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Dade Battlefield Historical Site
Two hundred years ago, Florida was a wilderness. It was the home of deer, bear, a few white settlers, black men and women escaping slavery, and a few thousand Seminole Indians. The slave catchers came, and in 1818, through Florida was owned by Spain, Andrew Jackson invaded. There was fighting, men died: white, red, and black. This was the First Seminole War.
In the following year Spain sold Florida to the United States. More and more settlers came, and more escaped slaves. The settlers wanted land, and slaves wanted freedom. No one asked what the Seminoles wanted. For over thirty years, their land was being taken, and the black people were being returned to slavery. When the Seminoles and blacks began to resist, the white settlers called the government for help. The soldiers came. They built forts, cleared roads, and told the Seminole that Florida was no longer their home. They were told they were going to be sent to Oklahoma.
One of the forts was at Tampa Bay, called Fort Brooke. On the morning of December 23, 1835, one hundred and eight soldiers led by Major Frances Langhorne Dade left Ft. Brooke to march north 100 miles to reinforce Ft. King. Ft. King is present day Ocala. On the sixth day Seminole Indians attacked them. At the end of a daylong battle, the officers and men of Dade’s command had been destroyed. The Second Seminole War had begun. Only three soldiers survived the attack. One was killed on the way back to fort Brooke, two survived to tell the tail.
If you are interested in battle reenactments, this is the one to see. On the Saturday, closest to December 28th, a group of volunteers play both sides. Showing what happen. Why is this the best? I feel this is the case, due to two narrators. One from each side, that explains everything as it occurs. For more information, you can contact the Dade Battlefield Society, Inc. 35247 Reynolds Road, Dade City, FL 33523. The phone number is (352) 583-2974.
I felt this was an excellent location to place a cache. The cache is a 20mm-ammo can. I placed it here to bring cacher’s to this park. There is a trail that the solders followed, with markers and descriptions of what happened. There are also two buildings with information about the event, and a cannon like the ones the solders had with them. The entrance to the park is located at N28 39.235 W82 07.520. The cost to enter the park is $2 per vehicle with a maximum of eight, and $1 for pedestrians, bikers, or extra persons. The cost to enter on the reenactment was a $5 donation for those 13 years and older. The reenactment takes place at N28 39.117 W82 07.728. This is a little hill located toward the bark of the park. Although this is not the location of the actually battle, the terrain more closely resembles the conditions. The reenactment starts at 14:00, so get there early to claim a spot to sit.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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Pyhr Gjb: Gurer vf n fznyy Zntabyvn gerr va orgjrra gur cnyzf, vgf va gurer pbirerq ol fbzr cnyzrggb yrnirf.