Republic of West Florida

The Republic of West Florida lasted about 75 days, and almost none of it lay in present-day Florida. In September 1810, American settlers in the Spanish district between the Mississippi and Pearl rivers stormed the fort at Baton Rouge, captured the Spanish governor and declared independence. They named St. Francisville their capital, wrote a constitution, elected Fulwar Skipwith governor, and flew a flag of a single white star on a blue field.

The rebels hoped to be annexed on their own terms, but President James Madison had other plans. In October 1810 he proclaimed that the area already belonged to the United States as part of the Louisiana Purchase, and in December American troops took over the fort at Baton Rouge without a fight. The territory became part of Louisiana, where its eight parishes are still known as the Florida Parishes. Its lone-star flag resurfaced half a century later as the Bonnie Blue Flag of the 1861 secession crisis.

• Louisiana
  The Pelican State, where the Mississippi meets the Gulf became part of
• The Mississippi River
  The great river that drains the American heartland bounded by
• Baton Rouge
  Capital of Louisiana, on the Mississippi River related
• Republic of Texas
  An independent nation for nearly ten years, 1836–1845 related