Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mose #BlackHistory

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  Fort Mose (pronounced "Moh-say") was the first free black settlement legally sanctioned in what would become the United States.The community began when Florida was a Spanish territory.
 
 Incoming freedom seekers were recognized as free, taken into the Spanish militia, and placed into service at the Gracia Real de Santa Teresa de Mosé military fort north of St. Augustine, which was established in 1738 by the Colonial Governor, Manuel de Montiano. The military leader at the fort was a Creole man of African origin, who was baptized as Francisco Menendez by the Spanish Fort Mose (pronounced "Moh-say") was the first free black settlement legally sanctioned in what would become the United States. Word of the settlement reached the South Carolina and Georgia to the north, attracting escaping slaves. It helped to set off the Stono Rebellion in September 1739, led by slaves "fresh from Africa" in South Carolina, who were more likely to revolt. During the Stono revolt, several dozen blacks tried unsuccessfully to reach Spanish Florida.