Historic St. Andrews Bay in Panama City, Florida

During the last ice age, when sea levels were as much as 350 feet lower than present day, a pathway was forged. An exposed land bridge existed connecting North America with Asia. Pleistocene animals traveled across followed by "hunter-gatherers" on their trail. The fossil remains of mammoth, mastodon, saber-toothed cat and camel have been found in springs and creeks that feed St. Andrews Bay.

As the Ice Age waned, less hunting was supplanted with more gathering. Evidence of this can be seen in the numerous shell middens scattered along St. Andrews Bay. Midden is another word for garbage dump. An ancient midden occupation site is located within Oaks by the Bay Park in St. Andrews. From 5000 to 2500 years ago some of these middens evolved into mounds to inter the dead. [ King of the Garbage Heap ]

Through the years, 1840-1850, St. Andrews Bay area was recommended for recuperative health benefits. Autumnal Fever [ malaria] was rampant in America. "Sea baths" were prescribed with warnings to limit dips two to three minutes in the water. A short nap should follow each swim. Many visitors still adhere to this schedule. DIP-MEAL-NAP.

The first European settlement in St. Andrews Bay was along Beach Drive. This scenic coast remains a prized location overlooking the bay. The stately homes settled between the line of shady oaks draped in Spanish moss. A peaceful stroll in this quiet community of today; reflects the site of the St. Andrews Skirmish during the Civil war.

While the Civil War raged, St. Andrews was a strategic supplier of salt to the Confederate troops. Salt, a necessary preservative, sold for as much as fifty dollars per bushel. An estimated 2,500 men were engaged in manufacturing salt. These men were exempt from combat duty due to the importance of this operation. Federal raids were directed against the salt works beginning in September of 1862. The Rebels would rebuild as soon as Union forces destroyed; the works remained operational through the end of the Civil War.

The date was March 20, 1863. The U.S.S. Roebuck, was sent to St. Andrews Bay to prevent blockade-running. An eleven man scouting party landed on the beach in search of fresh water. They were attacked by Confederates and ordered to surrender. The Union crew refused and the skirmish ensued; ending with two of the soldiers killed and six wounded. The Confederates suffered no casualties.

In retaliation: St. Andrews was destroyed by the North. The Federal troops leveled all thirty-two homes in 'Old Town' with a devastating fire. The Century Oak, which has stood guard over St. Andrews Bay for over 150 years, is the only witness left standing to the saddest legacy of America's history.

Lake Caroline, sits on Beach Drive, apart from the bay. It is a restful spot where workers take their lunch and watch the antics of the ducks who live by the lake. The lake was named for noted writer, Caroline Hentz. She endured a difficult marriage and often used her husband's jealous tirades as themes for her stories. Caroline's last novel 'Ernest Linwood' hadn't gone to print when she died in 1856. She closed the book with a scene of the beach- "We, too are passing on in the procession of life. In the waves of time that are rolling behind us; will wash away the print of our footsteps. Others will follow, and others still, but few will be tossed on more stormier seas or be anchored at last in a more blissful heaven."