We enjoyed a complimentary breakfast at the Tifton KOA. Tifton
was founded in 1872 by a marine engineer turned lumberman-entrepreneur, Henry
Harding Tift, who named the town for his uncle Nelson Tift, a businessman,
judge, and congressman. The clearing of timberlands as a result of lumbering
left space for the raising of peaches, grapes, cotton, tobacco, and sheep.
Agriculture became, and remains today, a staple of the area's growth. The
fertility of the land attracted persons from all over the country; even in the
1800s Tifton possessed an opera house, a daily newspaper, and an appreciation
for education and the arts.
Tifton's
early prominence also stemmed from its location at the convergence of the
Brunswick and Albany Railroad and two old pioneer trails. The junction at
Tifton of north-south Highway 41 and east-west Highway 82, followed by the
coming of Interstate 75 in the early 1960s and the expansion of Highway 82 into
the Corridor Z–South Georgia Parkway, has cemented Tifton's place as a
transportation center. In its early days Tifton was known as "the Gate
City" and served as the port of entry for regions to the south. A grower
and shipper of many varieties of vegetable and fruits, Tifton and the Tift area
have now been dubbed "Plant Center of the World."
As we
drove through Tifton, we saw these colorful painted bulldog statues along the
road side and in front of businesses. We learned "Call the Dawgs to
Tifton" is an ongoing initiative of the University of Georgia Tifton
Campus Agribusiness Club and Collegiate FFA in celebration of the 100th
anniversary of the University of Georgia's Tifton Campus.
Some of
the first settlers in the Alapaha, Georgia area were Irish immigrants, workers
from the railroad. The Town of Alapaha was incorporated in 1881 on the site of
a Seminole village with the same name. Its name is believed to be the word
Timucuan Indians used for “bear house.”
The
Alapaha Colored School, built in 1924, was the only school for African-American
children in Alapaha and the northern part of Berrien County from 1924-1954. In
1945, an addition was added to the rear of the building. The school closed in
1954 when Berrien County consolidated the African-American community schools
into one school, Nashville High and Elementary School. It was added to the
National Register of Historic Places on July 11, 2002. It is one of the last
surviving two-story wood-frame African-American school buildings in Georgia.
In Willacoochee
Georgia, the old Main St runs next to US 82. It was the first town chartered in
the area that was to be known later as Atkinson County. An act of the
legislature on November 12, 1889, set the limits of the town as “one-half mile
each way from the Brunswick and Western Railroad depot in said town.” Willacoochee
is an Indian name generally believed to mean “Home of the Wildcat.”
Prior to being known as Willacoochee, the
town was named Danielsville after a family residing there. The first permanent
settlers in Willacoochee included the families of Elijah Paulk, DE Gaskins,
Aaron Moore, Henry Peterson, and BF Summerlin. BF Summerlin constructed a
large, wooden two-story hotel and served meals for .25 cents.
He maintained a stable of good horses, with
buggies and drivers that were available for hire by the traveling public.
Agriculture
and agri-business was the primary industry in Willacoochee until the
1990s.
The four-laning of U.S. Highway
82, which bisects the City of Willacoochee, transformed this corridor into a
major connection between Interstates 75 and 95 thus jump-starting the City’s
industrial development.
Over the past
decade, Willacoochee has experienced tremendous growth in industry.
In Pearson
Georgia, we turned off US 82 onto 441. We have been on US 82 since Lubbock
Texas, that’s 1,227 miles and 5 states of driving on US 82. Pearson has a main
street that runs parallel to US 82. Pearson was founded in 1875 as a depot on
the Brunswick and Western Railroad. It was incorporated as a town in 1890 and
in 1916 as a city. The community was named after Benajah Pearson, a veteran of
the Second Seminole War.
1920
Atkinson County completed the Atkinson County courthouse in Pearson, the county
seat. This has neoclassical revival style. It was renovated during 1980
Downtown
Homerville is the county seat of Clinch County, Georgia. The heart of downtown
is located at the intersection of US Highways 84 East and 441, both of which
lead travelers to the three entrances of the Okefenokee Swamp. The Okefenokee
Swamp is considered to be one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Georgia and is
the largest "blackwater" swamp in North America. In 2021, The
Homerville Main Street Program received a Vibrant Communities Grant from the
Georgia Council for the Arts for two art installations downtown. Local
Metalwork Artist Ron Morgan created two iron sculptures representing indigenous
flowers found in the Okefenokee Swamp. Sheree Baldree painted the
installations.
Some of
the most distinctive-looking plants in the swamp are the pitcher plants, found
growing in clumps around the swamp. The Sarracenia genus of plants has eight
species, seven of which are found only in the southeastern United States. The
pitcher plants hold small pools of water inside their long stalks, or
"pitchers." Insects are attracted inside the pitchers, sometimes by
the odor of decay or sweetness, and are forced downward by pointing hairs
inside the lining of the plant. Trapped inside the pitcher's small pool where a
narcotic helps drown them, bacteria then decompose the soft parts of the
insect, and enzymes convert the protein into usable nitrogen. Slicing open the
tube of the pitcher will reveal the black skeleton remains of many insects.
Three
varieties of pitcher plants are found in the swamp: the golden trumpet pitcher,
Sarracenia flava; the hooded pitcher plant, Sarracenia minor; and the parrot
pitcher plant, Sarracenia psittacina. The golden trumpet pitcher is recognized
by its more open top. The hooded pitcher has a definite curving top, sometimes
with small, transparent windows on the back of its hood which help trap insects
inside the pitcher. Flying insects are attracted to the windows where they
spend their last hours. The parrot pitcher has smaller, reclining pitchers. All
have a remarkable drooping flower that helps attract insects.
Fargo
is one of Georgia's oldest settlements.
It was established by the timber industry. Fargo's first school was
built around 1898.
The present school
site was erected in 1954. Sawmills have always played a large part in Fargo's
economy.
St. Regis Paper Company
established a large chip mill in Fargo in 1959, which closed in the 1980s. Stephen
C. Foster State Park located in Fargo, Georgia is the local entrance for Clinch
County. The Suwanee River Visitors Center opened on the banks of the Suwanee
River in recent years, and the Suwanee River Eco-Lodge and Conference Center
opened in 2010.
We
crossed from Georgia into FL, with a big sigh … it was April 26
th,
when we left Florida for our “2021 Summer of Fun!”
In Lake
City Florida, we turned off US 441 onto FL 100. We have never traveled on FL
100 before. Lake City figured prominently in American Civil War history. In the
days before many white settlers came to the area, Lake City was a Seminole
Indian settlement known as Alligator Village. The first white settlers built a
town next door and named it Alligator. The city incorporated in 1859 and
changed its name to Lake City in recognition of the many local lakes that
include Lake DeSoto, Alligator Lake, Watertown Lake and Lake Harper.
The only
significant battle in Florida during the Civil War was at Olustee, near Lake
City. The Yankees lost 1,861 men killed, wounded or missing, and the
Confederates lost 946 men killed, wounded or missing. Every year a reenactment
of the battle is staged in Lake City, and a festival and other celebrations
take place in conjunction with the reenactment. After the Civil War, Lake City
Florida began to develop and became an important railroad town. Tracks
criss-cross Lake City from several railroads, including the Florida Railroad
Line, Seaboard Air Line, Georgia Southern Line and the Atlantic Coast Line.
A
little-known state senator, Lawton Chiles, started a 1,000-mile walk across
Florida. The trip - that earned him the nickname “Walkin’ Lawton” - would take
him to the US Capitol and later the governor's mansion in Tallahassee. This
famous journey on Mar. 17, 1970 began north of Pensacola, in the small Town of
Century. Today, these signs reminds residents and visitors of the campaign trek
that propelled Chiles into the US Senate. This historic marker denoting “The
Lawton Chiles Trail” is located on FL 100.
Lulu
began when the Georgia Southern Florida Railroad came through the area and
Robert Gillen, an original 1869 settler, convinced them to put a station there.
The town was first named Hagen but mail got confused with another town in
Alachua County called Hague. Walter Gillen was the possible Postmaster renamed
the town Lulu after his girlfriend Lula. Also has a Slave Cemetery on FL 100.
This cemetery is for Slaves and decedents of Slaves.
The City
of Lake Butler is named after Robert Butler, who was an American military
officer and acting governor of East Florida between July 10, 1821 and July 11,
1821, after Florida was ceded to the US by Spain. Mr. Butler was named Acting
Governor of East Florida on July 10, 1821, but he was in charge for only two
days, until the arrival of John R. Bell. The City of Lake Butler was
incorporated 126 years ago in 1893. Lake Butler is in the triangle of the major
cities of Jacksonville, Gainesville, and Lake City. As a small, rural,
agricultural community, it is the county seat for Union County. The bright and
cozy museum tucked away on the second floor overlooking W. Main Street offers
slices of Union County’s history in its most personal forms. The historical
threads are the old documents, books, family photos and keepsakes rescued from
old trunks, dresser drawers and attics and donated to the Union County
Historical Society. Members of the society have worked over the years to weave
those threads together to tell the story of the county and its people. Just
walking into the bright room with its shiny oak floors is taking a step into
the county’s history.
We arrived
at Mike Roess Gold Head Branch State Park, one of Florida's first state parks,
the park was developed on a 600-acre site by the Civilian Conservation Corps
during the 1930s. The extraordinary craftsmanship of the CCC is still evident
today.
You can
hike and wildlife viewing along the park's nature trails and a 5.44-mile
stretch of the Florida National Scenic Trail. Or you can swim or fish in Little
Lake Johnson or spend a lazy afternoon canoeing. If you happen to be seeking
privacy, quiet, and access to a lot of hiking, then Mike Roess Gold Head Branch
State Park is where you want to go. Gold Head is located on 2,300 acres of
rolling sandhills on the North Central Ridge of Florida with one of the few
remaining examples of an old growth stand of longleaf pines.
A steep
head ravine with seepage springs forms Gold Head Branch and bisects the park.
Marshes, lakes and scrub provide habitat for a wide variety of wildlife.
If
you’re quietly enjoying the scene, it’s likely you will see deer. If you’re
lucky, you might spot a fox, turkey, woodpecker, or even a bald eagle. Whether
you see wildlife or not, you will almost never hear a plane, and you will most
certainly never hear a motorized boat. When you’re here, you are completely one
with nature. You can kick back and simply enjoy the birds and the breeze.
#TwoLaneAdventures
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