{{Short description|Capital of the short-lived Republic of East Florida}} {{About|a war fort in Alachua County, Florida|the city in Kentucky|Fort Mitchell, Kentucky|other uses|Fort Mitchell (disambiguation){{!}}Fort Mitchell}} {{Use American English|date=August 2025}} Fort Michell, located in today's Alachua County, was the capital of the short-lived Republic of East Florida during the Patriot War of 1814.
Only one building was built, a 25-foot [7 meters]-square, two-story blockhouse. It was located about one mile [1.6 km] from the city limits of modern Micanopy, Florida. Its precise location is not known.
In January 1814, a group of soldier-settlers erected a two-story blockhouse and dubbed it Fort Mitchell, after the Governor of Georgia, David Mitchell. General Buckner F. Harris declared Fort Mitchell to be the capital of the Republic of East Florida. After building the fort, a petition was drafted to the U.S. Congress asking to annex the "District of Elotchaway [Alachua] in the Republic of East Florida" (much larger than the current county) as a territory to the U.S.<ref>{{Cite web |date=1814 |title=Petition to the United States Congress Signed by 105 Citizens of the District of Elotchaway, 1814 |url=https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/339347?id=7 |access-date=May 19, 2024 |website=Florida Memory}}</ref> They also offered to send soldiers to fight the British as the War of 1812 was occurring.
The fort was abandoned by May of 1814 after Buckner was killed by Seminoles.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Fort Mitchell and the Settlement of the Alachua Country |last=Monaco |first=Chris |journal=Florida Historical Quarterly |date=July 2001 |volume=79 |issue=1 |pages=1–25}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
Category:Buildings and structures in Alachua County, Florida Category:Seminole Wars Category:Forts in Florida Category:Blockhouses Category:Pre-statehood history of Florida Category:Spanish Florida Category:Capitals of former countries