| 1513 |
Ponce de Leon explores parts of Florida. |
| 1528 |
Panfilo de Narvaez establishes a village on Tampa Bay. |
| 1539 May 30 |
Hernando de Soto lands at Tampa Bay and begins a trek through Florida, Georgia, Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Texas. |
| 1564 |
In the French establish Fort Caroline on the St. John's River near the site of Jacksonville. In response Philip sends the adelantado Menendez de Aviles to found a settlement in Florida. |
| 1565 |
Menendez de Aviles founds St. Augustine and ten days later marches to Fort Caroline and destroys it. He then establishes a string of posts from Tampa Bay to Santa Elena or Port Royal. |
| 1566 |
Menendez de Aviles establishes the post of St. Catherine on the Georgia Coast which he calls the Gaul coast in honor of an Indian chief there. The Mission established there is abandoned in 1570 due to an Indian uprising stirred up by French corsairs who harried the coast. The struggle to re-establish the Gaul coast was long and hard. |
| 1628 |
Charles I of England makes a grant to Sir Robert Heath of land between the 31st and 36th parallels north latitude from sea to sea in North America. This ignored existing Spanish settlements in El Paso, Texas and Santa Fe, New Mexico. However no English settlements were actually made. |
| 1628 |
A Spanish expedition under Pedro de Torres combs the Georgia and Carolina areas in search of English encroachment. |
| 1661 |
Another Spanish expedition searching for English encroachment crosses Georgia to the Apalachicolas or lower Creeks, but again finds none. |
| 1663 and 1665 |
Charles II charters the same area as Charles I, extending it to the 29th and 36-30'th parallels. |
| 1669 |
An expedition is organized by the English to explore the Atlantic coastline between the 29th and 36-30'th parallels. |
| 1670 |
An agreement is reached to recognize all lands north of Charleston, South Carolina as legal English property and all land to the south is Spanish. |
| 1680 |
Conflict begins between the English in Charleston (South Carolina) and the Spanish colonists in St. Augustine (Florida) with local Native American tribes caught in the middle on one side, then the other. |
| 1715 |
Forty Creek chiefs in the area of Georgia, who had been friendly to the English, make peace with the Spanish. |
| 1721 |
Fort King George is established for the English by Colonel John Barnwell on the Altamaha . The Spanish protest this move and demand adherence to Treaty of 1670, but the English establish the colony of Georgia with its southern boundary at the Altamaha. |
| 1733 |
New governor Oglethorpe wants to move the Georgia colony border south to the San Juan River. An agreement with Gov. Sanchez of Mexico leaves the decision to the royal courts. |
| 1734 |
Some time prior to this year the French move their post at Natchitoches from the East to the West side of the Red River. The governor of Texas at the time, Captain Don Manuel Sandoval, makes no protest but is later reprimanded. This is the first hint of a dispute which will define an international boundary of Louisiana. |
| 1739 |
An attempt is made to settle the border between Spanish Florida and English Georgia. A Neutral ground is established between San Juan on the South and Altamaha on the north, but the War of Jenkins Ear breaks out, to end indecisively in 1742. |
| 1740 |
The Spanish governor of Texas is ordered to investigate French intrusion in the area of Natchitoches. |
| 1744 |
The Spanish governor of Texas is again ordered to investigate French intrusion in the area of Natchitoches. |
| 1751 |
The Spanish governor of Texas is again ordered to investigate French intrusion in the area of Natchitoches. |
| 1753 |
Texas governor Don Jacinto de Barrios y Juaregui determines that the French are encroaching on Texas. The Spanish Attorney General puts the border at Arroyo Hondo or Gran Montana which is two and a half leagues in opposite directions from Natchitoches and the Spanish port at Los Adaes. |
| 1763 |
The question of the border between Florida and Georgia is settled by the Treaty of Paris that ends the Seven Year's War (French and Indian War in North America). |
| 1783 September 3 |
Conflicting Boundaries: After the close of the American Revolution Great Britain makes two conflicting treaties with Spain and the United States. Article two of the treaty between the United States and Great Britain designates the southern boundary of the United States "east from the Mississippi along the 31st parallel to the middle of the Apalachicola or Chatahouche; Thence along the middle thereof to its junction with the Flint River, thence strait to the Head of St. Mary's River and thence down along the middle of St. Mary's river to the Atlantic Ocean." Article eight states that the navigation of the Mississippi River would be open to the United States from its source to the Gulf of Mexico. The same day a treaty drawn up between Great Britain and Spain makes no mention of navigation on the Mississippi River and although East Florida is ceded to Spain and West Florida is retained by Spain, which had conquered it by force of arms. No boundaries are stipulated for these provinces. Spain had conquered all of West Florida which included all the territory of Natchez as far north as the parallel passing through the junction of the Yazoo and Mississippi Rivers (about 32-26'). This northern boundary to West Florida had been defined by British order in 1764. Furthermore a separate article to the preliminary Articles of Peace of November 30 1782 stipulated this line as the northern boundary of West Florida, thus showing British opinion as to the exact location of this boundary. Since Great Britain had lost West Florida to Spain by conquest and acknowledged this conquest by treaty she had no legal right to assign the United States the privilege of navigating that section of the Mississippi River that flowed through West Florida and Louisiana, which was also Spanish Territory. The contested area between the United States and Spain is now between the parallels of 31 and 32-26' from the Mississippi to the Chattahoochee River, which contains the heartland of the Southern Indian Tribes. The Spanish cultivate this situation as their newest barrier to English-speaking expansion. The Spanish claim is based on its conquest of West Florida, the Spanish treaty with Great Britain in 1783 and the subrogation by Spain of France's rights as ceded to Great Britain in 1763, the dependence of the Chickasaw tribe on Pensacola, and the fact that on November 22, 1780 the Spanish commandant of Arkansas had taken formal possession of the east bank of the Mississippi River for Spain. The area of West Florida claimed by Spain began at the western extremity of East Florida up the Flint River to its source, thence on a straight line to the Hiwassee River, thence down the Hiwassee, Tennessee and Ohio rivers to the Mississippi and thence to its source. The Americans insisted on rights to the 31st parallel and navigation on the Mississippi. Alexander McGillivray, a Creek Indian chief, had sided with the English in the American Revolution. He now lead the Creek, Chickasaw and Cherokee and sided with the Spanish while the Choctaws Indians sided with the Americans. Don Artur O'Neill governor of Pensacola suggests presenting "Magilbery" to governor Estevan Miro and St. Maxent at the Indian Convention. |
| 1784 July 14 |
A treaty of friendship between Miro and the Choctaw, Chickasaw and Cherokee tribes. The treaty agrees on peace between all parties as well as protection of the Indians from all white men, trade regulations, exchange of prisoners, fugitive slaves and a prohibition of all intoxicating drinks as articles of trade. By this time the Indian trade had been given to Panton, Leslie and Company a British trading firm out of St. Augustine which eventually gained a monopoly by 1795. |
| 1785 November 28 |
Despite McGillivray's staunch alliance with the Spanish some Cherokees make a treaty with representatives from the American Congress, However, this treaty is later repudiated. |
| 1786 July |
As early as this year Jefferson expresses desire to obtain Louisiana from Spain in due time. |
| 1790 |
McGillivray makes treaty with U.S. in New York. The Spanish disapprove but bide their time. |
| 1792 July 6 |
A Spanish treaty with McGillivray agrees to remove all American settlers on the land. |
| 1793 October 28 |
Treaty signed by Gayoso and chiefs of Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek as well as Talapuche and Alabama tribes form an alliance to protect, find solution to the boundary question, provide gifts for the Indians. |
| 1794 |
Despite this formidable barrier, reports of Americans driving Indians South and West reach the king of Spain, whose concern is protecting the mines of his interior provinces. |
| 1795 |
The Indian barrier and attempts to create an independent American West are in Spain's favor, but the French Revolution and associated wars cause Spain to retreat from this dispute. Trade lines of Panton, Leslie and Company break down and Spain is forced into an unnatural alliance with Great Britain. |
| 1795 July |
Spain is forced to make a separate treaty ( of Bale) with France, ending the short alliance with England. |
| 1795 October |
The Treaty of San Lorenzo. Spain surrenders the Indian territory and claims to exclusive ownership of the Mississippi River. This treaty marks the beginning of the disintegration of the Spanish empire and the beginning of territorial expansion of the United States. U. S objectives: solves boundary question, navigation of the Mississippi and control of the southern Indians. Article II describes the boundary as "a line running east from the Mississippi River along the 31st parallel to the middle of the Apalachicola or Chatahoochee along the middle thereof to the Flint River thence to the head of the St. Mary's River and along its middle to the Atlantic Ocean." Article IV stipulates navigation of the Mississippi river to the Gulf by citizens of the United States. Article V settles the Indian question. Article XXII authorizes the right of deposit in the Port of New Orleans for three years. |
| 1796 |
The international boundary for next few years is the Mississippi River and West Florida at 31st parallel. This barrier would also fall, first Louisiana, then West Florida and finally East Florida. In 1794 only 5,400 barrels of flour from the American West passed through the port of New Orleans. By 1802 there will be 12,000 barrels for local consumption and 70,000 barrels deposited for export. Other commodities such as cotton, tobacco, pelts, and whiskey increased in similar proportion. American settlers start moving in large numbers into upper Louisiana and as a barrier Louisiana became useless and costly. |
| 1796 June 22 |
Godoy signs a treaty with the French Directory providing for the retrocession of Louisiana. |
| 1796 |
Retrocession negotiations begin, are suspended and renewed in 1800 with the Consulate supplanting the Directory in France. Napoleon makes a demand for Florida as well, which is refused. |
| 1800 October 1 |
A preliminary and secret Treaty of Ildefonso is signed. |
| 1801 April 10 October 1 |
The secret treaty is ratified by another treaty at Aranjues. |
| 1802 |
Late this year the American Congress is informed of the retrocession of Louisiana to France. |
| 1802 October 18 |
Juan Morales publishes a proclamation closing the American right of deposit at New Orleans. Some suggestions are made in the Senate to take New Orleans by force, but they are rejected. |
| 1803 March 1 |
A royal order is issued to the intendant Morales to reopen the right of deposit for Americans at New Orleans. |
| 1803 March 8 |
James Monroe sails for France Congress authorizes Jefferson to send James Monroe to France to offer $2 million for New Orleans. |
| 1803 April 10 |
Napoleon states that Louisiana would be better for France in the hands of the United States. |
| 1803 April 30 |
A treaty and conventions are signed. Article 3 of the purchase agreement stipulates the extent of Louisiana. Its ambiguity will be the reason for the Neutral Ground on the Louisiana border with Texas. The United States, led by Thomas Jefferson will claim that Louisiana, prior to 1762, included all of the land east of the Rio Grande. He cites LaSalle's temporary settlement in Texas in 1684 and the fact that Spain's nearest settlement at that time was Panuco on the other side of the Rio Bravo (Grande). In fact Jefferson believed that Louisiana also included West Florida also. The boundaries will not be settled until many years after the purchase. |
| 1804 April 6 |
Spain attempts to define the boundary between Texas and Louisiana by a line running from the Red River, passing through Los Adaes and Natchitoches down to the seacoast as close as possible to the Red River. |
| 1804 March |
Don Nemesio Salcedo, commandant general of the interior provinces of Mexico, meets with the Committee on the Fortification and Defense of the Indies. The American's Rio Grande argument was immediately rejected and consideration was focused on the strip of land between the Sabine on the West and on the line between the Calcasieu and Mermentau Rivers so as to pass between Los Adaes and Natchitoches. But the first proposal of a Neutral ground strip comes from James Madison, Secretary of State of the United States. |
| 1804 July 8 |
Secretary Madison instructs Monroe and Pinkney to define the Rio Grande and the Colorado rivers (in Texas) as limits of the neutral ground. This is rejected by Spanish minister of Foreign affairs Don Pedro Cevallos. |
| 1805 |
By this year the U. S. definition of the Neutral Ground has moved to between the Colorado River and the Mermentau or Calcasieu River. |
| 1806 |
The U. S designates the area between the Colorado and Sabine rivers as Neutral Ground. Meanwhile, Spanish forces in East Texas are growing to stop any encroachment by the Americans. Captain Meriwether Lewis is reported by Salcedo to be exploring up the Missouri. |
| 1806 November |
At the peak of the crisis 1273 Spanish troops are east of the Sabine, 883 are in Nacogdoches. Captain Edward Turner, Second Infantry Regiment, stationed at Natchitoches as well as Dr. John Sibley, Indian agent at Natchitoches gather information about the Spanish troops. The information is forwarded to Governor Claiborne and the Secretary of War. Major Moses Porter is the military Commandant at Natchitoches and Captain Sebastian Rodriquez is the Spanish officer in charge at Nacogdoches. Turner writes a letter to Rodriguez asking that all Spanish troops be moved west of the Sabine. |
| 1806 |
In 1806 a ³neutral ground² treaty was signed setting up a 40-mile strip of land between the Rio Hondo (just west of Natchitoches) and the Sabine River, which was supposed to remain unsettled. In reality, this area (called The Free State of Sabine or No Man's Land) attracted many settlers and harbored a number of infamous outlaws and pirates such as John Murrell and Jean Lafitte. It was also the back door through which slaves were smuggled into the United States after their importation had been forbidden by the government. |
| 1807 February |
Having received a refusal Turner sends out troops and slowly pushes them west of the Sabine without a shot being fired. This Establishes the Sabine as the western boundary of the Neutral Ground until a permanant solution can be drawn by treaty. The eastern boundary of this Neutral Ground consists of Calcasieu Pass, then along the west bank of Calcasieu Lake the West Bank of the Calcasieu River to its source, thence a straight line running north to Kisatchi Creek, along this creek to the 93-7' line of longitude where the Arroyo Hondo fades into Sibley's Marsh, thence along Arroyo Hondo to its source about 98-8' and 31-47'30", thence a straight line north to the Bayou Pierre settlement. (See 1805 Territory Map) |
| 1821 February 22 |
The Adams-Onis Treaty - The Sabine River from its mouth to the 32nd parallel is designated as the western boundary of Louisiana bordering on Texas. It then travels north from the intersection of the Sabine River along the 94 degree line of longitude. |
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