Can you spot the Suwannee River on this old map?

At least The Great Swamp called Owaquaphenogaw is pretty obvious: the Okefenokee Swamp.

Since the only river that is shown running south from the swamp is the one under the E in East Florida, which goes by a town called S. Juan, that looks like a good bet. But maybe not.

Where is the Suwannee River? Map of East and West Florida, An account …natural history of Florida, by William Roberts, 1763

Back in 1920 somebody tried to make sense of this map, in The Old Spanish Trail, A Historical Sketch, by G. M. West, 1920, Panama City Publishing Co., Panama City, Fla., online by St. Mary’s University, San Antonio, Texas.

The first account of these roads we find in Roberts’ “Florida,” published in London in 1763. In describing the Gulf shore near the present St. Marks, Roberts says:

“There is a road over land from the mouth of this river to St. Augustin, which is as follows: Ocon is fifteen miles from St, Marks, and ten miles beyond is Ayavalla fort; twenty-four miles further is Machalla, and eleven miles from that is St. Matheo; both these are situated on branches of the Rio Vassa, which is about eighty miles in length, and enters the Gulf of Mexico fifteen miles southeast of St. Marks. Twenty-five miles from St. Matheo is San Pedro, on the south side of the River San Pedro, which is 100 miles long and enters the Gulf of Mexico seventy miles from St. Marks; eleven miles from San Pedro is Utoca, and in twelve miles more we come to Nuvoalla, situated on the east side of the Carolinian River, the course of which has not been ascertained, but there is good reason to suppose that it runs a south course into the Rio Amasura. Eight miles from Nuvoalla is Alochua, and in eight miles more we come to Jurla Noca. All these places were formerly ancient settlements of the Atimucas Indians, who were driven from them by the English from Carolina in 1706. and have fixed their settlement on an island to the east of the Rio de St. Juan, about sixty-five miles southwest of St. Augustine, and call their chief settlement Pueblo de A\ muca, Twenty-six miles from Jurla Noca we come to a Spanish settlement on the banks of the Rio de St. Juan. Though the river is here only two miles broad, yet it is eight miles over that and two islands to Fort Picolata, which is the last stage, and is thirty miles distant from Fort St. Augustine, This road is 188 miles from St. Marks.”

William Roberts in The Old Spanish Trail, A Historical Sketch, by G. M. West, 1920

From the map — in this book — of the territory traversed by this highway, we note that it ran nearly north-east from St. Marks through Ocon and Ayavalla, then turned eastward and followed very nearly the 30th degree. of latitude to its destination. This would have brought it, when turned into the later St. Augutine—Pensacola Highway, to the country south of Tallahassee, where later writers have reported noting the road. The map in this work shows the 80th degree of latitude some twenty miles further north than it actually is. and this has to be taken into account in locating the road as described by later writers.

Map of East and West Florida, 1763, Map number fmc0268, –State Library of Florida

OK, that is confusing enough. The Rio de St. Juan mentioned appears to be today’s St. Johns River. Maybe it meant northwest of St. Augustine, since southwest makes no sense.

Roberts’ quote is from pages 14-15 of An account of the first discovery, and natural history of Florida, by William Roberts, 1763, which is the book in which the 1763 map was published, shortly after the Spanish ceded Florida to Great Britain. That book is available various places; the copy I used is from archive.org.

They key may be in the previous paragraph, on Roberts page 14. (The oddly-placed letters looking like f are usually actually old-style long letters s; West modernized them, but I have not.)

APALACHE or Ogelagena river enters the bay of Apalache about forty miles to the eastward of Apalachicola river, and rifes above 130 miles from the fea, in the confines of Georgia. It is not known to receive any river of note in all its courfe, till near the bay, one confiderable river unites with it. This is a very fine river, and its entrance forms a large bay, which has fome fhallows and rocks, ftretching out from the land ; but in the middle there is five fathom water. The courfe into the mouth of this river is N. and within is a good harbour. ‘This place lies N. ¼ Wefterly from the Tortugas, and in the paffage is found all the way navigable foundings. A trade is carried on between this place and the Havana by fmall craft. On the firft of thefe rivers are the Yapalage, Capola, Ajpalaga and St Juan, and on the other Ocon and Ayavala. On the weft of the river is fituated the town of St. Mark de Apalache, from whence the bay alfo derives its name. This, by fome geographers, is very improperly called Santa Maria d’ Apalachia ; it is an old fettlement, and ftands exactly in the fame place that Garcilaffo de la Vega fixes the Port d’ Auté. It was formerly very confiderable, but the Englifh from Carolina having taken, and, in a great meafure, deftroyed it in the year 1704, it never fince has recovered its priftine ftate, tho’ the Spaniards often endeavoured to re-eftablifh it. The fort is built on a little eminence, furrounded by marfhes, fituated on the forks of the-two rivers; and at about two leagues diftance from the fort, there is on this river a village of Apalachian Indians, called Santo Juan, as alfo fome others in the neighbourhood. The governour of Santo Marco is under the command of the governour of St. Auguftine, receiving his infiructions in any extraordinary affair either civil or military. The country is beautiful, being well fupplied with wood and water; and we are alfo informed the country becomes more fertile the higher you advance into it.

St. Juan River in William Roberts, An account of the first discovery, and natural history of Florida, 1763
PDF

This St Juan River is different from the Rio de Sⁿ Juan shown on the east coast, which is today’s St. Johns River.

So maybe today’s Suwannee River is that one coming down under the E from the swamp, past the town of St. Juan.

But back to Roberts, this time quoting William Bartram:

The next traveler through north Florida to report upon this road was William Bartram. who traversed this section of Florida in 1774-75, and published in 1791 a very full and interesting account of the natural history and antiquities thereof. From his work we take the following account of this highway:

“We at last bid adieu to the magnificent plains of Alachua, entered the pine forests, and soon fell into the old Spanish highway, from St. Augustine across the isthmus of Florida, to St. Mark’s in the Bay of Apalache. Its course and distance from east to west is, from St. Augustine to Fort Picolata on the River St. Juan, twenty-seven miles; thence across the river to the Poopoa Fort, three miles; thence to the Alachua Savanna, forty-five miles; thence to Talahasochte on the River Little St. Juan, twenty-seven miles; thence down this river to St. Mark’s, thirty miles; the whole distance from St. Augustine to St. Mark’s, one hundred and eighty miles. But that road having been unfrequented for many years past, since the Creeks subdued the remnant tribes of the ancient Floridians and drove the Spaniards from their settlements in East Florida into St. Augustine, which effectually cut off their communication between that garrison and St. Mark’s; this ancient highway is grown up in many places with trees and shrubs, but yet has left so deep a track on the surface of the earth that it may be traced for ages yet to come.”

William Bartram in The Old Spanish Trail, A Historical Sketch, by G. M. West, 1920

If Talahasochte is Tallahassee, south down the River Little St. Juan to St. Marks would indicate that river is what we know as the St. Marks River.

Let’s fast-forward to the 1776 Map of the Southern British Colonies in America we previously published.

Little St. Juan River and Amasura River in Map of the Southern British Colonies in America, 1776

The Okefenokee Swamp is marked in 1776 as the “Great Swamp of Owaquaphenoga”. That’s almost the same name as in 1763, except without the final letter w. But it does not extend as far west on the 1776 map.

Running down from west of the swamp is the clearly marked St. Marks River.

There’s a Little S. Juan River (aka Seguano), but this time it’s east of the St. Marks River.

So apparently Little San Juan River got used for two different rivers over time.

My best guess is that on the 1763 map, the Suwannee is actually the “Carolinian River, the course of which has not been ascertained, but there is good reason to suppose that it runs a south course into the Rio Amasura.”

Well, that speculation was incorrect. The River Amasura is shown on the 1776 map, south of the R. St. Juan. It’s still not clear what the Amasura is. The Cayo [de] Anclote is next to it on both maps, so maybe Rio Amasura is the Anclote River.

A General Map of the Southern British Colonies in America 1776

Anyway, I’m thinking that if the Suwannee River is on the 1776 map, it’s the Carolinian River.

And its tributaries the Santa Fe, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha Rivers are not shown at all.

What do you think?

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

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