Of all the forgotten tales brought back to life in this column, this one may be the most obscure of all. You’ll have to dig deep into the history books to find it. Though forgotten today, it played a key role in helping decide which nation would control what’s now the southeastern United States.

And a single cannon shot determined it.

It all started during the tangled international knot that was the War of 1812. While we were battling Britain, Britain was also battling pesky Napoleon on the European continent. The Brits needed all the men they could get for their military. So in 1814, they revived the Corps of Colonial Marines.

Basically, England extended the following offer to African-American slaves in the southern U.S.: fight with us, and when the war is over, you can live in freedom

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