The Great FOOTBALL Clash between MALONE & MARIANNA!

 1925 Pigskin Classic Electrified Jackson County!

by Dale Cox

Legends still persist in northern Jackson County about the days one century ago when Malone High School teams dominated not just the hardwood, but the gridiron, too!

Some of them are fairly exotic: "Malone once beat Auburn University in an exhibition game!" "The Tigers were so good at football that the politicians from Marianna had their team shut down!" There are a host of others - some of them far less glorious.

The truth of the matter is that the basketball powerhouse from the peanut fields fielded such a good football team in 1925 that news of the arrival of the Tigers in Marianna to play the hometown Bulldogs drew frontpage headlines. 

The following appeared in the Marianna Times-Courier on October 1, 1925:

As promised, the game was played before the largest crowd ever to attend a sporting event in Jackson County to that date. 

It was a "3-yards and a cloud of dust" slug fest that Marianna won, 7-6.

The Battle of Fort Hughes in Bainbridge, Georgia

A Seminole War fight for survival!

by Dale Cox

The site of Fort Hughes is marked by a federal monument
placed at today's J.D. Chason Memorial Park in the 1880s.

A cloud of smoke enveloped the blufftop at Bainbridge, Georgia, 205 years ago today. Hundreds of Red Stick Creek, Seminole, and Maroon (Black Seminole) warriors exchanged fire with a detachment of soldiers in Fort Hughes, a small log stockade at today's J.D. Chason Memorial Park.

The battle started on the previous day, simultaneous with an attack by a much larger Native American army on the supply ships Little Sally and Phoebe Ann at Ocheesee Bluff, Florida, (please see The Battle of Ocheesee).

The fight at Ocheesee was part of an effort to stop supplies and communications from reaching Fort Scott, the U.S. Army headquarters on the lower Flint River. The attack on Fort Hughes, however, was an aggressive attempt to take the stockade and wipe out the soldiers defending it.

This story continues below. To enjoy a video version, click to play:

The little fort measured only 90-feet per side and was built by Lt. Col. Matthew Arbuckle to defend the Flint River crossing at Burges's Bluff (today's Bainbridge). His 300-man force was falling back from the Battle of Fowltown on November 23, 1817, with Lower Creek warriors in hot pursuit. To protect the column's rear during its slow crossing of the Flint, Arbuckle ordered his men to throw up a fort on the crest of the bluff.  He named it Fort Hughes after Aaron Hughes, a regimental musician, who was killed at Fowltown.

Fort Hughes is one of the stops on the Creek Heritage Trail.
A series of interpretive panels at J.D. Chason Memorial Park
tell the story of the fort and the Creek and Seminole Wars.

The outpost was square in design with blockhouses - two-story structures that housed soldiers and strengthened the defenses - on two diagonal corners. A section of the stockade line was discovered by archaeologist Brian Mabelitini in 2018. The excavation showed that the walls were built by digging a trench, standing posts upright in it, and then filling in around them. The posts or pickets of the stockade were surprisingly small, just thick enough to stop the lead balls fired from Native American rifles and muskets.

When Arbuckle finished the fort and completed his crossing of the Flint on November 25, he left behind Capt. John N. McIntosh of the 4th Regiment of U.S. Infantry with 40 men as a garrison. The assignment went quietly enough until December 15-18, when hundreds of warriors emerged from the nearby woods and tried to storm the post.

The soldiers repelled the initial attack, fighting desperately from behind their walls of thin posts as the warriors attacked from all sides. Lt. Col. Arbuckle later reported that McIntosh and his men were "surrounded by a large force, and his [McIntosh's] arrangements were such as to do him much credit." [1]

Neamathla (Eneah Emathla) was the powerful and charismatic
chief of Fowltown, a village near today's Bainbridge, Georgia.
He likely took part in the Battle of Fort Hughes.

Many of the warriors likely came from nearby Fowltown and were undoubtedly led by their prominent chief, Neamathla. Another group came from as far away as the Suwannee River and included fighters from as far away as the Suwannee River.

The latter group included not only Maroon (Black Seminole) fighters but also one of several white Bahamian residents who took part in the Seminole War of 1817-1818. Peter Cook came to Florida as a merchant and employee of the trader Alexander Arbuthnot. Displeased with his employer, he left him and joined Robert Ambrister on the Suwannee River. Ambrister was a former lieutenant in the British Marines and had served at Prospect Bluff (the "Negro Fort") on the Apalachicola during the War of 1812.

Ambrister sent him with a party of warriors to help take Fort Hughes, an experience that Cook described in a letter to his fiance in the Bahamas:

…The balls flew like hail-stones; there was a ball that had like to have done my job; it just cleared by breast. For six days and six nights we had to encamp in the wild woods, and it was constantly raining night and day; and as for the cold, I suffered very much by it; in the morning the water would be frozen about an inch thick. [2]

A luminary and memorial service held in 2017 to mark the
200ths anniversary of the fights at Fowltown and Fort Hughes.

The weather was severely cold in the late fall of 1817. Ash blasted into the atmosphere by the explosion of the Indonesian volcano Mount Tambora still impacted the climate of the Northern Hemisphere. Temperatures remained so unusually cold more than one year after the eruption that the years 1816-1818 became known as the "Year without a Summer." Others called it "Eighteen Hundred and Froze to Death."

The attacking force was unable to take Fort Hughes. The blockhouses of the outpost projected slightly from the walls, allowing Capt. McIntosh and his men to fire at any warriors who approached the stockade. The soldiers, meanwhile, were protected by the log walls of the blockhouses, and the attack force couldn't harm them.

Fort Hughes included two blockhouses similar to this
reconstructed one at Fort Mitchell Historic Site in Alabama.

Despite this advantage, the fight was a close thing for McIntosh's command. Fort Hughes did not have a well, and one officer who was present later described how the soldiers suffered greatly for water during the battle. A providential rain finally brought relief and saved the garrison from a need to break out through the Native American lines to find water.

The battle continued for three days before the chiefs and Cook finally decided that it was useless to continue and called off the fight. He and his force withdrew to the Suwannee, but their object was achieved. Lt. Col. Arbuckle at Fort Scott realized the vulnerability of Fort Hughes and sent troops to withdraw Capt. McIntosh's detachment.

Archaeological evidence suggests that the log walls of the fort later burned. Whether this fire took place during or after the war is not known.

The site of Fort Hughes can be visited today at J.D. Chason Memorial Park. Visitors can see a monument, interpretive panels, beautiful old trees, and a great view of the Flint River. The site is temporarily closed due to a major park enhancement project being carried out by the City of Bainbridge.

Click play here to learn more about the archaeological discovery of Fort Hughes:

Editor's Note: You can learn more about Fort Hughes, Fowltown, Fort Scott, and the Seminole War in 1817-1818 in these books from historian Dale Cox:

2020 Census: Bad news for Jackson County

 Adult Population Drop Worst in Northwest Florida

Jackson County lost more than adults over the age of eighteen in the last decade than any county in Florida west of Tallahassee.

The United States Census Bureau released its final 2020 estimates for counties across the nation on August 12, 2021. The numbers for the area still recovering from Hurricane Michael are remarkably good in some counties, worse than expected in others.

Jackson County led the region in adult population loss. In 2020, census workers found 1,568 fewer adults over the age of 18 living in the county versus 2010. As might be expected, the population under the age of 18 also fell - by 859 residents - but drops in numbers of children were common across the region. The county's total population decline between 2010 and 2020 was 2,417.

While some of the population loss in Jackson County is certainly tied to Hurricane Michael, the majority of it was predicted in 2008 before the storm devastated the region (See Economic Chaos Strikes Jackson County).

Among counties in the primary Hurricane Michael strike zone, only Gulf County where the category five storm made landfall experienced an adult population loss close to that suffered by Jackson. Gulf County's 18+ population loss was 1,468. The decline in the 18 and under population there, however, was much smaller, with Gulf County losing 203 younger residents.

Gadsden County actually led the counties west of Tallahassee in total population decline, but much of its drop was due to fewer children in 2020 versus 2010. Gadsden's 18+ population declined by 567 people. Its 18 and under population declined by 1,996. The county's overall population drop was 2,563.

Calhoun County, also impacted heavily by Hurricane Michael, likewise saw its population decline. Calhoun's 18+ numbers were down by 577. The county's 18 and under population dropped by 407.

Liberty County's 18+ population dropped by 81, while the county's 18 and under total declined by 310. Holmes County also saw a small decline, with its 18+ population dropping by 37 and its 18 and under number falling by 227.

Bay County (Panama City/Panama City Beach), which was heavily impacted by Hurricane Michael in its eastern areas, led growth in the region, closely followed by Houston County, Alabama (Dothan).

Bay County reported an 18+ population growth of 7,883, but an 18 and under decline of 1,519, for a total increase of 6,364 people.

Dothan and Houston County saw an 18+ increase of 6,025 people, with 18 and under decrease of 370. The total population increase there was 5,655. 

Other counties in the area with growing populations were:

• Decatur County (Bainbridge), Georgia - 1,525 total increase.
• Franklin County (Apalachicola), Florida - 902 total increase.
• Washington County (Chipley), Florida - 422 total increase.
• Seminole County (Donalsonville), Georgia - 417 total increase.

Archaeology & History mark Seminole War Battle Anniversary

Today marks the 203rd anniversary of the Scott Battle of 1817. The first Native American victory of the Seminole Wars, this engagement took place on the bank of the Apalachicola River at what is now River Landing Park in Chattahoochee, Florida. Click play above to learn more about the battle and a new archaeology project that is aimed at finding key evidence from the battlefield itself!

Return to Gator Hole Cave!

Click play to watch Two Egg TV's return to Gator Hole Cave at Merritt's Mill Pond as Jackson County prepares to end the drawdown that has temporarily exposed the cave. It will soon be underwater again!

StarLink expanding to area in January!

 Internet Speeds to Soar as Elon Musk's Dream reaches Rural USA

News broke this morning that residents of Northwest Florida, Southeast Alabama, and Southwest Georgia will FINALLY have a real option for high-speed internet. 

StarLink, the low-earth orbiting satellite constellation pioneered by Tesla and Space-X founder Elon Musk, will expand throughout the United States in January. Every household in the region will be able to receive it regardless of location.

The service is currently available in Canada and the northern United States, providing speeds of up to 100 Mbps (megabytes per second). By comparison, CenturyLink currently limits some customers in Jackson County, Florida, for example, to less than 10 Mbps. They completely refuse to connect other customers. Similarly, internet via cellular service is not available in many areas. 

StarLink provides low-latency service from arrays of satellites that it has been launching from Cape Canaveral. Unlike HughesNet and other current satellite providers, which provide limited service at speeds of around 25 Mbps, Starlink does not experience "delays" between the ground and the satellite that cause difficulty with internet connections, particularly in streaming video such as movies and television programs. 

StarLink also does not currently place data caps on its service.

The service is designed primarily for customers in rural areas who either have no internet or who have long suffered from substandard service provided by companies that focus on more populated areas. 

The present cost of the service is $99 per month and customers are responsible for purchasing their own antenna in order to receive the signal. More information is expected from the company soon.

Yaupon Holly: Nature at Florida Caverns

Yaupon Holly, a wild shrub found at Florida Caverns State Park and throughout the region, produces more natural caffeine than any other native plant in North America. 

Southeastern Native Americans - including the Muscogee (Creek), Yuchi, Seminole, and others - used it as a primary ingredient in the preparation of the "black drink." 

Learn more from Asst. Park Manager Billy Bailey of Florida Caverns by clicking the play button above:

Hog Killing Time is Coming!

We had a little touch of chilly weather this morning! It reminds us that winter is on the horizon and it won't be long until Hog Killing Time is here. Click the play button to learn about this old-timey tradition from a great storyteller at the Panhandle Pioneer Settlement in Blountstown, Florida.

Marianna's Union Monument

Learn the story of the little known monument to the Union soldiers killed in the Battle of Marianna, Florida.

Eastern Red Cedar: Nature at Florida Caverns

Eastern Red Cedar is much loved for the scent and color that it gives to closets and cedar trunks, but did you know that it also is a vital part of the ecology of the United States and Canada? Play the video to learn more from Billy Bailey, Assistant Park Manager at Florida Caverns State Park!

Jackson Blue Spring Construction Update (11/5/2020)

The massive overhaul of Jackson Blue Springs at the head of Merritt's Mill Pond near Marianna, Florida, is on-schedule and showing impressive progress! Click play to watch the latest update from Two Egg TV's Lindsay Kiefer.

Ghost in the Old Calhoun County Jail

A ghost story from Calhoun County, Florida!

Ghost of Bellamy Bridge: Storytelling at Landmark Park

Sit back and enjoy an old-fashioned storytelling event at Landmark Park in Dothan, Alabama! The focus of this story is Marianna, Florida's notorious "ghost of Bellamy Bridge."

 

The Black Willow: Creek and Seminole Indian Headache Cure!

Creek and Seminole Indians (and their ancestors!) used a tree common in the Apalachicola, Chipola, and Choctawhatchee River valleys as a headache cure long before pharmacies dotted the landscape! Learn more in "Nature at Florida Caverns," a special feature from Assistant Park Manager Billy Bailey of Florida Caverns State Park.

Merritt's Drawdown Impact on Fish & Ecology

What impact is the drawdown of Merritt's Mill Pond having on its world record fish? And how long will the drawdown last? Those are just two of the questions that Lindsay and Crystal answer in this look at the ecological impact of the mill pond drawdown! Click the play button to watch.

Two Egg, Florida: Drive-In Movie, Hayrides & More at Halloween on Wintergreen!!

Learn more at Halloween on Wintergreen on Facebook

The Marianna UFO of 1955

UFO (unidentified flying object) stories are now part of American culture, albeit a hotly debated part. In 1955, however, they were breaking news and the military often kept them top secret. Such was the case with an incident that year in the skies over Jackson County that ranks as one of the nation's first government-verified UFO sightings.

Today's Marianna Municipal Airport was the home of Graham Air Base in 1955. Opened in 1953, Graham Air Base was a U.S. Air Force Contract Primary Flying Training Base where many of America's top Cold War and Vietnam era pilots were trained. Home to the 3300th Pilot Training Group, it provided pilot training on AT-6, PA-18, T-28, and T-34 propeller aircraft until 1957 when T-37 jet trainers were added to compliment.

On December 6, 1955, a civilian radar operator was working his normal shift at Graham Air Base when he detected something unusual on his scope. An unidentified object suddenly streaked into radar range, entering Jackson County from the south at a high rate of speed.

As the operator watched by radar, the UFO flew over Jackson County at a speed faster than any known U.S. Air Force plane. It first appeared to be following the Apalachicola River but angled to the northwest as it passed over Jackson County, a route that carried it close to both Marianna and the airbase.

USAF Record Card of Marianna UFO

When first observed, the object was flying at an altitude of about 15,000 feet, but as it streaked north over Alabama it climbed to an altitude of 30,000 feet.  It was lost from radar as it passed over Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.

Alarmed by the approach of the object, the Flight Service Center commander at Maxwell notified the Air Defense Command at Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the Air Force Chief of Staff in Washington, DC:

...One unidentified flying object sighted over Marianna FLA at 0100E Aircraft radar. Object at 15000 feet over Marianna FLA. Object proceeded to Montgomery ALA climbing to 30,000 FT elapsed time of object from Marianna FLA to Montgomery ALA five minutes. Object presently over Maxwell AFB. - Project Blue Book Record, U.S. Air Force, December 6, 1955.

Graham Air Base Historical Marker

Whatever it was, the UFO traveled the distance from Marianna to Montgomery (around 140 miles) in just five minutes. That equals around 28 miles per minute or 1,680 miles per hour.

Kept top secret at the time, the sighting was investigated by the U.S. Air Force as part of its "Project Blue Book." Between 1952 and 1970, Air Force investigators examined 12,618 alleged UFO incidents. Of that number, only 701 remain listed as "unidentified." The 1955 Marianna incident is one of those 701 cases.

Graham Air Base in the 1950s.
State Archives of Florida/Memory Collection

According to the Project Blue Book record card for the incident, investigators were unable to classify the UFO sighting due to "insufficient data for evaluation."

At least one person reported seeing an object in the sky over northern Jackson County at about the time of the incident. The eyewitness later recalled that he was on a trip from Alabama to Florida with his parents along US 231 when they suddenly saw an unidentified object fly over the highway near the Florida-Alabama line. He described it as a saucer-shaped object with red lights around its bottom. It made no sound. Whether it was the UFO picked up by radar operators is not known.

To this day, the Marianna UFO of 1955 has never been explained. 

Marianna imposes mandatory Mask Order for businesses

 

The Marianna City Commission imposed the following by a 4-1 at its meeting on Tuesday, September 1, 2020. It takes effect immediately:

EMERGENCY ORDINANCE NO. 2020-___ E

AN EMERGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MARIANNA,

FLORIDA, FINDING THAT A PUBLIC EMERGENCY EXISTS; REQUIRING EMPLOYEES IN BUSINESSES TO WEAR A FACE COVERING; PROVIDING FOR EXCEPTIONS; PLACING ADDITIONAL STANDARDS ON RETAIL ESTABLISHMENTS, FOOD SERVICE ESTABLISHMENTS AND BARS; PROVIDING PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION OF THIS ORDINANCE; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.

WHEREAS, The City of Marinna (“City”) is a municipality granted home rule authority pursuant to Article VIII, Section 2 of the Constitution of the State of Florida and may exercise its governmental, corporate and proprietary powers for municipal purposes, including to regulate for the protection of the public health, safety and welfare; and

WHEREAS, the City of Marianna is empowered, pursuant to Section 166.041(3)(b), Florida Statutes, to adopt emergency ordinances by a two-thirds majority vote; and WHEREAS, the World Health Organization, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary, President of the United States, Governor of the State of Florida and the City of Marianna have all acknowledged and declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, to be an international, national, state and local emergency; and

WHEREAS, on March 9, 2020, the Governor of the State of Florida issued Executive Order 20-52 authorizing, among other things, local governments to execute their authority under the State Emergency Management Act; and

WHEREAS, since March 17, 2020, the City Commission has taken careful and measured action by Resolution and Emergency Ordinances to balance the public health and safety while also monitoring the need to allow for recreational and commercial activity to safely continue; and

WHEREAS, on June 3, 2020, the Governor of the State of Florida issued Executive Order 20-139 enacting the “Phase 2: Safe. Smart. Step-By-Step Plan for Florida’s Recovery” which expanded guidelines on safe congregations and recreational activities; and 

WHEREAS, the City is home to the Florida Caverns, Blue Springs, the Chipola River and other natural and eco-friendly areas to many visitors each year, while also serving as the permanent home for approximately 6,500 residents; and

WHEREAS, U. S. Highways 90, 71 and 73 as well as Interstate 10 are main travel routes for visitors coming into the State of Florida from other states and for Floridians traveling east toward Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Gainesville, Orlando and central and south Florida, and traveling west toward Pensacola, Mobile, New Orleans and other states; and

WHEREAS, since the reopening of the City’s recreational areas and local businesses under the enactment of Phase 2 Reopening, the City has seen an influx of visitors, and many of these visitors are exhibiting an attitude of carefreeness and indifference for CDC guidelines, regarding social distancing; and

WHEREAS, the City has observed that the reopening of the State has led to a corresponding rise in contact between individuals, the potential for increased community spread of COVID-19, and a rise in COVID-19 diagnoses in the City and in Jackson County; and

WHEREAS, since April 3, 2020, the Center for Disease Control (the “CDC”) has identified cloth face coverings by the public as an effective mitigation tool against the spread of COVID-19 transmission and provides guidance on how to wear, make and maintain cloth face coverings; and

WHEREAS, on June 22, 2020, State Surgeon General, Scott Rivkees, issued an additional public health advisory recommending people wear face coverings in any setting where social distancing is not possible, stating that in gatherings of fewer than 50 people, individuals should maintain at least six feet distance from each other or wear a face covering; and

WHEREAS, on July 12, 2020, the United States Surgeon General, Jerome Adams, issued recommendations that mandatory mask orders be put in place at “local and state levels”; and

WHEREAS, on July14, 2020, the CDC Director stated that “(c)loth face coverings are one of the most powerful weapons we have to slow and stop the spread of the virus – particularly when used universally within a community setting. All Americans have a responsibility to protect themselves, their families and their communities”; and

WHEREAS, the CDC, writing in the Journal of American Medical Association, stated that "c)ommunity-level protection afforded by use of cloth face coverings can reduce the number of new infections and facilitate cautious easing of more societally disruptive community interventions such as stay-at-home orders and business closings”and placed special emphasis on wearing face coverings while indoors or in poorly ventilated areas; and

WHEREAS, on July 14, 2020, President Donald Trump, speaking with CBS News, urged Americans to follow CDC guidelines and wear a mask; and

WHEREAS, the City Commission finds that, based upon the recommendations of the medical community and the rise in COVID-19 cases throughout the City and Jackson County, the continued risk of COVID-19 infection necessitates emergency measures to mitigate the spread;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MARIANNA, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS:

SECTION 1. FINDING OF EMERGENCY: The foregoing recitals are true and correct and incorporated herein as if set out in full. For the reasons set out in the above recitals, the Commission finds and determines that the public health emergency facing the City requires enhanced restrictions adopted by this ordinance which are needed immediately to help address the dangers present in our nation, state and community.

SECTION 2. DEFINITIONS: For purposes of this Ordinance, the following terms shall have the meanings proscribed below:

A. “Business” means a location with a roof overhead under which any business is conducted, good are made, stored, processed, sold, or made available for sale, or where services are rendered. The term includes transportation network companies, such as Ubers and Lyft; vehicles operated for mass transit delivery services, taxis, limousines for hire, other enclosed passenger vehicles for hire.

B. “Face Covering” means a material that covers the nose and mouth in a manner that fits snugly against the sides of the face so there are no gaps. It can be secured to the head with ties or straps or simply wrapped around the lower face. It can be made of a variety of materials, such as cotton, silk or linen.

C. “Wear a Face Covering” means the securing of a face covering over the person’s nose and mouth and snuggly against the sides of the face.

D. “Lodging Establishment” means any unit, group of units, dwelling, building, or group of buildings within a single complex of buildings which is rented to guests more than three (3) times in a calendar year for periods of less than 30 days or one (1) calendar month, whichever is less, or which is advertised or held out to the public as a place regularly rented to guests.

E. “Food Service Establishment” means a business licensed to sell food covered by Executive Order 20-139

F. “Bar” means a business licensed to sell alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption which is not also licensed to sell food.

SECTION 3. FACE COVERINGS IN THE CITY:

A. Business Employees. All persons who own or manage a Business shall assure that all persons who are employed or contracted by a Business wear a Face Covering while working indoors within the course of and scope of their employment or contract with that Business unless specifically exempted in Section 4 of this Ordinance.

B. Signage. Each Business shall conspicuously post signage at all points of public entry in substantially the form provided by the City, notifying individuals of the requirements of this Ordinance, and encouraging all patrons to abide by CDC guidelines regarding the use of face coverings and social distancing.

SECTON 4. EXCEPTIONS. Section 3B of this Ordinance shall not apply to the following:

A. An individual with a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act shall be allowed to request a reasonable modification of this requirement from a Business subject to this Ordinance. Such reasonable accommodation shall include requiring a scarf, looser Face Covering or face shield, allowing curbside pick-up, outdoor service, or removal of the face mask.

B. A person who is communicating with an individual who is hearing impaired who needs to see the mouth of the person speaking to facilitate communication.

C. Public safety, police, fire and other life safety and health care personnel whose use of personal protective equipment requirements are governed by their respective agencies and employers, while engaged in such employment.

D. Business owners, managers, employees and contractors who are in an area of a Business that is not open to customers, patrons, or the public while maintaining social distancing, excluding individuals involved in the preparation and service of food and beverages.

SECTION 5. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR RETAIL ESTABLISHMENTS, FOOD SERVICE ESTABLISHMENTS AND BARS.

Retail Establishments, Food Service Establishments and Bars shall be subject to the following additional standards contained herein: 

A. Patron Waiting Procedures. Each Indoor Amusement, Retail Establishment, Food Service Establishment and Bar shall implement procedures designed to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 transmission through the following means:

1. Placing clearly marked areas for individual groups to congregate spaced at least six feet from other waiting congregations. Businesses may utilize designated parking spaces as a patron waiting area to implement this procedure.

2. Placing clear markers for patrons to maintain at least six feet social distancing in checkout areas.

B. Employee Screening. Retail Establishments, Food Service Establishments and Bars must daily screen each employee to ensure that no employee who is exhibiting symptoms of COPVID-19 is permitted to work. Upon discovering that a current employee has been diagnosed with COVID-19, the establishment shall immediately close and disinfect the building interior. Businesses must notify the public of such closure and shall be permitted to reopen upon certification by the City’s Code Enforcement Department, by the contractor licensed by the State of Florida in biomedical waste treatment and disposal.

C. 50% Capacity. Indoor Amusements, Restaurants, Retail Establishments and Bars shall operate at 50% of their indoor capacity, excluding employees, as determined by the Fire Inspector. This capacity limitation shall be modified from time to time as the executive orders from the Governor are amended.

SECTION 6. ENFORCEMENT. Any violation of this Ordinance may be enforced by a member of the City’s Policy Department, Fire Department or Code Enforcement Officer as follows:

A. First Offense. An initial violation shall be memorialized by a written warning and staff shall be directed to educate the violator of the substance of this Ordinance. For any first violation of Section 3 of this Ordinance, a violator without a Face Covering shall be supplied one.

B. Second Offense. Punishable by a civil citation of $50.00.

C. Third or Subsequent Offenses are as follows:

1. Punishable by a civil violation of $150.00; or 

2. An order to cease operation, as a public nuisance, for twenty-four (24) hours. The Commission specifically finds repeat violations of the provision of this Ordinance to be a threat to the public health, safety and welfare of the City. 

SECTION 7. SEVERABILITY.

If any word, phrase, clause, section or portion of this Ordinance shall be held invalid or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of this Ordinance shall continue in full force and effect.

SECTION 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

Upon passage by two-thirds of the members of the City Commission, this Ordinance shall take effect at 5:00 P.M. on September __, 2020, without further reading or publication, to address the real and present public health emergency presented by the spread of the COVID-19 virus and shall remain in effect until 12:00 P. M. on , 2020, unless such date is otherwise extended by resolution of the City Commission.

THIS ORDINANCE shall be effective immediately upon passage.

PASSED by the City Commission of the City of Marianna, Florida, in session on

the ______ day of September, 2020.

CITY OF MARIANNA, FLORIDA

BY:

MAYOR

ATTEST: ______________________________

 Kimberly Applewhite, CLERK

State approves $50,000 for Chattahoochee's River Landing Park

Major Archaeology Project to Begin Soon.

by Rachael Conrad

Historical Markers and the large temple mound
at Chattahoochee's River Landing Park.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the state legislature have approved a $50,000 grant for River Landing Park in Chattahoochee, Florida. It is the second year in a row that the park has received significant funding through the state Division of Historical Resources.

The park is the location of noted multi-cultural archaeological and historical sites. Among these are Native American mounds, a War of 1812 fort, the battlefield where the first U.S. defeat of the Seminole Wars took place, wrecks of 19th and early 20th-century paddlewheel steamboats, historic Victory Bridge, and even an original section of the 17th-century Old Spanish Trail.

Historian and author Dale Cox, who wrote the grant application for free as a donation to the community, said that the money will fund the most significant archaeological research project in the history of the Chattahoochee Landing site.

River Landing Park as seen from the air.

"These dollars, which the community is so blessed to receive in a year when the Governor was forced to cut over $1 billion in spending from the state budget, shows just how important this site is to Chattahoochee, our area, and the state as a whole," he said.

The grant is available immediately and will be used to better determine the specific sites of archaeological and historical features at the park so they can be preserved while clearing the way for future development and improvements.

"This project is really unique," Cox said, "because it provides a chance to preserve the past while assuring the future. The City of Chattahoochee wants to add a canoe launch and make other improvements to the park. This will help move that project forward while, at the same time, it will save the prehistoric mounds from further erosion and protect precious parts of the past."

The grant was submitted in early 2019 by Chattahoochee Main Street. A previous grant, also for $50,000, funded a new interpretive trail that will be installed at River Landing Park later this month. Combined, the two projects provide a total investment of $100,000 in the cultural resources at the park.

Enjoy this video to learn more about the history of River Landing Park:

Street Philosophy Institute rejects NAACP call to preserve "Claude Neal" tree

Statement from Darien Pollock

The "Claude Neal" tree in Marianna, Florida

The following statement was issued this evening by Darien Pollock, the President of the Street Philosophy Institute, Inc., in response to a statement from the Jackson County NAACP expressing support for preserving the "Claude Neal" tree at the courthouse in Marianna:

IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM DARIEN POLLOCK:

As the President of the Street Philosophy Institute, Inc., and native of Jackson County, Florida, I want to express publicly that I am thoroughly disappointed in our local NAACP chapter for failing to be sensitive to the desires and interests of not only the Black community but the citizens of Jackson County at large.

This recent statement by the NAACP is a prime example of why Jackson County and surrounding areas continue to be (at least) 30 years behind the rest of our country culturally and politically. It’s also a grave reminder of how many of our (white-minded) Black leaders have sold out the integrity and credibility of our historically Black institutions, exploiting them for personal gain against the benefit and at the detriment of the most vulnerable and silenced members of our community.

On behalf of SPI, and the close to 6,000 signatories of our recent petition to remove the Claude Neal lynching tree and establish a memorial in honor of *all* victims of racial terrorism in Jackson, County, I want to emphasize that I wholeheartedly reject this proclamation by our local NAACP chapter and view it as an example of gross political malpractice.