On December 10 th , 1810, using 5 gunboats from the navy and 450 soldiers
from the army, the United States occupied West Florida, from the Mississippi River to the Pearl
River, ending the independence of the Republic of West Florida.
On April 10th , 1812, the Congress approved the annexation of West Florida to the State of
Louisiana. The US occupation of this part of West Florida signaled the beginning of America’s
territorial expansion in West Florida and the end of Spain’s colonial rule.