Date Jun 10, 2023 | We have travelled through Marianna more than once, identifying and photographing missed 'opportunities we learn about. After several searches of Historic Train Depots we finally located an old blog named Two Egg. In it we learned that the location several years ago was an arts and crafts retail business. Now an insurance business. So we took the opportunity to shoot it. |
Marianna was founded in 1828, and named for the Scottish founder's wife Mary and her friend Anna. Marianna's downtown has a nicely restored historic district, and it has been recognized as a Florida Main Street Town. Click here for additional Marianna details and photo opportunities.
Notes:
We found Marianna was a quiet town, sort of laid back. This may be because each time we visited the town it was either on a Sunday morning, after Hurricane Michael or post COVID. We found several interesting subjects to shoot, but after hurricane Michael, there is what I will call recovery efforts underway even today (June 2022). Not directly in town, but we did have an opportunity in May 2022 to hike to the famously known Florida Ghost Story - Bellamy Bridge.
Just after Hurricane Michael the entire area was flooded severely. Access to the trail was underwater and we (at that time decided to postpone any attempt). Finally, on our trip in 2022, we accessed the trail and believe we saw the Ghost of Bellamy Bridge (no it was a backpacker). Nearby, we had previously visit the Florida Caverns State Park where we enjoyed a guided tour of the underground caverns - one of Ginger's most enjoyed stops where we went 'deep' into the caverns 'where no light existed'.
Photo Ops and places of interest
- Downtown Marianna - shops and historic buildings
- Caverns - one of the only fresh air caverns
- Historic Train Depot - depot to art shop to insurance office
- Bellamy Bridge - a ghost story and short (< 1 mile walk)
Resources:
Wiki ... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marianna,_Florida
The Ghost of Bellamy Bridge ... exploresouthernhistory.com/bellamybridge
Florida Caverns State Park ... www.exploresouthernhistory.com/floridacaverns.html