Cascades Park in Tallahassee in Leon County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

The Founding of Tallahassee

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, April 15, 2025

1. The Founding of Tallahassee Marker

Inscription.
In June 1823, Florida’s Territorial Legislative Council authorized Governor William P. DuVal to appoint two commissioners to select the site for a new capital somewhere between the Ochlockonee and Suwanee rivers. Dr. William Hayne Simmons left St. Augustine on September 26th by an overland route. John Lee Williams left Pensacola on September 24th by sea. In late October, the two met at St. Marks, a settlement at the confluence of the St. Marks and Wakulla rivers. They travelled approximately 20 miles north to a Native American settlement under the leadership of Neamathla, known as “The Old Fields of Tallahassee.” Neamathla and other Native leaders had recently signed the Treaty of Moultrie Creek, which exchanged lands near Tallahassee for reservations elsewhere in the Florida Territory. Williams and Simmons later recommended Tallahassee as the location for the capital. Governor DuVal directed the legislative council to meet at the new capital in November 1824. Later that year, a log cabin was built to serve as Florida’s first capitol building. On December 11th, the legislative council adopted the existing Muscogee language

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placename “Tallahassee.”
A Florida Heritage Site

Erected 2023 by In memory of Dr. William Warren Rogers and Gerald Ensley by the Tallahassee Historical Society and the Florida Department of State. (Marker Number F-1250.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Exploration • Indigenous Peoples and Communities. A significant historical month for this entry is June 1823.

Location. 30° 26.035′ N, 84° 16.804′ W. Marker is in Tallahassee, Florida, in Leon County. It is in Cascades Park. It can be reached from the intersection of South Monroe Street and East Bloxham Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1005 S Monroe St, Tallahassee FL 32301, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Florida.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Deep South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, April 15, 2025

2. The Founding of Tallahassee Marker

Located in front of the recreated log cabin that served as the first capitol building.

of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Centennial Field (within shouting distance of this marker); Veterans Memorial (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Chandler's Tourist Camp (about 800 feet away); The Civil Rights Foot Soldiers of Tallahassee Memorial (approx. 0.2 miles away); Inspiring a Nation (approx. 0.2 miles away); Peace and Persistence (approx. 0.2 miles away); A Long Journey (approx. 0.2 miles away); Jail Over Bail (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tallahassee.

Also see . . . Tallahassee. (Submitted on April 16, 2025, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.)

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, April 15, 2025

3. The Founding of Tallahassee Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on April 16, 2025. It was originally submitted on April 16, 2025, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 330 times since then and 58 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 16, 2025, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.