Come join us at the annual reenactment of the Battle of Ocean Pond or as it as sometimes known, The Battle of Olustee!   The battle was the largest land encounter fought in Florida during the Civil War.  It was fought in February of 1864 and was a Confederate victory.  The battle repulsed an effort by the Yankees to cut Confederate supply lines, recruit Negro soldiers, and bolster unionist support within the state.

     Brigadier General Truman Seymour set out from Jacksonville with about 5,500 men and attempted to drive westward across North Florida with the possible objective of capturing the state capital at Tallahassee.  Confederate general P.G.T. Beauregard suspected that the Federals might be trying to capture Florida and detached reinforcements from Georgia to help in the state’s defense.  These 5,000 defenders under the command of Brigadier General Joseph Finegan met the Yankee incursion near Ocean Pond and drove them back with heavy losses. 

     The battle was fought primarily in open pine woods and lasted nearly the entirety of the afternoon until Finegan put in the last of his reserves and the Union line collapsed in confusion.  The Federals attempted to flee back towards Jacksonville and were harried by a small band of Confederates.  Eventually the pursuit was broken off after being repulsed by the 54th Massachusetts Colored Volunteer Infantry and the 35th United States Colored Troops.

     Union losses were listed at 203 KIA, 1,152 Wounded, and 506 missing as well as the loss of 6 artillery pieces.  This totaled about 40% of their entire force.  Confederate losses amounted to 93 KIA,  847 Wounded, and 6 missing which came to about 20% of the defending force.  The ratio of the number of Union losses compared to the entire number of troops involved made this the third bloodiest battle of the war.

   The South saw this rout as a morale booster and one Georgia newspaper said the Yankees had  walked “forty miles over the most barren land of the South, frightening the salamanders and gophers, and getting a terrible thrashing”

    The annual reenactment of the battle features thousands of reenactors from across the country and oversees. Friday is a “School Day” when many students come to spend the day watching demonstrations and listening to people discuss different aspects of everyday life during the 1860s.  Saturday and Sunday are open to the public with Saturday featuring a skirmish reenactment and the main battle occurring on Sunday.

You can click here to learn more about the battle and reenactment!