Port St. Joe History Stories By Higdon Swatts
He or She Who Kneels Before God
Can Stand Before Anyone
The Apalachicola Northern Railroad Doodlebug
The Apalachicola Northern Railroad Doodlebug with its home train station depot located in Port St. Joe. FL, ran in the 1930s, 1940s, and early 1950s before discontinuing service on July 31st, 1951. The daily train would leave in late afternoons on its route to Apalachicola, Sumatra, Wilma, Vilas, Telogia, Hosford, and Chattahoochee (River Junction), continuing on to its final destination, Climax, GA, arriving around midnight. The train would then be turned around at Climax for its return trip to Port St. Joe. One interesting fact is that the returning train, once below Chattahoochee, would stop along the way to pick up tobacco workers during the early morning hours and give them rides to various tobacco farms where they were employed to pick tobacco in the area around Hardaway. Once aboard the train, the Train Conductor would collect a nominal passage fee from the tobacco workers. Continuing on its return trip, the Doodlebug would normally arrive at its home station depot in Port St. Joe right on schedule, which was around noontime. The Doodlebug also delivered mail along its route as well as salted down fish and oysters to northern cities along with small freight items for its affiliate, REA Railway Express. The REA had a freight office in St. Joe on Reid Avenue, with daily freight deliveries by truck to local businesses as well as home deliveries.
Port St. Joe Mobile Home Park History
Port St. Joe Mobile Home Park History
During early 1952, St. Joe Paper Company began Construction of its Port St. Joe Corrugated Plant, which was one of the soon-to-be 16 box plants to be built in other parts of the United States as well as three plants in Ireland, and one in England. For the Port St. Joe Plant, Tidewater Construction Company was selected to be the lead contractor for the project.
With the many construction workers moving into the area for an extended period of time, the City of Port St. Joe found it necessary to provide some sort of temporary housing for these workers. With the help of St. Joe Paper Company, the City of Port St. Joe decided to build a mobile home park. This park was located on the corner of Garrison Avenue and Highway 71 (Cecil G. Costin Sr. Blvd). This location is where the present Port St. Joe Post Office is located today. The park had entrances off Highway 71 as well as Garrison and also had its own laundry mat. The mobile home park remained in place for several years while other expansion projects at the mill followed the completion of the box plant. In a few short years after the projects were completed, the mobile home park was declared no longer necessary, dismantled, and removed. Not long after that, the City passed an ordinance prohibiting mobile homes to be located within the City limits. Small mobile home parks were established in the Ward Ridge, Oak Grove, and Highland View communities which were not incorporated into the City Limits of Port St. Joe at the time.
The First Annual Gulf County Fair...
The year was 1949 and I had just turned eight ( years old in July.
There had been a lot of excitement leading up to what would become the first Gulf County Fair. It would open on October 17th and close on October 22, 1949. The location of the Fair was on The Corner of Reid Avenue and Fouth (4th) Street) and extended over to Williams Avenue. The Fair was sponsored by the Willis V. Rowan Post 116, of the American Legion. The Post Commander was W. P. "Pete" Comforter. Mrs. Madaleine Whitaker of the American Legion Auxillary was appointed as General Manager of the Gulf County Fair Executive Board of Directors. The Board was made up of nine appointees in addition to Mrs. Whitaker. They included Mr. T. M. Snchneider, Mr. W. S. Smith, Mr. Silas R. (Mickey) Stone, Mr. W. A. Roberts, Mrs. P. G. Hart, Mr. Ralph Rich, Mr. Victor Anderson, and Mr. Arthur Lupton.
In addition to the many carnival rides, there were a host of kiddy games as well as games enjoyed by the adults too.
Some of the Home Demonstration Exhibits included the Home Canning Department. There were Canned Meats, Canned Fruits, Jellies, Preserves, Canned Vegetables, and Pickles. Then there was the Handicrafts Department which exhibited Crocheting, Tufting, Rugs, Embroidery, Pillowcases, Vanity Sets, Quilts, Fabric Stencil Work, and Applique. The Clothing Department featured Adult Garments, Children's Garments, Bedspreads, and Tablecloths. If that wasn't enough, the Horticulture Department displayed Annuals, Bulbs, Foliage Plants, Shrubs, Fruit Trees, Wild Flowers, Vines, Cut Flowers, and Blooming plants.
The Agricultural Exhibit included Corn, Oaks, Rye, Peanuts, Pecans, Home-cured Meats, Fresh Vegetables, Fresh Fruits, Hay, Sweet Potatoes, Sugar Cane, and various Dairy Products.
The Livestock Exhibit featured Beef Cattle, Dairy Cattle, Swine, Horses, Donkeys, Chickens, Turkeys, Ducks, Geese, Rabbits and Pigeons.
Yes, I was there and I had fun fun fun!
The Pier on Mexico Beach, Florida
Back in the 1950s, George G. Tapper of Port St. Joe, owned a pier on the beautiful Gulf of Mexico, located at Mexico Beach, Florida, most likely in the same location as the present Mexico Beach pier. The pier was known as the Piertel (for pier motel). The Pier had four (4) motel rooms up front, a restaurant, and a bar with a dance floor. Just past the restaurant area, there was an area for sports fishing. There was a passageway through the restaurant that led to the fishing pier. The dance floor had a clear glass brick floor that was lighted from underneath. The restaurant was well known for its delicious seafood as well as other specialties and for its nightclub atmosphere which attracted patrons from many miles away who came to enjoy the amenities of this very unique place. Underaged children were not allowed in the bar or the dining area unless they were accompanied by their parents or other responsible adults. Over the years, the Piertel was pounded by rough weather and was eventually totally destroyed by a hurricane that came in the late 1950s. It was never rebuilt. It has been many years since I have heard anyone speak of the Piertel but I can tell you that it was an impressive landmark, that has remained in this writer's memory for more than 7 decades.
More To Come
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