A blast from the past

Yesterday we decided to do something fun as a family, since it's the first time the Frenchman has a weekend off since he started this job back in May 2011. Be ware, we think it's fun to go into Museums and to watch re-enactments and stuff that other people consider boring. BUT, I shall not make this boring.

We ended up at Thonotosassa, at the Hillsborough River State Park. I'd been wanting to go here since back in 1998 when I moved to Tampa. Of course, no one wanted to come out this way with me. You see my mom and aunt hate roughing it up and camping. The Frencman is no better. Every time I propose going camping somewhere, he complains. In England, it was too cold. In Normandy, it was too wet. In Florida? Too many ants, spiders, and ALLIGATORS!

Nothing like a friendly warning right?

The day was sunny and not too warm which was great. We arrived sometime around noon, after having stopped at another little park called John B Sargeant Park.  It was there that we saw this amazing go in a canoe on the river, BUT AT YOUR OWN PERIL as the gators can eat you, warning.

Once we arrived at our destination, we were greeted by friendly folks. We stepped into the concession area to feed ourselves after haven't forgotten to pack a picnic. (Epic Fail) Then we proceeded to take in our surroundings. The state park is clean and airy. you have so many things to do. Nature trails, bird watching, play ground activities, a pool (though it was closed because apparently it's not good to go in the water when it's below 70 degrees. *clears throat* Someone should say something to all the English folks who use their beaches when it's 68 degrees during the summer :) ) There's also a Rapids and a Suspension Bridge. But to me the pièce de résistance was Fort Foster.

Fort Foster

We were taken to the site on a van with a wagon ;) This brought memories of when me and my cousins would ride on the back of our Uncle Bob's pick up truck, listening to either country music or music from the 50's. You know, back in the day when that wasn't going to get us killed.

After the Ranger drove us the seven miles it takes to get there, we discovered a fort that was built and burned by the Seminoles a few times. Obviously when the first Americans settled here, the Seminoles didn't agree. The current Fort was rebuild in the 80's after it got vandalized and burned. The Ranger pointed out that the first Fort was possibly built in 10 days, because of how necessary it was to the soldiers that settled in the area. In the 80's it took almost two years. Back them it was called Fort Alabama and then renamed Fort Foster sometime during the Second Seminole War, when it was  reused and the soldiers had to guard the bridge over the Hillsborough River. This Bridge was important because it connected the Fort King Military Road with the road that led them to Fort Brook in Tampa Bay.

Seeing the way soldiers lived in the 1830's, under crammed spaces, in a very inhospitable weather, where most of them died either at the hands of the Seminoles and/or Malaria made me think how easy we have it nowadays.

Back then if you caught Malaria you would die. If you had gangrene, even if they chopped off the arm, leg, foot, hand, you would possibly die. I can only imagine the suffering the parents felt when their kids as young as 13 ran away and lied to join the army. Most of them thought it would be a great adventure, many of them never had one.

As the ranger explained, 103 soldiers arriving at Fort Foster were ambushed by Seminoles. Out of those 103 only one crawled to the fort, only to die later of the injuries sustained.

If you are ever on the area, I urge you to visit, if only to step back in time for a while and admire the fort, and its history. The perseverance of the English and the bravery of the Seminoles*** who tried to defend their land from those that invaded it.



***Unfortunately we were not told an awful lot about the Seminoles. Yes, they had made a treaty to keep away from this area, but not many of them agreed, hence the constant attacks on the soldiers. But can you really blame them?

Our vehicle for the afternoon a Double Surrey