Historian Amy Sturgis recounts history that seems made for the movies but hasn’t made it to the big screen. It’s a decades-long story of oppression and freedom fighting. Why hasn’t there been more attention paid to John Horse and the Black Seminoles?
Prof. Sturgis argues that John Horse and the Black Seminoles deserve to be remembered for a number of reasons:
- They created the largest haven in the U.S. South for runaway slaves.
- They led the largest slave revolt in U.S. history.
- They secured the only emancipation of rebellious slaves prior to the U.S. Civil War.
- The formed the largest mass exodus of slaves across the United States and, ultimately, to Mexico.
Learn more about this remarkable story that has been overlooked by film makers, popular culture, and, importantly, historians of slavery. This story has fallen through the cracks, in part because it blends the history of Native Americans and of slaves and in part because it represents a blemish in U.S. history. But this group of freedom fighters—who ultimately found peace, liberty, and prosperity—is worth remembering.
