SW092 Honored History Storyteller James Bullock Assesses Context Behind Black Seminole Interpreter Abraham’s Controversial Counsel

Independent Historian and Storyteller James Bullock portrays Black Seminole sense bearer Abraham at the capture site of Osceola under a white flag of truce. (Courtesy images)

 

Living historians portray many personas, some historical, some not. The Seminole Wars podcast has invited a number of such reenactors onto this program. Their main task is interpretation without judgement as well as to "fill in the blanks" the history books don't cover. For instance, the Black Seminole translator Abraham enjoys a somewhat checkered reputation. Was he double-dealing the Seminoles in the agreements he brokered with the U.S. Army? What might have been his motivations for acting as he did? Should we analyze his life and reputation based on these key decision points? Do we moderns judge him by today’s standards versus those of Abraham’s time?

To examine this, we are honored to chat with the distinguished independent historian James Bullock. Bullock is an A.S.C.A.P writer and publisher, playwright, and tour guide.  At public events, he has portrayed Abraham, one of many personas the professional actor takes on. James Bullock is the recipient of the 2006 Interpretive Guide Award from the Castillo de San Marcos, U.S. Park Service.  He is also the author of the play Freedom Road.  He has been a speaker for the U.S. Army Reserve and Florida National Guard and has led tours and presentations at Fort Mose for various Florida schools and St. Louis Urban League.  Bullock is also a re-enactor in the Flight to Freedom Program, National Park Service.  He has acted in community theatre in various plays including Majigeen, To Kill a Mockingbird, Omnium Gatherium, Of Mice and Men, and A Raisin in the Sun.

And today he discusses Abraham in historical context.

 

 

1880s illustration of Abraham (Above). (Above and below) Army receipt invoices paying black interpreters for their services. 

 

 

Host Patrick Swan is a board member with the Seminole Wars Foundation. He is a combat veteran and of the U.S. Army, serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, and Kosovo, and at the Pentagon after 9/11. A military historian, he holds masters degrees in Public History, Communication, and Homeland Security, and is a graduate of the US Army War College with an advanced degree in strategic studies. This podcast is recorded at the homestead of the Seminole Wars Foundation in Bushnell, Florida. 

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