Osceola

Osceola (1804-1838)
Osceola, or Asi-Yahola was born in a Creek Indian village. When he was a child, his father was killed in the Creek War. He and his mother fled south to Florida. They lived among hundreds of other different Indians. They were called Seminole. In 1832, President Andrew Jackson came forward with a treaty sending the Seminoles to a far away land. Osceola stabbed the paper. He said, “This is the only way I will sign such a treaty.” After this incident, many Seminole people considered Osceola as their leader. The downside was that he was thrown in prison. He was only released when he pretended to be in favor of the treaty. In 1837, U.S. soldiers chased Osceola and his people away before they could harvest their crops. Now, all his people were hungry. Finally, on October 21st, General Thomas Sidney Jesup asked for peace negotiations. Osceola arrived under a white flag of truce, believing he and the US government were dealing in “good faith”. Instead, Osceola was hit on the head and taken to prison in Fort Marion. This angered everybody, including the white population. The next December, Osceola and other Seminole prisoners were sent to Fort Moultrie, South Carolina. On January 20, 1838, Osceola died of malaria. He was 34.

By Chris