1965 · Fort Myers
by Hendry, Francis Asbury
Fort Myers, 1965. 8pp. Original printed stiff brown wrappers bound into three-quarter morocco and cloth, gilt, by Sangorski & Sutcliffe. Modern bookplate on rear pastedown, else fine. An exceedingly rare account of an ambush by the Seminole leader Chief Billy Bowlegs on Capt. Leroy G. Lesley, under whom the author was serving during the Third Seminole War. This is the first separate printing of Hendry's account, and one of only twenty- seven copies printed as a result of "the kindness and courtesy of Mrs. F.W. Emo of the Fort Myers Public Library." Bowlegs was a feared Seminole leader who led his tribe in both the Second and Third Seminole Wars. After surrendering in 1858, Bowlegs still refused to relocate to Oklahoma. Only after large monetary offerings from the United States government did Bowlegs agree to relocate, taking his wives, daughters, and slaves with him. Bowlegs and his family would become prominent citizens in Indian Territory due to their wealth in cash, land, and slaves
(Inventory #: WRCAM50995)