USA HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Ever since the late 1600s, Spanish Florida was becoming a sanctuary for African slaves who fled from British plantations.

Detailed explanation-2: -In general they fled to Canada or to free states in the North, though Florida (for a time under Spanish control) was also a place of refuge. (See Black Seminoles.) From the very beginning of slavery in America, enslaved people yearned to escape from their owners and flee to safety.

Detailed explanation-3: -The first recorded slaves to reach La Florida arrived in late September 1526 as part of the Lucas Vázquez de Ayllón expedition. Ayllón brought as many as 100 slaves to support a new Spanish settlement, which he named San Miguel de Gualdape (near present-day Sapelo Island, Ga.).

Detailed explanation-4: -Slaves nursed, washed, and farmed, but they also engaged as stevedores, cowhunters, sailors, lumberjacks, and interpreters. Some slaves ran away and joined bands of Seminole Indians. Most of Florida’s population remained congregated in the northern part of the state until the end of the Second Seminole War in 1842.

Detailed explanation-5: -One of the most powerful ways an enslaved person could resist was to run away. Running away carried heavy risks. If runaways were caught, they would be physically punished, usually by whipping, and might be made to wear chains or handcuffs to prevent them from running again.