18. The Seminole
As with the Cherokee, the Seminole split over the issue of the American Civil War, with a small minority in the Trans-Mississippi Theater opting to support the Union, mainly as guides and scouts. Starting with a battalion of Seminole volunteers, eventually expanded to a regiment, the Seminole fought on the Confederate side in several engagements and skirmishes in the swamps and bayous along the Mississippi River and its tributaries. Their leader, John Thumper, received a commission in the Confederate Army, eventually rising to the rank of Colonel of Volunteers. The Trans-Mississippi Seminole practiced slavery before the Civil War, and following the end of the war, the United States imposed a new treaty with the tribe, freeing all slaves and restricting their lands.
In Florida, Seminole companies formed and offered their full support to the Confederacy as units of the Confederate States Army. The first formed in 1862, led by Andrew Hodges, and included both Seminole and white volunteers. The second, formed from the remnants of the first in 1864, in the Everglades. There is substantial debate over whether this company fought in the Battle of Olustee – the largest battle fought in Florida – but numerous reports of Seminole led ambushes and sniper attacks to appear in the records of Union soldiers. After the war, the Florida Seminole remained in the area of the Everglades, where many still live in the 21st century.