steps in and kills Tubal Cain.

Noah, meanwhile, because more and more crazed and more and more convinced that "the Creator" plans to wipe all mankind from the earth. He tells his family that they will die without replenishing mankind on the earth. When he learns that his daughter is pregnant, he plans to kill her child if it is a girl so that "the Creator's" plan of turning the earth into a paradise for the animals will be carried out.

The daughter-in-law gives birth to twin girls and Noah prepares to stab them to death, but finds himself unable to do so and the babies are spared.

The ark grounds pretty much as described in the Bible and the waters slowly dry from the earth. The animals go out and Noah and his family set foot on the earth. There is discussion about saving the earth from future environmental destruction at the hand of man and one son leaves in resentment because he has no wife.

That's pretty much it. For those hoping for a big screen treatment of the dramatic story of Noah and the Ark as told in the Bible, this isn't it. It is a more than two-hour long environmental and pro-vegetarian lecture.

I wasn't as offended by all of that as much as I was by the fact that the movie simply is not good. The story doesn't make sense and the fallen angel rock monsters make even less sense. If you like being preached at for two hours on environmental issues, then you will enjoy "Noah." If you are hoping for an inspiring and dramatic account of Noah and the Ark, you probably will not be happy with it.

Bicentennial of the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, Alabama

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park

The Battle of Horseshoe Bend was fought 200 years ago today in the Creek Nation of Alabama. The outcome forever changed the history of the United States.

The Creek War of 1813-1814 had been underway for more than nine months when Major General Andrew Jackson left Fort Williams near present-day Sylacauga with an army of 3,300 men. The general and his men arrived within six miles of the Horseshoe Bend of the Tallapoosa River on the evening of March 26, 1814.

Tallapoosa River at Horseshoe Bend

The next morning Jackson sent Brigadier General John Coffee with a force of 1,300 men to cross the Tallapoosa and surround the bend from its opposite shore. He then moved forward with the rest of his army and sealed off the neck of the peninsula. Receiving word that Coffee was in place to cut off any attempt at retreat by the Red Stick Creek army, Jackson began his attack at 10:30 in the morning, 200 years ago today.

U.S. artillerymen manhandled two cannon - a 3-pounder and a 6-pounder - to the top of a hill overlooking the massive fortification that the Creeks had built to defend their town of Tohopeka ("Horse's Flat Foot"), a village that took its name from the unusual shape of the Horseshoe Bend. As Jackson's troops formed into lines of battle facing the barricades, the gun crews opened fire.

Site of the Creek fortification

For two hours the guns blasted away at the Red Stick defenses, but the solid iron cannonballs either ricocheted off the solid wall or flew over it. At noon, however, General Coffee's blocking force changed the course of the battle.

Among the 1,300 men assigned to Coffee were 600 Cherokee and Creek warriors who had allied themselves with the United States. With the battle in doubt, the Cherokee soldiers swam the river and launched an attack on the rear of the Red Stick line. The famed scholar Sequoyah was part of this attacking force.

Grave of Major Lemuel Montgomery

Facing attack from both directions, the Red Sticks had no choice but to divide their army. The main body of their warriors remained behind the wall to oppose Jackson while a smaller force rushed to the rear to battle Coffee's oncoming warriors. Seizing the moment, General Jackson ordered his infantry to attack.

Surging forward, the 39th U.S. Infantry struck the Creek fortifications. Major Lemuel Montgomery was killed and Ensign Sam Houston (later President of Texas) was severely wounded, but the 39th went up and over the wall. Jackson's Tennessee militia troops followed.

Menawa

Led by the war chief Menawa, the Red Sticks continued to fight. For hours the sounds of gunfire, screams and war cries echoed through the smoke that covered the Horseshoe Bend. A couple of hundred Red Sticks tried to escape by swimming the Tallapoosa, but Coffee and his riflemen shot them in the water. So many were slain that the river ran red with blood. Almost all of Menawa's other warriors fought to the death.

When night fell, the severely wounded war chief crawled out from under a pile of bodies and slipped away. He was disfigured for life. A few of his warriors also managed to swim away, but the Creek Nation would never recover from the devastating defeat.

Andrew Jackson

Jackson and his men counted the dead the following day by cutting off the noses of Menawa's slain warriors and then doing a "nose count." The bodies of 557 Red Stick warriors were found on the battlefield and Coffee estimated that another 200-300 were slain in the river. The bones of the dead littered the scene for years to come.

U.S. losses in the battle were 49 killed and 157 wounded. Many of the latter died in the days, weeks and months that followed.

The Battle of Horseshoe Bend did not end the Creek War of 1813-1814, but its outcome was never in doubt after March 27, 1814. The engagement started Andrew Jackson on his road to the White House and the Creek Nation on its journey to the Trail of Tears.

Five months later, the United States forced the Creeks to sign the Treaty of Fort Jackson. The document exacted severe terms on Red Stick and U.S. allied chiefs alike, forcing the cession of 23 million acres of Creek land to the United States.

To learn more about the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/AlabamaHSB.

To learn more about the Creek War of 1813-1814, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/creekwar.

To learn more about the Creek Trail of Tears, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/creektrail.

200th anniversary of Battle Horseshoe Bend is tomorrow

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park

Tomorrow (March 27, 2014) will mark the 200th anniversary of the cataclysmic Battle of Horseshoe Bend, Alabama.

Fought on March 27, 1814, between the U.S. Army of Major General Andrew Jackson and the Red Stick Creek army of Menawa, the battle broke the power of the Creek Nation and started the Creeks on their journey to the Trail of Tears.

The Red Sticks were followers of a religious movement started in the Creek nation by the Prophet Josiah Francis. They believed in a return to traditional ways and a disassociation with the so-called "Plan of Civilization" introduced into the nation by United States through its agent for Indian affairs, Benjamin Hawkins.

Fort Mims State Historic Site

The Red Sticks had gone to war against the traditional leaders of the nation in 1813 after several of their party had been assassinated for involvement in an attack against white settlers on the Duck River in Tennessee. The Creek War of 1813-1814 began as a civil war among the Creeks themselves, but spilled over after Mississippi Territorial Militia attacked a Red Stick supply party at Burnt Corn Creek in Escambia County, Alabama.

The Red Sticks won the Battle of Burnt Corn Creek then retaliated against the United States by attacking Fort Mims and killing more than 250 men, women and children. The destruction of Fort Mims stunned the American frontier and led to the invasion of the Creek nation by three U.S. armies.

Holy Ground Battlefield Park

An army under Gen. F.L. Claiborne pushed up the Alabama River and destroyed the primary town of the Prophet Francis at the Battle of Holy Ground. A second army under Gen. John Floyd built Fort Mitchell on the Chattahoochee River and then fought the Creeks at Autossee (Atosi) and Calabee Creek in eastern Alabama. The third army, under Andrew Jackson, pushed south from Tennessee and fought the Red Sticks at Tallushatchee, Talladega, Emuckfau and Enitichopco before closing in on the Horseshoe Bend of the Tallapoosa River 200 years ago today.

Site of Tohopeka at Horseshoe Bend

One of the two main forces of Red Stick warriors had fortified themselves at Horseshoe Bend, building a village there they called Tohopeka ("Horse's Flat Foot") after a unique looping bend of the Tallapoosa River that looks like a  horse's hoof from the air. Led by the war chief Menawa and the prophet Monahoe, the Creek army numbered perhaps 1,000 men.

Jackson's army, which included both Cherokee and U.S. allied Creeks, outnumbered the Red Sticks by more than 3 to 1 but the fortifications erected by the defenders were extremely well constructed. The outcome of the fight was in no way clear on the evening before the battle as the U.S. troops approached Tohopeka.

I will post more on the Battle of Horseshoe Bend tomorrow. If you would like to read more now, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/AlabamaHSB.

Mississippi's Singing River - The Mysterious Song of the Pascagoula

The Pascagoula - Mississippi's "Singing River"

Roughly 80 miles long and draining an area of 8,800 square miles along the border of Mississippi and Alabama, the Pascagoula River is a major source of clean, fresh water for the Gulf of Mexico. It holds a unique place in Southern culture as the "Singing River" of the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

When French settlers arrived in the region in 1699, they heard a remarkable sound rising from the waters of the Pascagoula. The river takes its name from the Pascagoula Indians, a tribe with with a name that translates literally to "bread eaters."

The people of this tribe told the French that an earlier people had lived on the modern site of Pascagoula. These Native Americans, they said, had worshiped a mermaid who lived in the river. In their temple was a beautifully carved idol of the mermaid, around which the villagers gathered each night to sing and chant.

A strange, repetitive humming sound rises from the river.

At around the time of the Hernando de Soto expedition (1539-1540), however, the Pascagoula said that a strange white man had appeared in the town of the mermaid worshipers. He brought a book and a cross and sought to convert them to Christianity. This angered the mermaid herself, prompting her to rise from the bottom of the river with dramatic fury:

...One night, when the moon at her zenith poured on heaven and earth, with more profusion than usual, a flood of light angelic, at the solemn hour of twelve, when all in nature was in repose and silence, there came, on a sudden, a rushing on the surface of the river, as if the still air had been flapped into a whirlwind by myriads of invisible wings sweeping onward. - Charles Gayerre, History of Louisiana, 1867.

The Pascagoula River.

The water rose up into a "towering column" and at the top stood the mermaid herself. She began to sing a haunting song, calling out to her followers. One after another every man, woman and child in the village walked into the river and were never seen again. According to a 19th century historian, the Pascagoula and other tribes that lived in the area "have always thought it was their musical brethren" who made the sounds of the singing river. Their ghosts, they said, lived on in the palace of the mermaid far beneath the waves.

It is a tragic and unusual story but appears to be the oldest version of a legend still repeated in Mississippi about the American Indians who once lived along the banks of the Pascagoula. Other versions hold that the villagers walked into the river to avoid losing their freedom at the hands of a neighboring tribe or the Spanish conquistadors.

The story was the Pascagoula's way of explaining the strange music that came from the river that bore their name.

Does the river really sing?  Find out by visiting our new page: The Pascagoula - Mississippi's Singing River.

New mini-documentary on Battle of Natural Bridge, FL

Natural Bridge Battlefield Historic State Park

My new mini-documentary on the Battle of Natural Bridge, Florida, is now online. You can view it for free by visiting the main Battle of Natural Bridge page.

Fought on March 6, 1865, just south of Tallahassee, the engagement was the last significant Confederate victory of the War Between the States (or Civil War). Its significance comes from the fact that it prevented the Union capture of Florida's capital city, leaving Tallahassee as the only unconquered Southern capital east of the Mississippi.

The new mini-documentary follows the story of the Natural Bridge Expedition from its beginning moments in Fort Myers and Key West to its end with the bloody defeat of Federal forces along the banks of the St. Marks River. During the main engagement the 2nd and 99th U.S. Colored Troops (USCT) made 8 separate charges, but were driven back each time by the massed fire of a Confederate force that included the Cadets from what is now Florida State University.

Be sure to take the time to watch it and learn more about the battle by visiting www.exploresouthernhistory.com/nbindex.