An Authentic Narrative of the Seminole War and of the Miraculous Escape of Mrs. Mary Godfrey

"Set in Florida during the Second Seminole War, its hero is a black Seminole." - Women's Indian Captivity Narratives (1998)
"Mary Godfrey and her children managed to escape to a nearby forest where they hid for three days." - Slavery in Indian Country (2010)
"Contains an interesting episode in which an escaped slave aids Godfrey and her daughters." - Gale Researcher Guide for: Captivity Narratives (2018)
"A sensationalized captivity narrative." Liquid Landscape: Geography and Settlement at the Edge of Early America (2018)
"Describes the experiences of Mary Godfrey and her children during American Indian and African American Interactions." - American Indian and African American People, Communities (2004)

In 1835, Seminole raiding parties led by Chief Osceola, who claimed a right to occupy Florida lands, had begun raiding white farms and settlements in Florida, causing families to flee to forts, large towns, or out of the territory altogether.

During this time Mary Godfrey found her frontier homestead directly in the path of one raiding party, her husband having recently left to join US troops fighting the Seminoles.

The narrative describes the first moment, Godfrey became aware of her perilous situation:

"It was not until she heard the frightful yells of the approaching savages, and saw the dwellings of her nearest neighbors in flames, and the inmates flying in every direction to escape from the awful death with which they were threatened, that she was induced to follow their example; she (as the only alternative left her by which she could escape from her pursuers) was obliged to penetrate into a thick and miry swamp! In this dreary and uncomfortable retreat, the unfortunate mother found means to conceal herself..."

In 1836, Mary Godfrey published a short 20-page account of "providential interposition" and her "miraculous preservation and deliverance" from the Seminole raiding parties, with the lengthy title of: " An Authentic Narrative of the Seminole War and of the Miraculous Escape of Mrs. Mary Godfrey."

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