The Battle of Olustee
Florida’s Largest Civil War Battle
More than a quarter of the men who fought there were dead, wounded, captured or missing by nightfall.
On the afternoon of February 20, 1864, more than ten thousand soldiers fought in the open pine flatwoods east of Lake City. By dark, more than a quarter of them were dead, wounded, captured or missing. It was the largest battle ever fought in Florida, and the Union casualty rate, about 34 percent, was high for an engagement of its size. It decided who would control Florida’s interior for the rest of the war. It is also remembered for the service of three regiments of Black soldiers and for the killing of wounded and captured Black Union soldiers that historical accounts document in its aftermath.
Why the Union Invaded Florida
In early February 1864 Major General Quincy Gillmore, commanding the Union Department of the South, sent Brigadier General Truman Seymour to occupy Jacksonville. Troops landed on February 7, and about 5,500 of them later marched inland. In a letter of January 31, Gillmore listed three aims: opening an outlet for Florida’s products, cutting off Confederate beef supplies and recruiting soldiers for his Black regiments.
Confederate Brigadier General Joseph Finegan had only about five hundred men at Lake City at first, but reinforcements from Georgia and South Carolina were on the way.
Two Armies Meet in the Pines
By February 20 the forces were roughly equal, about 5,500 Union troops against 5,000 to 5,400 Confederates. Finegan had chosen a defensive position near Olustee Station, with Ocean Pond on one flank and a swamp on the other. The fighting began in the early afternoon when Georgia troops under Brigadier General Alfred Colquitt moved forward to meet the Union column.
Seymour fed his regiments into the fight piecemeal, and each new unit met concentrated fire on narrow ground. Both sides ran short of ammunition. The Confederate line held until cartridges arrived from Olustee Station, then advanced as the Union left broke.
The Black Soldiers of Olustee
Three Black regiments fought for the Union: the 54th Massachusetts, already famous for its assault on Fort Wagner, the 8th United States Colored Troops and the 35th United States Colored Troops. The 8th, which had not finished its training, held the Union left and lost about 310 of roughly 550 men. The 35th lost about 230 and the 54th about 86. Together the three regiments account for about a third of the Union casualties. A Confederate soldier of the 19th Georgia wrote home that day that the Black troops “fought well.”
Historical accounts document the killing of wounded and captured Black Union soldiers following the Battle of Olustee. The extent of these killings and the circumstances surrounding individual incidents remain subjects of historical investigation.
The sources differ. Brigadier General John P. Hatch wrote in September 1864 that “the most of the wounded colored men were murdered on the field.” The American Battlefield Trust writes that Confederate troops did not massacre wounded Black prisoners but killed a few Black wounded soldiers. About seventy Black soldiers were taken prisoner and sent to Andersonville. No order about the treatment of Black prisoners has been identified in the sources consulted, which is a limit of those sources and not a finding either way.
Retreat and Cost
Seymour ordered a withdrawal in late afternoon, and the 54th Massachusetts and 35th USCT helped cover the retreat. Most of his force reached Jacksonville by February 22. Of about 5,500 Union troops, 1,861 were casualties: 203 killed, 1,152 wounded and 506 captured or missing. Confederate losses were 946. These are estimates, and troop strengths vary by source.
What Olustee Decided
The Confederate victory stopped the Union advance and preserved Confederate control of the interior and of the routes that carried Florida cattle to armies farther north. Union forces stayed consolidated around Jacksonville for the rest of the war, and the effort to organize a loyal state government did not succeed. Olustee did not decide the war itself, and some historians judge its human cost large in relation to its strategic value.
Olustee Battlefield Today
Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park lies in Baker County along U.S. Highway 90. The monument was dedicated on October 23, 1912, making it the state’s first historic site. The early memorial, led by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, long told mainly the Confederate side, and the story of the Black soldiers is a more recent part of how the site is interpreted.
Quick Facts
Date
February 20, 1864
Location
Pine flatwoods near Olustee Station and Ocean Pond, Baker County
Union commanders
Brig. Gen. Truman Seymour; expedition under Maj. Gen. Quincy Gillmore
Confederate commanders
Brig. Gen. Joseph Finegan, with Brig. Gen. Alfred Colquitt on the field
Forces
About 5,500 Union; 5,000–5,400 Confederate
Black regiments
54th Massachusetts, 8th USCT and 35th USCT
Union casualties
1,861, about 34 percent of the force
Confederate casualties
946, about 18–19 percent of the force
Outcome
Confederate victory; Union forces fell back to Jacksonville
Park monument
Dedicated October 23, 1912
Did You Know?
- Olustee is sometimes called the Battle of Ocean Pond, after a nearby lake.
- The 35th USCT was redesignated on February 8, 1864, so many accounts still use its earlier name, the 1st North Carolina Colored Volunteers.
- Olustee Battlefield is considered Florida’s first state historic site.
Vocabulary
Piecemeal: a few units at a time rather than all together.
Casualties: soldiers killed, wounded, captured or missing.
Flatwoods: level, open pine forest with sandy soil, common in Florida.
Discussion Questions
1. Why do historians describe the sources on the killing of Black soldiers after Olustee as differing, and what makes such evidence hard to weigh?
2. How did the ground and the supply of ammunition shape the outcome of the battle?
Related Articles
- FLH-0235 — The Battle of Natural Bridge
- FLH-0097 — Florida During the Civil War
- FLH-0100 — Florida’s Cow Cavalry
- FLH-0103 — Florida’s Unionists
- FLH-0271 — Army Beef Contracts with Florida Cattlemen
Sources
Hatch, John P. to E. A. Hitchcock, September 25, 1864; Seymour, Truman. Casualty return, February 25, 1864. Official Records, as transcribed at battleofolustee.org (transcriptions consulted; original volumes not examined).
Shackelford, Henry. Letter to his mother, February 20, 1864, as transcribed at battleofolustee.org.
Florida State Parks. Olustee Battlefield Historic State Park, “History.” floridastateparks.org
Florida Memory. State Library and Archives of Florida. Blog post on Olustee and Black soldiers, 2014. floridamemory.com
American Battlefield Trust. “Olustee Battle Facts and Summary” and “The Battle of Olustee.” battlefields.org
Olustee Battlefield Citizens Support Organization. battleofolustee.org
Copyright © 2026 Wm. E. McMullen II. All rights reserved. Published by Florida Learning Hub.