Starke is yet another small town in Florida that I’ve driven through for years but never stopped. It was never a destination, just a spot along the way. It was the mid-point between two even smaller towns which once reigned supreme as Florida’s most well known speed traps, Lawtey and Waldo. I’ve made many trips down US301 to Gainesville, which is probably most peoples’ destination if they’re traveling this way. However, unless you’re planning on stopping, most driver’s likely take new wonderful new bypass and miss the town altogether. On this Saturday afternoon, I decided to drive down and see what I’ve been missing all these years. As it turns out, not much. There isn’t much to see in this town of around 5000. It does stake claim to being home to Florida’s oldest weekly newspaper, The Bradford County Telegraph, which began publication in 1879. It is also the county seat for Bradford County. Aside from that, I found one street which really held any promise. It seems like most of the activity revolves around Call Street. Now it does make sense. After all, Call Street is actually a National historic district. Although the street is relatively short, there is […]
In my continuing quest to seek out new places that I haven’t explored around my home turf, I traveled to Palatka, Florida yesterday. It’s actually got a pretty interesting history so I’d encourage you to read the link. I’ve been through Palatka countless times but I’ve never really stopped to see what the town has to offer. With a population around the 10,000 mark, it’s considerable larger than where I grew up but it still has a familiar feel. I parked at one end of the historic downtown area and walked about 20 blocks. I was surprised that despite it being a weekend with the holidays right around the corner, very little was open. There are plenty of shops which should’ve been busy but most of downtown was closed up. My main target was a large number of murals representing the community’s history. They were very well done. Something that impressed me is the kindness of the people I crossed paths with. Many times I found myself shooting across the street to get the entire mural in the frame. On more than one occasion, driver’s would stop and wait for me to finish rather than driving through my shot. At […]
