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VALLEY — There was a time when south Alabama was considered part of Florida and under the control of Spain. Later, it would become a British colony. At 3 p.m. EST (2 p.m. CST) on Sunday, Jan. 23, the Chattahoochee Valley Historical Society will be featuring this subject in a virtual meeting.

Mike Bunn, one of Alabama’s leading historians and director of the Historic Blakely State Park in Spanish Fort, Alabama, will be speaking on his most recent book, “Fourteenth Colony: The Forgotten Story of the Gulf South During America’s Revolutionary Era.”

While it is commonly known that Florida was once a Spanish colony prior to becoming a U.S. state in 1845, ownership changed hands several times between the 1740s and 1819. Under a brief period of British rule, Florida was divided into two colonies: “British West Florida” and “British East Florida.” Florida had been a U.S. territory since 1821.

Much of the focus of Mr. Bunn’s presentation will be about the British colony of West Florida. This colony once stretched from the mighty Mississippi River to the shallow bends of the Apalachicola and included portions of what is now the states of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. Bunn considers it the forgotten colony of America’s revolutionary era.

Bunn has worked with several cultural heritage organizations in the Southeast and currently serves as director of Historic Blakeley State Park in Spanish Fort. He is the co-author of several books and currently serves as editor of “Muscogiana,” the journal of the Muscogee County (Georgia) Genealogical Society. Bunn also serves as chair of the Baldwin County Historic Development Commission. Having earned an undergraduate degree from Faulkner University and two Master’s degrees from the University of Alabama, Mike and his wife Tonya live in Daphne, Alabama with their daughter Zoey.

This public discussion will be held online via ZOOM. All attendees, both CVHS members and the general public, will need to send an active email address to programs@cvhistoricalsociety.org no later than noon EST on Sunday, Jan. 23. Moderator Charles Powers will respond to each email with specific directors on how to connect prior to the 3 p.m. meeting.