By Deborah DeSilets
On February 22, 2019 an intimate group of history aficionados convened in the hallowed hall of the Martin House, in Tallahassee to celebrate the 200th Anniversary of the signing of the Adams-Onís Treaty. Whether you remember it as the Adams–Onís Treaty, or by its alias the Transcontinental Treaty, or even more simply as the Florida Purchase Treaty or The Florida Treaty it was monumental. In the Adams-Onís Treaty Spain ceded Florida to the U.S.— La Florida becomes Florida, USA.
The hour glass has drained been drained. In the two hundred year cycle, sides have changed but the border war is the same. Known as one of the most outstanding works of American diplomacy as it was that treaty that settled the long standing border dispute between these two countries. The US walked away triumphant and President James Monroe a hero. It is noted in history books that this treaty came at a special time: “… in the midst of increasing tensions related to Spain’s territorial boundaries in North America against the United States and Great Britain in the aftermath of the American Revolution; and also during the Latin American Wars of Independence. Florida had become a burden to Spain, which could not afford to send settlers or garrisons. Madrid decided to cede the territory to the United States through the Adams–Onís Treaty in exchange for settling the boundary dispute along the Sabine River in Spanish Texas. The treaty established the boundary of U.S. territory and claims through the Rocky Mountains and west to the Pacific Ocean, in exchange for the U.S. paying residents’ claims against the Spanish government up to a total of $5,000,000 and relinquishing the US claims on parts of Spanish Texas west of the Sabine River and other Spanish areas, under the terms of the Louisiana Purchase.
The treaty remained in full effect for only 183 days: from 22 February 1821 to 24 August 1821 when Spain signed the Treaty of Córdoba acknowledging the independence of Mexico. The Treaty of Limits signed in 1828 and effective in 1832 recognized the border defined by the Adams–Onís Treaty as the boundary between the United States and Mexico.”
It was Monroe who declared that Manifest Destiny had willed Florida be ours, and by 1823, Monroe would further state in his infamous Monroe Doctrine that he opposed European colonialism in The Americas and the terms clearly stated “that further efforts by European nations to take control of any independent state in North or South America would be viewed as the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States.” President James Monroe delivered this doctrine as his seventh annual State of the Union Address to Congress. Now having been repeated so often, it is simply known as “The Monroe Doctrine.”
This was a defining moment in the foreign policy of the United States and is still enforced today as well as having been invoked through history by many U.S. statesmen and several U.S. presidents, including Grant, Theodore Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Ronald Reagan. The intent and impact of the Monroe Doctrine persisted with only minor variations for more than a century. The three main concepts of the doctrine—separate spheres of influence for the Americas and Europe, non-colonization and non-intervention—were designed to signify a clear break between the New World and the autocratic realm of Europe. Monroe’s administration forewarned the imperial European powers against interfering in the affairs of the newly independent Latin American states or potential United States territories.
Our intimate party to celebrate the Bi-Centennial was arranged in conjunction with Conexion Media Group and it was a great honor to be a part of. As the night wore on, and the party cheer roared, there was little time to hail our former president as my shortened keynote speech gave way to song, dance and good cheer. It was a fitting finale to what— for me—began four years ago, when I acquired from a family friend a sole acorn from the President James Monroe estate. That little acorn I nurtured for four years until it was planted in Tallahassee at Monroe and Adams Street by the State Marker for the Chandler’s Tourist Camp. It is here the little acorn of the Virginian white oak tree will grow, making a bridge of honor for these two men who in their life toils acquired for us, Florida.
To visit the roots of this little tree visit President James Monroe Highland Home at the link provided below.
