Category: Programs & Events

The Carrabelle History Museum is presenting a history program entitled, “The Legend of Tate's Hell”.

This program will explore the many facets of the legend of Tate’s Hell, the fate of Cebe Tate and how Tate's Hell State Forest got its name. The FSU Department of Communications’ 1983 short film, “A Tale of Tate’s Hell” will be shown. This program will be held Saturday, March 18, 2023, at 10 am - 12 pm in the upstairs room at C-Quarters Marina, 501 St. James Ave (Hwy 98), Carrabelle, FL. 

The opening line of the film says, "In the folk region, people are wedded to the land, and the land holds memories. The people themselves possess identity and ancestry, through continuous occupation of the same soil. Local events can flower into legend and ballad and proverb, and village ways can harden into custom." - Richard M. Corson in American Folklore.

Actor Billy Gwynn who played Tate in the FSU film mentioned in this program.

Man believed to be Jeremiah Tate, Cebe Tate's dad, and woman who may be his mother.

There is no fee for this program. Donations are gladly accepted to defray costs. Sponsored by C-Quarters Marina and Shaun Donahoe Realty. Funding in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council. Seating is limited and masks are optional. Attendees are asked to follow health guidelines. For more information, contact 850-697-2141.

The Carrabelle History Museum is hosting the Carrabelle Culture Crawl on Saturday, February 18, 2023, 10 am to 3 pm.

Due to expected inclement weather this free cultural event had to be rescheduled by one week.

Many of the event partners are already re-confirmed including musicians Frank Lindamood, Cody Barber, Kevin Andrew & the Rockulla Performers (at a new venue), and Lewis Christie. A few of the Forgotten Coast Cruisers are expected to be cruising into Carrabelle for the new date. Fishy Fashion characters are being reeled in. And of course, the CRA's Scavenger Hunt will be available We anticipate confirming additional partners, exhibitors and demonstrators over the next few days. 

This cultural event is a free celebration of art, music, history, food, and fun in the heart of downtown Carrabelle. It is a wonderful opportunity to experience the wonderful local culture that Carrabelle has to offer.

The Carrabelle History Museum will be bringing live music and entertainment outdoors to the streets of Carrabelle, with Florida folk music, classic country, modern songs, and favorite oldies. A variety of musicians will be performing outdoors for all to enjoy including Florida Folk musician, Frank Lindamood, Cody Barber, Lewis Christie (with his keyboard), Jack Zurawka, and Kevin Andrew and the Rockulla Performers, a variety of young talent. Visitors will again spot fun, costumed characters from the Fishy Fashion Show wandering the streets. These walking photo ops are a fan-favorite at the Crawl.

New this year will be a Car Cruise-In by the Forgotten Coast Cruisers car club. They will be bringing a couple of beautiful classic, vintage, and even modern cars to the Crawl! Car enthusiasts can check out a vintage Lotus 7, a 1924 Model T Truck and more!

Returning will be another Carrabelle Scavenger Hunt. For each location, a fun clue will be provided. The Scavenger Hunt is a great way to learn fun facts about Carrabelle’s history you may have never known. Guests can start at the Carrabelle History Museum and visit as many of the wonderful locations as they would like. The Carrabelle History Museum and the City of Carrabelle Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) are proud to host and fund the Carrabelle Scavenger Hunt.

Art will abound at the Carrabelle Culture Crawl featuring some local artists and artisans. There will be art to view at a variety of shops and galleries including an art exhibition at Rio Carrabelle. The always popular public art drawing and coloring activity will be hung in storefront windows. And be sure to walk over to see Carrabelle’s two large, stunning murals!

Come learn about the culture and local history of the area by visiting the exhibitors and demonstrators on Avenue B and in the downtown area. Some of the fascinating topics including pioneer life in North Florida, WWII Army training on Carrabelle Beach, cast net throwing demonstrations, Carrabelle’s rich nautical history, and more. While on Avenue B, be sure to visit the Carrabelle History Museum to see the new exhibit on the Shipwrecks of Dog Island plus discover the booms and busts of Carrabelle’s history like the by-gone eras when local logging and lumber merchants, steamships, and shrimping vessels lined the vast and deep Carrabelle River.

For more information, contact the Carrabelle History Museum at 850-697-2141, carrabellehistorymuseum@gmail.com.  The Carrabelle Culture Crawl was founded by the Economic Development Team of the Carrabelle Waterfront Partnership. Funding in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council and the City of Carrabelle Community Redevelopment Agency.

We also want to say a big thank you to Millender’s Seafood for their generosity in supporting this year's Carrabelle Culture Crawl and the Carrabelle History Museum. They not only allowed us use of their green space along Marine Street for the Cast net demo but when bad weather threatened the success of the whole event, they opened the doors (literally) and allowed use of their building on Marine Street to house 4 exhibitors and activities. Their generosity was a crucial part in the ability to hold this year's Carrabelle Culture Crawl!
Millender’s Seafood has been a part of the business community of Carrabelle since 1942 when Braxton Millender originally opened Millender & Sons Seafood. The business is still family owned, now going on four generations, and is owned by Braxton’s great grandsons, David and Stephen Millender.

We want to thank another sponsor, Mayor Brenda La Paz and Greg Kristofferson.

History of the Turpentine Industry in North Florida

The Carrabelle History Museum presented a new educational program entitled, “History of the Turpentine Industry in North Florida” featuring Barbara Clark, Director of the North Central Region for Florida Public Archaeology (FPAN). The program was held on Saturday, February 12, 2022, from 10 am - 12 pm in the upstairs room at C-Quarters Marina, 501 St. James Ave (Hwy 98), Carrabelle, FL.

Guests to this sold out event learned about the turpentine and naval stores industry in Florida and the impacts it had on Florida’s history and our local area’s economy. The presentation included the beginnings of the industry in the Southeast, through the convict leasing program during Reconstruction, and insights into causes that led to the end of the industry in Florida.

Barbara Clark is a Registered Professional Archaeologist who specializes in historic archaeology of the 19th and early 20th century. Her interests include the turpentine and lumber industry, specifically focusing on the social aspects of "camp life".

Programs are sponsored by C-Quarters Marina, Sunset Isle RV Resort and Shaun Donahoe Realty with promotional funding provided by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.

The Carrabelle History Museum presented a fascinating history program about the Shipwrecks of Dog Island on Saturday, January 15, 2021. This program explored Dog Island’s rich maritime history, and especially focused on those shipwrecks that resulted from the Category 5 direct hit, the “Carrabelle Hurricane” in 1899. In prehistory, Dog Island was used as a campground by Paleo-Indians. It served as a safe harbor for European explorers and smugglers and later for fishermen and lumber tradesmen. Dog Island served as an amphibious training site during World War II. Most recently, Hurricane Michael uncovered parts of two ships that were shipwrecked during the 1899 event.

Chuck Meide is a maritime archaeologist and the Director of Lighthouse Archaeological Maritime Program (LAMP) for over 15 years. LAMP is a program by the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum to conduct research and maritime archaeology in St. Augustine and the State of Florida. Chuck has Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Anthropology with a focus in underwater archaeology from Florida State University and has undertaken Ph.D. studies in Historical Archaeology at the College of William and Mary.

Sponsored by C-Quarters Marina, Sunset Isle RV Resort and Shaun Donahoe Realty. Funding in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.

The Carrabelle History Museum presented a fascinating history program entitled, “Right On Time: Buck O’Neil and Black Baseball”. This program featured author, Wes Singletary and baseball aficionado, Josh Weaver and was held Saturday, November 20, 2021.

John Jordan "Buck" O'Neil was born in Carrabelle, FL on November 13, 1911. He became a famous first baseman and manager for the Kansas City Monarchs, a Negro Leagues team. In 1956 he joined the Chicago Cubs as one of the first African-American scouts in Major League Baseball. Then the first African-American coach in the Major Leagues in 1962. Buck also founded the Negro League Baseball Museum in Kansas City, MO and was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2006.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Wes Singletary is the author of numerous books and articles including ones on John Henry "Pop" Lloyd, Al Lopez, the 1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords, and Apalachicola native Jimmy Bloodworth. A USAF veteran, Wes earned a Ph.D. in history from Florida State University, and is currently AP United States History Professor at Lawton Chiles High School. He has taught as an adjunct history professor at Tallahassee Community College for 27 years.

Joshua Weaver's passion is baseball. He graduated from the University of South Florida with a Bachelor of Arts in History. Joshua’s profession is social work, but dreams of becoming a baseball historian. He has authored the children's book, A Visit to Oriole Park at Camden Yards with the Orioles Mascot. Joshua has traveled to all 30 active Major League Ballparks. He has visited several baseball museums around the county including National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Ted Williams Museum and Hitters Hall of Fame, and Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. The museums all feature exhibits on Buck O'Neil. He is currently assisting in the expansion of the museum's Buck O'Neil exhibit.

Sponsored by C-Quarters Marina and Shaun Donahoe Realty. Funding in part by the Franklin County Tourist Development Council.

This summer, The Carrabelle History Museum presented a special exhibit featuring Carrabelle High School memorabilia. It is part of the new and expanded Family Life Room with high school sports trophies across the decades starting with the 1920 football team and the 1937 state champion girls’ basketball team. There are old cheerleader outfits, letter sweaters, stadium cushions, band jackets, and cafeteria trays marking the transition from the Carrabelle Mullets to the Green Devils, and finally the Panthers. Old pictures and artifacts of local drug stores and popular restaurants are alongside Coca-Cola memorabilia. Family genealogy notebooks and school yearbooks to peruse offer a trip down memory lane. 

PLUS we hosted a special CHS Reunion & Alumni Reception on Saturday July 31!  See event photos below thanks to Rod Gasche and Joan Matey.