The Ghost of Bellamy Bridge

One of Florida's best known legends centers around this old iron-frame bridge spanning the Chipola River a few miles north of Marianna.

It is the centerpiece of Jackson County's tale of the Ghost of Bellamy Bridge. The story revolves around the 19th century marriage of Samuel and Elizabeth Jane Bellamy and her supposed death by fire at her own wedding.

I'm often asked about this story and have received a number of inquiries following the ghost hunt over the weekend at the Russ House in Marianna by a group of "paranormal investigators." So, I've started a new series on our sister blog, Two Egg, Florida. If you would like to know the true story behind this fascinating legend, just click here to check out the series!

Baker Creek - Important historic landmark

The sluggish course of Baker Creek, a few miles northwest of Marianna, is virtually the only surviving landmark of one of Jackson County's most important early settlements.

The lands around the creek were the first in the county to sustain large plantations and it was here that successful crops of cotton were first grown in Jackson County.

Among the important farms located in the area bordering the creek was Dr. Samuel Bellamy's Rock Cave plantation. A former resident of North Carolina, Dr. Bellamy moved to Jackson County during the early 1830s with his young wife, Elizabeth. He was the first Jackson County planter to grow Sea Island cotton and sent the first shipment down the Chipola River by barge to the port at Apalachicola.

It was on Rock Cave plantation that Elizabeth Bellamy died from fever in 1834. She is now the central figure in the Bellamy Bridge ghost story. According to the legend, her gown caught fire on her wedding day and she died from the resulting injuries. In truth, however, she and her baby boy died within one week of each other at Rock Cave several years after her marriage.

Elizabeth is buried near Bellamy Bridge on the plantation of Samuel's brother, Dr. Edward C. Bellamy. The two brothers later became involved in a fierce legal battle over control of Rock Cave. The issue was finally decided by the Supreme Court of Florida. Samuel killed himself at Chattahoochee Landing after a severe bout of depression and drunkenness.

Ghost of Bellamy Bridge

The photograph at right is of the old Samuel Bellamy mansion in Marianna. This was the home where Elizabeth Jane Bellamy supposedly burned to death on her wedding night, the primary event behind the Bellamy Bridge ghost legend. It is her ghost that is said to haunt the area around the bridge.

The mansion no longer stands, which is a shame because it was said to have been an architectural marvel. It stood in the center of the entire city block bordered by Green, Clinton, Market and Jefferson Streets.

In reality, Elizabeth did not die in a wedding not fire. I've recently updated the Bellamy Bridge story at www.exploresouthernhistory.com. Just follow the link and take a look, I think you'll find it to be a fascinating historical footnote in the history of Jackson County.