On the Edge of the Florida Frontier: Perspectives on Life at Fort King

This exhibition brings to life Fort King during the Seminole Wars, as well as the work of the Gulf Archaeology Research Institute to reconstruct and preserve this historic site.

The exhibition includes artwork, archaeological objects, photographs and historic reconstructions that highlight how the fort appeared to those who came into contact with it and how this site influenced the development of Florida and US history. As one of the key forts during the Second Seminole War (1835-1842), its principal purpose was to oversee the Treaty of Moultrie Creek, which aimed to relocate the Seminole Indians of Florida into a reservation in the center of the state. Fort King was to enforce the northern boundary of the reservation and as such, was a location of interaction between U.S. soldiers, settlers and Seminoles during a historically transformative period in history. When the U.S. government sought to relocate the Seminoles out West in disregard to the treaty, it was at Fort King that Osceola attacked and killed the Indian agent Wily Thomson and six others at the outbreak of hostilities in 1835.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website