Posted by Mike Shaffer on August 11, 2000 at 00:47:22:

In Reply to: Re: Antiques posted by Elyse on August 10, 2000 at 12:08:54:

Yes, its a safe bet LL wasn't admonishing his 1599 audience, but was, as Elyse so eloquently stated, admonishing his 20th century reading and listening audience not to engage in "pot hunting", but to "leave history where it lay". There always seems to be a dig of some sort going on in St. Augustine, Florida. Some interesting and some not so. Many seem to be discovered quite by accident, like the discovery of the site of Fort Mose several years ago. Fort Mose was one of the more interesting and exciting finds that I've read about in Florida. The discovery of the long, believed lost and first free African settlement in America, that dated back to the 17th century, was actually exciting, and of course a lucky one. The first African's to arrive in America did not step out of a slave ship in Virginia or Carolina, but arrived as artisans, seaman, navigators and adventurers as early as 1500 in company with the Spanish Conquistadors, Ponce de Leon and Cortez and even helped to explore the southwest with Panfilo de Narvaez. The skills and knowledge passed along by the Africans at Fort Mose enabled the early Spanish citizens of St Augustine to learn blacksmithing, carpentry, cattleranching and even military techniques. They formed 12 percent of the population of the St Augustine community and were given the land called Fort Mose in payment for aiding in the defence of the St Augustine community.

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