No Man’s Land - Outlaws, Bandits, and Trouble in Louisiana’s Wild West

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Host: Kyle Crosby
Camera/editor: Daniel Sheridan
Transcript:
We are in an area once called No Man’s Land, where an insane amount of banditry would occur in the early 1800s. Spain had control of Texas while Louisiana was under the French flag, and for many years, Spain was concerned about French encroachment.
Around 1734, the French moved their post at Natchitoches from the east side to the west side of the Red River into Spanish territory.
In 1753, the Spanish governor in Texas determined that the French had encroached to the west of a small creek that was the former boundary called the Arroyo Hondo in western Natchitoches Parish. In 1764, the boundary dispute became temporarily pushed to the side when France ceded its Louisiana colony to Spain, but the transfer was made without resolving the earlier border dispute, which did not seem significant under the circumstances.
On October 1, 1800 a secret treaty was signed called the Third Treaty of San Ildefonso, which formally transferred Louisiana back to France. The terms of the treaty did not specify the boundaries of the territory being returned though. You can see where this would become an issue when 3 years later, in 1803, Louisiana was sold to the US for $15 million.
The United States claimed the same boundaries France had claimed before the transfer to Spain, which was to the Sabine River. Spanish claims were the same as before - to the Arroyo Hondo in Natchitoches Parish and, south of the Kisatchie Hills, to the Calcasieu River.
Negotiations to resolve the dispute completely broke down in 1805 when Spain severed diplomatic relations with the United States. From 1805 until 1806, there was continual skirmishing, both verbal and military, around the Sabine River, and rumors began circulating that both sides were funneling troops into the area and were preparing for war.
Luckily, that wasn’t true as neither side wanted to go to war over this dispute, so in order to stop any skirmish from getting out of hand, the two military commanders in the area came together for a meeting. U.S. General James Wilkinson and Spanish Lt. Col. Simón de Herrera, signed an agreement declaring the disputed territory called the Neutral Ground until the boundary could be determined by the respective governments. The agreement was not a treaty and was not ratified by either government, although it was largely respected. Even with this agreement, the boundaries of the Neutral Ground were not entirely specified.
The Arroyo Hondo and Calcasieu River were the eastern boundary, with the Sabine River serving as the western boundary. It included portions of the present-day Louisiana parishes of De Soto, Sabine, Natchitoches, Vernon, Rapides, Beauregard, Allen, Calcasieu, Jefferson Davis, and Cameron.
The area covered by the agreement was declared off-limits to soldiers of both countries. The agreement also stipulated that no settlers would be permitted in the Neutral Ground, so of course, settlers from New Spain and the United States territory began to move in. Some of these settlers would form the beginnings of Louisiana’s Redbone race of people that will be explained in more detail in a separate video.
This lawless area quickly became known as No Man’s Land and would also attract runaway slaves, exiles, outlaws, deserters, political refugees, fortune seekers, and a variety of criminals. Eventually, the outlaws organized to the degree that they manned outposts and organized spies in order to better steal from travelers and avoid the American and Spanish military. In 1810 and again in 1812 the two governments sent joint military expeditions into the area to expel these outlaws.
The Adams-Onís Treaty in 1821, recognized the U.S. claim, setting the border at the Sabine River, and Spain surrendered any claim to the area.
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#historyfacts #louisiana #history

[@jakeb70634]

Growing up here, there is a lot of interesting history here. Have you ever done a video on Grabow, Louisiana?

[@jakeb70634]

I don't believe we were not part of the Louisiana purchase either.

[@LouisianaDread]

I haven’t but I will add it to my list. It’s in the No Man’s Land area

[@nichmon3221]

"Kiss-a-tach-ee"?! Does he mean "Kisatchie"?

[@LouisianaDread]

I misspoke, it happens

[@alexmartin4772]

Really cool. I heard about that treaty between France and Spain. I also heard that Napoleon went behind Spain's back by giving Louisiana to the US because he was dealing with The Hatian Revolution. I think the reason why Spain felt betrayed is because Nepoleon promised that he wouldn't sell Louisiana to another territory. But I guess that wasn't America's problem because they didn't hear about it until after the purchase of 1803.

[@LouisianaDread]

Word traveled so slowly back then. It must’ve been incredibly frustrating.

[@jhare4099]

So Segway into the story of the town of Zwolle.

[@LouisianaDread]

We will be out in a wile in august to tell that story! Keep an eye out for us!

[@SquareAmps]

Awesome! Any book recommendations for a deep dive into sabine free state history?

[@LouisianaDread]

None that I can remember, but I’ll let you know if I come across some.

[@c.w.johnsonjr6374]

The The Neutral Zone by Don C. Marler and No Man's Land: A History of El Camino Real (Louisiana Parish Histories Series) by Louis Nardini are available

[@mconsiglio5]

yeahhh

[@LouisianaDread]

🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼