Professor Jasanoff has condensed the myriad monographs on what happened to the loyalist refugees after the American Revolution and combined them with the rich historical sources in British and British colonial archives to produce an entertaining and remarkable story of what happened to the unfortunate losers-Americans who refugeed from the side of American liberty to seek the protection of British strong holds, and their often frustrating efforts to reestablish careers, fortunes and families scattered by the winds of war and revolution.
Within this larger story are familiar ones of Georgia refugees who had moved to Florida only to discover that Britain had ceded Florida back to Spain and decide to relocate to the Bahamas —including many free and enslaved Africans. But there are also accounts of the fate of Native Americans who had allied with the British. There is the story of Indian fur trader and diplomat on the Creek frontier of future Georgia, George Galpin and his nemesis, the “infamous” (to Georgians) “Burnt Foot” Brown, who fled from Augusta’s zealous and tormenting patriots to form the dreaded Florida Rangers and participate in the capture of Savannah And, his organizing Creek raiders to terrorize the Georgia back-country settlers.
The cast of characters are enough to excite fresh curiosity about the Revolution, a subject which treated in any larger fashion can be a confusing and frustrating subject. These stories give human dimensions to how we view the times and the Revolution. They are, in fact essential, to genuine understanding.
The conflicted and confused status of Britain’s Indian allies as they deal with defeat and their refugee experiences also make a fascinating story. There is the surprising discovery that Creeks were considering removal to another part of the British Empire after the war. Jasanoff captures the pathetic situation of the Creeks in a comment from one of their chiefs: “We Took up the Hatchet for the English at a time we could scarce distinguish our friends from our Foes.”
Students of Georgia and South Carolina history will find the fascinating story of former slave David George, who spent time in the “multi-ethnic” sanctuary created by George Galphin at his plantation community of Silver Bluff near Augusta. Here some 90 slaves chose to flee to the British military forces advancing on Augusta, a story that would be repeated when slaves fled to the protection of the Union Army during Sherman’s “March to the Sea” in the Civil War. George’s story encompasses his establishment of the first African church in America and tells how he spread the evangelical message of the Baptists to England and Canada.
This is a book magnificent in its conceptualization, and in its realization, both of which required skill and empathy. It is especially relevant in our own age, one in which refugee populations present challenges for so many nations-and so many families.
Finally, we can thank Jasanoff for her useful bibliography that will entice others to follow up on more of the stories of “Liberty’s Exiles.”