Fort King was originally built in 1827 after a treaty was signed with the Seminole Tribe that required them to remain on land south of the fort and white settlers to remain north of the fort. Over time, however, the fort became less about keeping the peace and more about subduing the Seminoles, led by renowned war leader Osceola.

Eventually, after the U.S. government decided to renege on its treaty with the Seminoles and, instead, move them to what is now Oklahoma, hostilities ensued and in 1836 war broke out.

Fort King, however, was more than just a military garrison. Because of its central location, the Army built roads like spokes on a wheel to all parts of Florida — Tampa, Palatka and Jacksonville among them — making the fort the military and strategic center of early Florida.

Eventually the Seminoles would be defeated, the Army would vacate Fort King and the state would give it to a newly established Marion County to use as its first courthouse.