Charlton County  Georgia History Trader's Hill - 1812

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by
Bob Hurst lat@wayxcable.com


Table of Contents page: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/charlton.htm
Georgia Table of Contents: http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/gafiles.htm

FROM TRADER'S HILL'S BANKS LOOKING TOWARD SPANISH FLORIDA
A Now Peaceful Fishing Paradise, But Once a Center of Intrigue


By Robert Latimer Hurst
Known for miles around by the settlers to this region was
the riverport of Trader's Hill. Begun as a trading post in
1755, the village, about five miles south of present-day
Folkston, survived as a head of navigation until the early
1900s on the river that once separated the royal colony of
Georgia from the Spanish and Seminole nations to the south.

A flourishing port for water trade for the Southeastern
region, Trader's Hill became no more than a rude stockade
(Fort Alert), which was used for protection of the colonies
from Spaniards and disgruntled Indians; a general store that
served as a meeting house, saloon, and center of gossip; a
Spanish jail, which usually displayed a "No Vacancy" sign;
and a hangman's oak that could tell story upon story of the
mysterious events around the riverbank town. Compared to the
surrounding settlements of this time, Trader's Hill,
however, was a metropolis.

Full community status for certain could not be credited this
area until 1791. William Bartram, traveler and botanist,
writes: "I now set forward again, and after eight or ten
miles of riding, arrived at the banks of St. Marys, opposite
the stores, and got safe over before dark, etc." The stores,
evidently, were those of Trader's Hill.

In July, 1811, George Mathews, special government agent, had
roamed the country north and south of the border,
questioning, observing and interviewing residents of those
early Georgia townships of Colerain, Centerville and
Trader's Hill. This man,  very familiar with the
Southeastern United States, probably witnessed the fall and
winter caravans coming from the interior of Georgia to trade
with the border people. Farmers in oxcarts, horsecarts and
two-and-four horse teams brought cotton, beeswax, honey,
jerked beef and cowhides to exchange for flour, coffee,
gunpowder and shot. From south of the St. Marys, American
settlers sent corn, beef and potatoes; and the Seminoles
bartered beef, venison and furs for guns and ammunition.
Spanish and American custom laws were ignored by the self-
seeking traders converging at Trader's Hill.

The situation on the edge of primitive Florida could not be
called a center of security. During the year 1812, sniper
attacks, organized by Billy Bowlegs, who, with his
discontented braves,was moving across the St. Marys, cause
much uneasiness among villagers, though only one man was
reported murdered during this fracas. 

By July 30, 1812, Georgians living in this vicinity had
become so infuriated and frightened by ravaging Spaniards
and Seminoles from Florida that they requested aid from the
Federal government. With no results forthcoming, Governor
David Mitchell issued a general order authorizing General
John Floyd to collect and deposit provisions for 500 men and
horses at Trader's Hill.

Using military strategy --some might call it "propaganda" --
General Floyd falsely publicized the purpose of the
expedition as one against the Spanish stronghold at St.
Augustine. Actually, he planned to destroy the Seminole
camps first and then turn on Sebastian Kindelan, who was
emissary from the Captain-General of Cuba and who would
later become Governor of East Florida. And at Trader's Hill
the plans for the invasion of Florida were placed in
readiness as the general sought storage houses for space for
men and horses.

By November 2, 1812, President James Madison realized
Georgia's plight, brought dramatically to the United States
government's attention by Governor Mitchell's order. There
had been no time for delayed Congressional action on whether
or not men and arms were needed to fortify Trader's Hill.
The detachment of 500 mounted men, at the Governor's
command, had been mobilized at the river outpost for
protection of settlers and, eventually, a later invasion
across the St. Marys, since the U.S. Senate rejected the
House bill for invasion and occupying Florida at this time.

Much like the empty gunpowder kegs that had annoyed the
British in the recent Revolutionary War, the force build-up
at Trader's Hill served only to irritate everyone concerned:
Georgians, Federal officials, Spaniards, Indians and even
some Negroes living in Florida under Seminole protection.
Georgia would bide her time until the U.S. officially
declared war on Florida, but the former buffer colony would
remain ready to act alone if necessary.

Indian massacres, growing in number, had to be stopped
however. So the soldiers came; and at the cry, "Indians on
the warpath!" sent the pioneers scurrying to Fort Alert, now
an integral part of life at Trader's Hill. It is believed
that this garrison was actually established by England
before the Revolutionary War in the dispute carried on with
Spain for over a century.

During the period between 1817 and 1819, President James
Monroe, in preparing for the Seminole War, ordered the
invasion of Florida's Spanish forts. Secretary of State John
Quincy Adams used this occasion to demand that Spain either
control the Florida Indians or sell the province, and Andrew
Jackson led the force into Spanish territory to punish the
recalcitrant redskins. Fearful that he could no longer hold
the colony, King Ferdinand sold Florida in 1819 (admitted to
statehood in 1845) on condition that the U.S. Government
assume claims of American citizens against Spain up to five
million dollars.

All this time Trader's Hill prospered as a prosperous
riverport town with much activity at Fort Alert. The people
had begun to relax their vigil cautiously since the American
forces had finally taken a stand against the to-the-south
agitators; now they focused their attention on local
matters.

And these local matters centered on a huge oak tree and an
elderly Indian named Suanee. Their story will be told in a
forthcoming feature.

AND SOMEWHERE ALONG ST. MARYS RIM IN TRADER'S HILL, SUANEE MET HIS FATE ON THE HANGMAN'S OAK

By Robert Latimer Hurst

At the end of the street in Trader's Hill stood a huge,
already old oak when the village was an active riverport. It
was the autumn of 1840 when this tree took on an active role
in a mysterious drama. Troy Jones, in the Charlton County
Herald, reports that an elderly Indian, named Suanee, was
accused of stealing some marchandize from the general store
and of killing its owner. He was now in the town jail. If he
escaped, he could swim thirty yards to safety; therefore he
was well guarded.

And the pioneers living in this area of Charlton County near
present-day Folkston were very nervous about any Indian,
young or old. They knew the stories of the horrors caused by
these primitives, and many events occurred at the location
right where they lived in the vicinity of Trader's Hill.
They remembered especially the terrifying tale of Mrs.
Fleming. Eighteen hundred and nineteen was not that far away
in time.

She had plunged through the Florida underbrush, fighting
hysteria. Her body and brain, numb from the past hour's
events, created a mechanical movement. The flesh, cut by
cords, burned; but the fear and horror Mrs. Fleming had
witnessed --had been a part of --made her unconscious to the
pain. The deep gashes on slim legs and ankles bled, rimming
her torn skirts with red.

The records of her capture and escape are as follows: "That
after murdering Fleming, the Indians plundered his home,
taking what they wanted. They bound his wife with strong
buckskin cords and carried her to the banks of the river
where they set their hungry dogs on her. The beasts bit her
severely, but after the Indians had left, she managed to
free herself by gnawing through the thongs, and then ran all
the way to the fort on the Satilla River, about eighteen
miles distance. A party was formed to pursue the savages,
but they had made good their escape into Florida."

Escape into Florida from Trader's Hill was frequently "made
good" since the St. Marys River is only a short distance in
width at this point. And the stories that came forth were
not all that unusual.

So at the end of Trader's Hill main artery stood the old
oak. And in the Spanish jail was Suanee, the old Indian. He
had prepared for this day. His grandfather, for whom the
river Suwannee was named, so goes the local legend, had told
him to starve himself until he could easily slip through the
log cell bars if he should ever become a prisoner of the
white man. This he did. But his feebleness prevented this
warrior his freedom. After a speedy trial, he was carried to
the huge oak for his execution. When the noose was placed
around his neck, the Indian prayed to his god; he, then,
lifted his head and spoke to those assembled: "May the curse
of my father's spirit and mine be placed among the people as
long as there is a Trader's Hill."

Not paying any heed to the savage, the citizens, after
hanging him, went their way. But all was not settled.

One night shortly after the hanging, as the villagers were
enjoying a county dance, a bright light cast its beam into
the eyes of the merrymakers; astonished, they looked toward
this phenomenon. The only light they knew came from the
fires, lanterns or candles. This gleam, so writes Jones,
came from the oak. Accompany the glow, a low moan whined
throughout the countryside. Immdediately, people began to
leave their homes and Trader's Hill. It had become a place
possessed. 

Some who visit the lonely ridge today assert that on certain
nights a light that cannot be explained can be seen, and the
wind whispering in the moss-draped trees furnishes that
moan. 

Trader's Hill did survive the ghost fright as it had the
Indian and Spanish attacks. By 1854, the settlement was the
seat of the newly created Charlton County. 

The townspeople built a two-story courthouse, which was also
used as a Masonic Lodge. A high-structured jail, the envy of
many pioneer lawman, was erected of hewn logs studded with
spikes. The only prisoner entrance was by ladder, which was
dropped from the top of the first story and which was
quickly withdrawn after the culprit descended. But this
place of confinement provided the guilty with a chance for
freedom since it was so very close to the St. Marys River
dividing line. It is possible that Georgia officials
encouraged escapes; then the criminal became Florida's
responsibility.

The Civil War found the Okefenokee Rifles (Company F, 26th
Regiment of Georgia Volunteers Infantry) being formed at
Trader's Hill. These men fought in some of the war's
bloodiest battles. Later, in 1862, Trader's Hill served as a
refugee depot for the citizens of the burning town of St.
Marys. Unable to defend themselves from the Ninth Marine
Regiment's gunboats, St. Marys residents fled to Trader's
Hill. Again the old town became a haven for the border
people. Many remained at the trading post for the rest of
their lives.

Even with this colorful history, the advancing age doomed
this riverfront community when it lost its county seat to
the new railroad center at Folkston in 1901. Though the
decline was not rapid, it was completed mainly because of
the Savannah, Florida and Western Railroad Company. Commerce
moved to the rails, and the river barges quietly ended their
days on the St. Marys with the Georgia-Florida Investment
Company operating the last river service from Trader's Hill
to Brunswick.

Today, when one visits Trader's Hill, the once bustling
river-edge frontier town is no more. Instead, one views the
quiet river rolling on its forever journey to the sea. There
is the old cemetery; and, along a pine-strewn, bramble-
invested back path, a row of rambling oaks from some other
time. It is here --and at the river's rim --the visitor may
hear those ghosts of Trader's Hill. That person has to
listen closely because these are faint whispers. Ah, but
maybe it's only the wind.

 
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