Fort Brooke - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Fort Brooke was a historical military post situated on the east bank (at the mouth) of the Hillsborough River

Hillsborough River (Florida)

The Hillsborough River is a river located in the state of Florida in the USA. It arises in the Green Swamp near the juncture of Hillsborough, Pasco and Polk counties, and flows through Pasco and Hillsborough Counties to an outlet in the city of Tampa on Tampa Bay. The name Hillsborough River first...

in present-day Tampa, Florida

Tampa, Florida

Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....

. The Tampa Convention Center

Tampa Convention Center

The Tampa Convention Center is a mid-sized convention center located in Downtown Tampa, Florida. Its location has both waterfront views and views of the skyline. In 2006, a 20-story Embassy Suites hotel opened next door, with a skybridge connecting it to the convention center. Harbour Island is...

currently stands at the site.

Fort Brooke as a military outpost

In 1823, Colonels George Mercer Brooke and James Gadsden

James Gadsden

James Gadsden was an American diplomat, soldier and businessman and namesake of the Gadsden Purchase, in which the United States purchased from Mexico the land that became the southern portion of Arizona and New Mexico. James Gadsden served as Adjutant General of the U. S...

of the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

were ordered to establish a military presence on Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay

Tampa Bay is a large natural harbor and estuary along the Gulf of Mexico on the west central coast of Florida, comprising Hillsborough Bay, Old Tampa Bay, Middle Tampa Bay, and Lower Tampa Bay."Tampa Bay" is not the name of any municipality...

in the newly-acquired Florida territory

History of Florida

The history of Florida can be traced back to when the first Native Americans began to inhabit the peninsula as early as 14,000 years ago. Recorded history begins with the arrival of Europeans to Florida, beginning with the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León, who explored the area in 1513...

to contain the Seminole

Seminole

The Seminole are a Native American people originally of Florida, who now reside primarily in that state and Oklahoma. The Seminole nation emerged in a process of ethnogenesis out of groups of Native Americans, most significantly Creeks from what is now Georgia and Alabama, who settled in Florida in...

Indians and curtail illegal activities along the gulf coast

Gulf of Mexico

The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...

. On 10 January 1824, Brooke and four full companies of the U.S. 4th Infantry Regiment

U.S. 4th Infantry Regiment

The U.S. 4th Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment in the United States Army. It has served the United States for approximately two hundred years.-Origins:...

from Pensacola

Pensacola, Florida

Pensacola is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle and the county seat of Escambia County, Florida, United States of America. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 56,255 and as of 2009, the estimated population was 53,752...

established 'Cantonment Brooke" at the mouth of the Hillsborough River

Hillsborough River (Florida)

, just about where today's Tampa Convention Center

Tampa Convention Center

sits in Downtown Tampa

Downtown Tampa

Image:Tampa_Skyline.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Downtown Tampa looking from the Hillsborough Riverpoly 2403 537 2441 500 2488 483 2516 455 2566 439 2597 410 2649 390 2682 358 2803 315 2949 342 2956 362 3068 383 3074 406 3202 431 3204 447 3332 473 3350 484 3485 1616 2446 1587 Wachovia Centerpoly 1745 1216...

. The site was marked by a huge hickory

Hickory

Trees in the genus Carya are commonly known as hickory, derived from the Powhatan language of Virginia. The genus includes 17–19 species of deciduous trees with pinnately compound leaves and big nuts...

tree set atop an ancient Indian mound most likely built by the Tocobaga

Tocobaga

Tocobaga was the name of a chiefdom, its chief and its principal town during the 16th century in the area of Tampa Bay. The town was at the northern end of what is now called Old Tampa Bay, an arm of Tampa Bay that extends northward between the present-day city of Tampa and Pinellas County...

culture centuries before. Brooke directed his troops to clear the area for the construction of a wooden log fort and support buildings, but ordered that several ancient live oak

Live oak

Live oak , also known as the southern live oak, is a normally evergreen oak tree native to the southeastern United States...

trees inside the encampment be spared to provide shade and cheer. In 1824, the post was officially rechristened Fort Brooke.

Fort Brooke would serve as a major outpost on Florida's Suncoast

Florida Suncoast

The Florida Suncoast is a colloquial name for the west-central and southwest peninsular Florida coastal area between Tarpon Springs to the north, and Naples to the south, and includes the Tampa Bay Area. This region is sometimes also referred to as the Sun Coast...

during all three Seminole Indian Wars

Seminole Wars

The Seminole Wars, also known as the Florida Wars, were three conflicts in Florida between the Seminole — the collective name given to the amalgamation of various groups of native Americans and Black people who settled in Florida in the early 18th century — and the United States Army...

and the Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

. The fort also played a part in the development of the village of Tampa. In October 1863, the small Battle of Fort Brooke

Battle of Fort Brooke

The Battle of Fort Brooke was a minor engagement fought October 16–18, 1863, near Tampa, Florida, during the American Civil War.Two Union Navy ships, USS Tahoma and USS Adela, bombarded Fort Brooke on October 16, 1863, as a diversion, while a landing party under Acting Master T.R...

was fought nearby. On May 6, 1864, both Fort Brooke and Tampa were captured by Union Forces. As Tampa languished during the 1870s and early 1880s, so did Fort Brooke. The last roll call

Roll call

Roll call is the calling of the names of people from a list to determine the presence or absence of the listed people . The term applies to the calling itself, to the time moment of this procedure, and to a military signal that announces it Roll call is the calling of the names of people from a...

of soldiers occurred in 1882 and the post was decommissioned by the US Army in 1883.

Fort Brooke as an incorporated town

Shortly after the post was decommissioned, Fort Brooke became an independent incorporated town in 1885; however, the town's charter dissolved when it was annexed by Tampa in 1907.

External links

History Time Line of Fort Brooke: From Tampa Bay History Center
Brief Fort Brooke article

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Fort Brooke as a military outpost

Fort Brooke as an incorporated town

See also

External links