This post will explore a part of our panhandle history that is often not thought about when considering our ancestors’ lives. Acute illnesses were ever present for our ancestors. From Yellow Fever to Tuberculosis to Rheumatic Fever to Pneumonia, our ancestors struggled with these diseases because there wasn’t a good understanding of how they occurred … Continue reading Malaria in the Florida Panhandle
In Celebration of Father’s Day
This coming Sunday is Father’s Day. For some reason, it never gets quite as much attention as Mother’s Day. I decided to do a video on the men of the Upper Yellow River area from 1818 on. Very much like I did for Mother’s Day and the women of Oak Grove and surrounding communities. I … Continue reading In Celebration of Father’s Day
“Welcome Awaits You in Holmes County, Florida: The Garden Spot of West Florida” – 17 May 1914
The Holmes County edition of The Pensacola Journal, dated 17 May 1914, is not only a significant part of the newspaper for that edition but a wealth of information on Holmes County in 1914. Holmes County takes up two sections of the newspaper and runs for 20 pages. Photos of homes and businesses, names of … Continue reading “Welcome Awaits You in Holmes County, Florida: The Garden Spot of West Florida” – 17 May 1914
Washington County: Highlights from the 1907 Pensacola Journal newspaper
A few months ago I was browsing early Pensacola Journal newspapers at the Chronicling America website and discovered that they would occasionally do a whole section of the paper on a Florida Panhandle county with ads and articles about the county. I quickly got sidetracked from what I had gone there to look for and … Continue reading Washington County: Highlights from the 1907 Pensacola Journal newspaper
Some Upper Yellow River Area Women Through History – A Video
Bonus April posting - The original rendition of this video was created for my Mom's 90th birthday party. I've added a number of women to the video to create a video celebrating Mother's Day. The song is Mother's Patience by RimskyMusic. If you have a documented photo of any of the women who are included without … Continue reading Some Upper Yellow River Area Women Through History – A Video
The 1870 Walton County Census: A Glimpse in Time
Have you ever been looking at a census, scanning pages for an ancestor’s name, and begin to notice a pattern that may be telling you something about that community, during that time period? I have, on a number of occasions. One of the more recent ones was when I was scanning through the 1870 Walton … Continue reading The 1870 Walton County Census: A Glimpse in Time
Keeping Warm in By-Gone Days
Most Floridians, whether native or transplant, prefer warm and/or hot weather. Most of the time, winter isn’t too bad. We get a good, low-swinging cold front in December, or sometimes November, and we get a dip or two in January and February. And then there is the Easter cold snap that those of us who … Continue reading Keeping Warm in By-Gone Days
Lois Brett Marsh Sims: Hard and Soft in a Tiny Package
Finishing up my posts on Women in the Florida panhandle for Women's History Month, I would like to introduce you to my paternal grandmother. My Florida panhandle ancestors go back to around 1820, but that is on my Mom’s side of the family. My Dad’s Florida lines began moving into Florida around 1848 and that … Continue reading Lois Brett Marsh Sims: Hard and Soft in a Tiny Package
A Woman’s Work Is Never Done
In the last post, we began talking about the histories of our female ancestors in the Florida panhandle for Women’s History Month. In this post, I want to talk about what their lives were like. Since that has changed over time, I will pick a time period of great change in the United States, and … Continue reading A Woman’s Work Is Never Done
Women in Family and Northwest Florida History
Introduction It is National Women’s History Month. For most of us, the women in our families are nearly invisible and often history is presented in a series of vignettes that leave you with the appearance that it is men that make history. But from the earliest moments of recorded history, it has been both men … Continue reading Women in Family and Northwest Florida History
