Day 27 -- Ocala to Thonotosassa, Florida -- 93 Miles

Cell phone reception being an “on-again, off-again” situation here the Happy Travlers RV Resort in Thonotosassa means the blog is going to be iffy tonight, but here goes. Today we traveled south from Ocala, Florida using Route 301 until we got tired of all the traffic lights, then we jumped over to Interstate 75 to brave all the big rigs.

The danger in traveling the Interstate, aside from the menacing 18-wheelers, is that you miss so much of the real American. Part of the fun of traveling the two-lane ribbons of asphalt across our land is seeing the America that "used to be." Long dead gas stations, cabin courts, and restaurants still broadcast their historic presence via welcoming, if faded signs, which helps us visualize what used to be.

Today, amazingly enough, we spotted our blog destination for the day as we traveled Interstate 75. Because of the speed you're traveling on the Blue highways, and the number of lanes involved, it becomes much harder to "dart" out of your lane and exit the Interstate if you suddenly see a point of interest you'd like to investigate.

But today we got lucky as we easily slid over to the offramp and were soon following the brown signs. We headed east toward something called the Dade Battlefield Historic Park, only stopping to dash into Walmart for more bottled water to add to our dwindling supply.

Since we had scored a prime spot under an ancient oak tree in the outer reaches of the Walmart parking lot, we went ahead and had our lunch there. Once lunch was over, we headed on down the road toward the promised battlefield.

We made a couple of navigational mistakes on our way, missed our turnoff, and had to execute a U-turn in a local business parking lot. Once that bit of floundering was out of the way, we managed to find our way to the front gate of the battlefield and park. Confident that we had found the right place, we rolled up to the ticket window.

We must have looked like we weren’t headed anywhere important as the resident ranger immediately informed us that we had to be off the grounds by five p.m. as they had scheduled a Halloween extravaganza for the evening.

Glancing around the park, we saw almost nothing that might prompt someone to WANT to stay until five o’clock, but we nodded our agreement, paid our $3.00 entrance fee, and rolled on in.

Once parked, we decided that we would just hoof it around a bit and stretch our legs. We didn’t see anything that even remotely suggested a battle had been fought there, so we just chalked it off to a nice, green park to visit.

But moments later the ranger who had told us to be out by five walked by, and she pointed out where we had to walk to see the outdoor battlefield displays. She regretted that all the archeological aritifacts that had been found on the grounds were inside the closed visitor center, but she hoped that we could get a feel for the battle by way of the outdoor displays.

After we crossed the key bridge on foot, we easiy found the reconstructed breastworks (stacked log fortifications) used during the battle as well as displays of photos taken of reinacters over the years. Though we would have enjoyed even more visual displays, we still liked the walk through the woods to our objective. As it turned out, the pamphlet provided to us by the ranger did a lot to fill in the historic gaps of what went on at the Dade Battle, verbiage of which follows.

"The first Seminole War (1817-1818) took place in Florida and southern Georgia when U.S. troops attacked and defeated a group of Seminoles. Spain formally ceded Florida to the United States in 1821. When Florida became a U.S. territory and more settlers began steadily moving into tribal territory, the Native Americans were forced to move south."

"By the 1830s, significant conflict had arisen between Seminoles and white settlers who coveted Seminole lands. The Seminole practice of giving refuge to fugitive slaves added further cause for conflict."

"With the signing of the treaty of Payne’s Landing in 1832, some chiefs agreed to moved to territory west of the Mississippi River. Widespread opposition to this treaty, led by a Seminole named Osceola, resulted in the outbreak of the Second Seminole War."

"In December 1835. 108 U.S. troops and officers were marching from Fort Brooke on Tampa Bay to reinforce Fort King in present-day Ocala. One hundred miles from Fort Brooke, they were attacked by 180 Seminole warriors. All but three of the soldiers were killed."

"In 1921, the state legislature appropriated funds for the preservation of the battle site as a memorial. Today visitors can tour the site where a replica of the original log breastwork can be seen. A visitor center and a section of the original Fort King Military Road provide insight into a battle between Florida’s clashing cultures."

Reading the signs at the battle site we learned that: "The second Seminole War was the longest and most costly Indian war in American history, and now one of the least known. It began where [we were] standing. In December 1835 peace existed in the Florida Territory, but it was a tenuous peace. It was the first time of President Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal Act, and Seminole leaders had agreed under a series of treaties to relocate their people to Indian Territory in present-day Oklahoma. Some felt the Chiefs had been tricked into signing. And no Chief or group of Chiefs could speak for all the people. Many were determined to remain in Florida and to fight for their homes."

"Thus began seven years of warfare, at the end of which several thousand Seminoles, having surrendered or been captured, were sent forcibly to Indian Territory. But a few hundred remained in scattered bands in the everglades. The government declared victory. Todays proud Seminoles, the descendents of those who never surrendered, see it differently. That's why they are known as the unconquered people."

It's ironic that one of the most impressive stops we have made on this vacation was at the Andrew Jackson home, the Hermitage, in Tennessee. There we learned all about the Indian Removal Act and about how Jackson had actually defied Congress AND the Supreme Court to remove the Native Americans of the southeast against the wishes of many in the government. History is not always pretty, it's not always fair to the participants, but it is always available for study to those who wish to avoid making the same mistakes.

Though our visit to the Dade Battlefield Historic Park fell somewhat short of our expectations, it nevertheless was a great reminder of the things we have learned from our nation's illustrious and sometimes nefarious history.

Tomorow we hope to complete our journey to Naples, Florida and a reunion with Concetta's family members in the area. So for now we wish you exciting adventures of your own. Ciao!