Florida Territory
Beginning in late 1835, Osceola and the Seminole allies began a guerrilla war against the U.S. forces. Numerous generals fought and failed, succumbing to the heat and disease as well as lack of knowledge of the land. It was not until General Thomas Jesup captured many of the key Seminole chiefs, including Osceola who died in captivity of illness, that the battles began to die down. The Seminoles were eventually forced to migrate. Florida joined the Union as the 27th state on March 3, 1845. By this time, almost all of the Seminoles were gone, except for a small group living in the Everglades.
West Florida Controversy
Previous to May, 1803, U.S. envoy Robert Livingston had contended that West Florida formed no part of Louisiana. However, the ambiguous third article of the treaty of St. Ildefonso lent itself to his purpose, although he had to adopt an interpretation that France had not asserted nor Spain allowed. Chambers arrives at what he calls the key to Mr. Livingston's sudden change of conviction concerning West Florida: "It had been and was the desire of the United States to acquire West Florida and the Island of Orleans. [James] Monroe had assented to the purchase of Louisiana instead. If Livingston could formulate a reasonable theory upon which the United States could base a claim to West Florida the glory would be his and his alone."