By Troy Turner
DADEVILLE – Horseshoe Bend National Military Park hosted a variety of events recently to mark the 210th anniversary of the battle fought there that ended the Creek Nation’s rule over much of present-day Alabama and crushed a British ally during the War of 1812.
The battle’s results also cleared the way for Alabama to move from territory to statehood a few years later in 1819, but signaled an end to a way of life for American Indians living here.
The park is located on Highway 49 north of Dadeville and on the banks of the Tallapoosa River where the battle was fought March 27, 1814. There, federal troops and volunteers under the command of Gen. Andrew Jackson and officers such as Sam Houston defeated tribal warriors, killing more than 800 of them in the bloody battle.
Firearms had been provided to the Creeks by British forces who saw them as allies against the Americans during the war. But Jackson, who after rising to fame from his victory at Horseshoe Bend, went on to lead troops to victory again a few months later against the British in the Battle of New Orleans. He later became president of the United States.
Sponsorship partners included the Friends of Horseshoe Bend and the National Park Foundation.
For more information about the park and its history, visit: https://www.nps.gov/hobe/index.htm
Troy Turner is editor and senior consultant for AlaDefense.com and can be contacted at [email protected].
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