Another Day of Caching in Panama City 2/29/2008

Well you could tell it was a Leap Year today as it was like the great beyond this morning. We left about 8:30 and drove into Panama City to do some more caching and boy the way they started out we should have headed for home in the first 45 minutes. We couldn't find the first 4 caches we looked for and this is a first for us. In all fairness though we think that the huge storm they had last week did affect some of the caches. Well at least things got better as we went along. Our first find was at the Panama City Pier Park Marina behind a lovely statue for 9/11. Besides the statue there was a bench for each of the airplanes lost in the terrorism made of the same material as the monument. You should also have seen some of the boats, or we guess we should say yachts, that were at the pier.
Then it was off to a cache located off a jogging trail in a small park, next it was on to the site of the St Andrew Bay Saltworks which was one of the largest producers of salt in the South. Between 1861 and 1865 they contributed to the Confederate cause by providing salt, fish and cattle for southern troops and citizens. A necessary preservative in those times, salt sold for as much as $50 a bushel, and was produced in wood-fired saltworks on the perimeter of the West Bay, East Bay, North Bay and Lake Powell. An estimated 2,500 men, primarily from FL, GA and Al were exempted from combat duty in order to labor in the saltworks. The salt was transported to Eufaula, AL and then on to Montgomery, for distribution throughout the Confederate states. Because of the importance of the St Andrew Bay Saltworks to the confederacy, acting Master W. R. Browne, commander of the U. S. S. Restless, was instructed to commence a series of assaults beginning in August 1862. In December 1863, additional Union attacks occurred, which Confederate home guards could not resist. The attacks resulted in the destruction of more than 290 saltworks, valued by Master Browne at more than $3,000,000. The St Andrew Bay Saltworks employees promptly rebuilt them, and they remained in operation until February 1865. The picture shown is an origianl salt pot used in the Civil War.
Then it was on down the road to the site of the St Andrew Skirmish. On this site on March 20, 1863, Confederate soldiers commanded by Captain Walter J. Robinson repelled a landing by by Union soldiers led by Acting Master James Folger of the of the blockading vessel U. S. S. Roebuck. The 11 man scouting party of Union sailors was seeking to locate a southern civilian vessel near the "Old Town" spring, when they were reportedly ordered to surrender by Captain Robinson. During the ensuing skirmish, several Union sailors were killed and wounded as they fled to there launch boat. Quarter, or safe passage, was requested by the remaining Union sailors to retrieve their dead or wounded. Total Union casualties were six dead and three wounded. Union sailors buried four of the deceased on nearby Hurricane Island, and a fifth sailor was interred by the Confederate soldiers. No casualties were recorded by the Confederate unit, which later became Company A of the 11th Florida Infantry Regiment. After the conclusion of the Civil War the Union sailors were removed to the national cemetery at Fort Barrancas.
Next we went to a small park with a cache next to a tennis court, then back into downtown and another cache in a part of the marina, next was a cache along the street behind palm trees, then on to a small park and a cache in a tree and last but not least a cache in a magnolia tree along a nature walk.
There was one cache we tried to do but couldn't find it and it was in a lovely small park in the middle of downtown called Oaks Bay park. They had a very rare four headed palm tree, the only one of its kind in the world. They also had a 250 year old oak tree called "The Old Sentry" and was standing during the war between the states as if a sentry standing guard over St Andrews Bay. Also in the park was another old salt kettle used by the confederacy during the war between the states to recover salt from the sea water.
We stopped and got a sandwich for lunch and headed back to the RV. Got back and ate, Mom did our cache logs and I took a shower. We watched tv till dinner and we ate and now are watching tv and I am doing the blog. Well time to say good night and we love all you guys.


Picture List:1-St Andrew Skirmish, 2-4-St Andrew Bay Saltworks Site, 5-Salt Kettle at the Oaks Bay Park, 6-Four Headed Palm in Oak Bay Park, 7-Carved Tree at the Marina, 8-A Boat at the Marina (how the poor live), 9-10-911 Memorial at the Pier Park Marina.