OUT OF THE PAST: Exploring Old Spanish Trail facts, fictions
By Robert Hurst | Bay County Historical Society | Special to The News Herald
For a long time, I had wondered whether there ever was a Spanish Trail that connected Florida’s St. Augustine with California or Mexico, or even Spain’s other Florida provincial capital of Pensacola.
The Old Spanish Trail held my interest, but I felt it was too large of a project to tackle. That was until, in my investigations of local pioneer trails, I discovered a 1778 “Map of the Road from Pensacola in West Florida to St. Augustine in East Florida.
PANAMA CITY Four local history authors are joining forces for a series of book signing events in Panama City next week.
Robert Hurst ( The Spanish Road ), Willie Spears ( Who was Hawk Massalina? ), Nancy Hudson ( George West: His Path in History ), and Kenny Redd ( Odyssey of the Enchanter ) will share their work from 5 to 7 p.m. Feb. 18 at the Panama City Publishing Co. Museum, 1134 Beck Ave.; from 10 a.m. to noon Feb. 20 at the Bay County Historical Museum, 133 Harrison Ave.; and 1-3 p.m. Feb. 21 at History Class Brewing Co., 6 E. Fourth St.
The featured books examine three of the most historically significant men to influence the development of Bay County, Hudson said, as well as the Spanish Trail across North Florida on which two of those men most likely traveled during some portion of their lives.
PANAMA CITY The story of Hawk Massalina, an early African American pioneer in Bay County, is the stuff of legends. But for author, coach and motivational speaker Willie Spears, Massalina was the subject of old family stories. When my grandmother was alive Hawk s youngest child, Helen I would always tell her I was going to film her talking about her famous father. I said the same to my two aunts, her sisters, Spears said. We as a family dropped the ball by not getting a first person account of his life documented.
Spear s new illustrated children s book about his great-grandfather, Who was Hawk Massalina? is now available for purchase at $15 from Amazon.com and directly from the author through his website, WillieSpears.com.
LOOKING BACK: Christmas at the home of Panama City s founder
By Nancy Hudson and Robert Hurst | Special to The News Herald
When I read the diary and other publications of George M. West, I can t help but feel that he had a sense he was contributing a bit of history in our city. After all, he came to realize in his lifetime that he was a founder of our city. One part of this was his detailed descriptions of Christmas with the West family.
The new exhibit at the Bay County History Museum attempts to portray a part of their holiday tradition.