On Friday, the City of Niceville announced that it will dedicate and unveil three Florida historical heritage markers on October 6, 2022 at Lions Park in Niceville.
The Old Maritime City marker will depict that, until the advent of the automobile, all commerce in the area was by water. In 1911, the steamer Belle, loaded with naval stores, sank with the loss of four lives including local Capt. Noah Edward Burlison.
- The Niceville Fish Company, operated by Claude Meigs and the Spence Brothers Fish Company, were the leading commercial fishing industries of the Choctawhatchee Bay region, maintaining fish warehouses and fleets of boats.
The Boggy Mill Company Site marker will highlight the timber and lumber industry during the early 1900’s. The complex consisted of 40 acres, one of the largest lumber‐mills operating in the area in the early 1900’s.
The Niceville Fire 1934 marker tells of the fire that destroyed three grocery stores, a dry goods store, creamery, post office building, hotel, drug store and fish warehouses, estimated at $100,000 (worth $2,000,000 today).
- According to the City of Niceville, there was no running water to combat the flames and it appeared, for a time, that the town would be completely destroyed until the forest firefighters and Civilian Conservation Corps workers took charge.
The public is invited to attend a Dedication and Unveiling Event at Lions Park (940 Bayshore Dr. in Niceville) at 10:00 on October 6, 2022. State Representative Patt Maney will also participate in the program.
