History of Leon County, Florida

The History of Leon County, Florida is a varied history of human habitation extending from 12,000 years ago to present. This includes Paleoindians, the Apalachee, the Seminole Indians, the British, Spanish, colonial Americans, and slaves.

Leon County, like most of North America, supported a variety of ancient and now extinct animals as far back as 33 million years ago. There are no fossils of dinosaurs in Florida. Prior to the Miocene, Florida was a submerged carbonate platform essentially cut off from the continent by the Gulf Trough. When this trough filled with sediments during the Eocene—Miocene, the carbonate Florida Platform collected sediments and became exposed allowing flora and fauna to take hold. Proto dogs and bear-dogs, along with large cats and other carnivores migrated to the peninsula following their prey of ancient ruminants and deer-like mammals.

Florida's human occupation, as with that of America, are divided into Paleoindian, Archaic, Woodland, Mississippian, and Protohistoric periods. Exceptions are the Protohistoric period, the others are often divided into Early, Middle and Late subperiods and further divided by the term "culture" within the subperiods.

What is now Leon County was occupied by Paleoindians or Clovis culture 12,000 years ago (Upper Paleolithic period). These hunter-gatherer tribes lived in what is now Leon County near water sources where water was shared with animals which outlived many of the aforementioned predators. Animals such as Ancient bison, Mastodon, Ice Age camel, Giant ground sloth, Saber-toothed Tiger, Columbian Mammoth, Equus, Short-faced bear, and American lion would frequent these areas.

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