WASHINGTON COUNTY
COUNTY SEAT: CHIPLEY
ESTABLISHED IN 1825.
FORMED FROM JACKSON AND WALTON COUNTIES.
*** This county is a partially dry county. Some sources say entirely dry.
*** Native American, Spanish, and English influences are seen here.
*** It was named after the first president of the United States.
*** Vernon: pioneer town named after Mt. Vernon. It was also the site of a major Indian settlement. The county courthouse was here til Chipley a railroad town became County Seat in 1927.
*** Indian mounds in this county.
*** Andrew Jackson was active here.
*** Chipley: used to be called Orange but renamed for railroad businessman and Floridian senator William Dudley Chipley in 1882.
*** Falling Water State Park in this area contains a 73 foot waterfalls, the highest in the state. Sinkholes here were used as hideouts for Indian warriors fighting against Andrew Jackson during the Seminole Wars.
*** Also the site of the first oil well drilled in Florida in 1919.
*** Also in the Civil War ere a gristmill powered by the falls was here. Later a distillery was here.
***Some really unique sites (claimed in Wikipedia and other fact sites) that might be fun to be aware of:
**The Vine That Ate Dixie ..Chipley claims it gave the infamous Kudzu vine to the south!
** In 1982 The Possum Monument Wausau Florida claims to be the Possum Capital of the World! They hold Possum Day every year on the first Saturday of August!
Legends and ghost stories said to be "don't miss" readings :
* Legend of the Lime Sink
*The Fiddling Ghost of Boynton Island
*The Washington County Volcano
More details can be found here;
http://www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fallingwaters1.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_County,_Florida
Not many postcards around on this county. One of the only ones I found on Ebay was "finscares" Ebay seller's Pre-1980 Chipley Motel postcard he is selling on Ebay now. It is shown at the top of this post. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pre-1980-CHIPLEY-MOTEL-Chipley-FL-M1847-/371164250874?pt=Postcards_US&hash=item566b1d02fa
