On January 24, 1838, Major General Thomas S. Jesup of the United States Army met 300 Seminoles on the banks of the Loxahatchee River in the last standing battle of the Second Seminole War. One hundred and eighty-seven years to the day later, the battle will be reenacted at Loxahatchee Battlefield Park in Jupiter.
Attendees can visit an authentic replica of the soldiers’ camp, see rifle and cannon demonstrations, shop crafts from vendor booths, and enjoy food trucks and bluegrass music. Seminole fight groups—composed of both men and women—will put on demonstrations of the tribe’s proud heritage as warriors.
“The Seminoles are a matriarchal society, so women would not have just sat back during a battle,” says Glen Bakels, liaison to the indigenous tribes for the Loxahatchee Battlefield Preservationists. “I always enjoy that part of the event.”…