Upon his return to the island and his home, Williams, who had released his slaves, became active in the Underground Railroad, offering a safe house for slaves. Williams in 1858, the Williams family fled for safety when Union troops occupied their house during the civil war. 233 S 3rd Street Amelia Island Williams House The Williams House is one of the oldest and most historic homes in Fernandina Beach. According to locals, Aury’s ghost has been heard moaning around the jail, and some have spied an apparition with a bloody gash in his neck. He was hanged the next day on the gallows out back. The night before his execution, he attempted to avoid the humiliation by slitting his own throat but was caught and crudely stitched up by a surgeon to keep him alive. The infamous pirate Luis Aury, who arrived in Fernandina in 1817 to take over the island, raising the flag of the Mexican Republic, was sentenced to hang for his many crimes. if you dare.Īmelia Island Museum of History The spot to immerse yourself in Amelia Island’s rich past, Florida’s first spoken-word museum is housed in what was the Nassau County Jailhouse. Get into the Halloween spirit with ghost tours, unique things to do, and creepy places to visit on and nearby Amelia Island. Interestingly, only a few of the town’s abandoned homes remain empty a number of them - though lopsided, dilapidated and time-worn - have again become occupied.All Hallows Eve will soon be here and on an island that's been under the dominion of eight different flags and whose history includes pirates, bootleggers and other ne'er-do-wells, you can bet that there's a spooky side to our storied coast. An old cemetery is located on River Road south of Highway 90. A flywheel from the sawmill is on display at nearby Suwannee River State Park. If you hike on the Florida Trails that start at the parking lot and picnic area at the west end of the Hillman Bridge, you might catch a glimpse of some of the foundation of the Drew Mansion, though it’s usually covered by vegetation. The old bridge is there, and offers nice views of the limestone banks of the Suwannee River and the railroad bridge. In 1986, the Hillman Bridge - built by a Federal Aid Project in 1925 - was also abandoned when a new thoroughfare was built. The Drew Mansion, after having been abandoned because of flood damage, experienced years of vandalism before it burned to the ground in the 1970s. The town finally vanished after the post office closed in 1942. During the early 1900s, major flooding of the rivers and the Great Depression took their toll on the town. Though it was quickly rebuilt, there was no longer an abundance of pine available for harvest. The mill in Ellaville burned down in 1898. In 1876, he was elected governor of the state.Īfter his term as governor was completed, Drew sold his company shares to Bucki and left Ellaville to pursue other ventures in Jacksonville. George Drew became one of the richest post-Civil War businessmen in Florida. In addition to the mill and train station, it had a steamboat dock, a Masonic lodge, two churches, two schools, and a commissary. The Florida Railroad would eventually build a rail-line through town, with direct service to the mill.Įllaville was soon booming, boasting a population of about 1,000 people by the early 1870s. The mill was soon the largest in Florida, employing 500+ people. After the Civil War, Drew and his partner, Louis Bucki, opened a steam-operated sawmill. He named the town Ellaville as a tribute to Ella, his long-time African-American servant. This Civil War-era town flourished briefly in the 19th century before a series of tragedies led the town to ruin.Įllaville was founded around 1861 when George Drew, a businessman who would later become the first governor of Florida after Reconstruction, built a mansion on the western banks of the Suwannee River.
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