Franklin County: A Forgotten Part of Florida

In a recent drive through Florida, my wife and I stumbled into a wonderful little area on the coastal highway US 98 seemingly lost in time and still the Florida of the 'old days'. Tucked into the eastern end of the Florida 'panhandle' and about 80 miles southwest of Tallahasse, Franklin County and its coastal communities of Apalachicola, Eastpoint, Carrabelle, St. George Island, and St. Vincent Island have gloriously avoided the glitzy, crowded, 'high rise' development so common along most of Florida's coastline.

Apalachicola was founded in 1831and soon became the third largest seaport on the Gulf of Mexico, receiving the South's cotton from steamboats working the Apalachicola River and shipping it to mills around the world. By the 1880s, large lumber mills just upriver from the town were preparing cypress for shipment by ship and rail and commercial fishermen were reaping seafood and oysters from the Gulf. Apalachicola was booming and those who benefited most built many of the grand homes which today still line the town's tree lined streets. Some things are constant, though. Franklin County accounts today for almost 90% of Florida's oysters harvest and 10% of the nation's supply!