All About
Though Liberty County has changed somewhat, and its
citizens now enjoy all the comforts and conveniences of civilization, it
remains fundamentally the same as when it was established more that 120 years
ago. Liberty County was created as the 32nd county by an act of
Florida's legislature on December 15, 1855, and was named for the great
objective of the people who founded and build the United States.
What is now Liberty was originally, for one year, a part of Escambia
County. At that time, Florida was divided into two big areas- St. Johns County
, east of the Suwannee River, and Escambia County, west of the river. Next,
it was for one year a part of Jackson County; then, for 32 years it remained
a part of Gadsden County. Currently, Gadsden County serves as its northern
boundary; Franklin County is the southern, Ocklocknee River the eastern,
and Apalachicola River the western boundary.
Liberty County is sparsely populated, with only 7,439 persons as of 1997. Bristol, which is the largest city in the county and serves as the county seat, is the only incorporated city in the county. Liberty County contains approximately 536,320 acres, most of which is undeveloped.
Residents of Liberty County enjoy a mild climate with a mean annual temperature of 65.2 F. Temperatures range from an average low of 47.7 F in January to an average of 80.6 F in July. The average date for the first freeze in the fall months is November 12 and the last freeze in the spring months, February 19. The number of frost-free days between these dates is 266. Rainfall in Liberty County varies from year-to-year, but usually ranges from 56-60 inches annually with an average relative humidity of 76%. Heavy rainfall occurs in two distinct seasons: (1) during the summer due largely to afternoon and evening thundershowers; and (2) late winter and early spring due to frontal systems. The summer thunderstorms are of usually short duration while the winter and spring frontal systems may last up to several days.
The Liberty County School System operates five schools: Toler School and Liberty County High School and Middle School located in Bristol; Hosford Elementary and Junior High School in Hosford and the Liberty County Adult School in Bristol. College level and vocational training are available in Marianna (30 miles) at Chipola Junior College and in Tallahassee at Florida State University, Tallahassee Community College, Florida A&M University and Lively Vocational School.
The Calhoun Liberty Hospital in Blountstown (4 miles over the county line) offers general medical and emergency medical services. The 36-bed facility has a 6 person medical staff, nurses and 8 active medical consultants. The Tallahassee Memorial Regional Medical Center serves the special medical needs of the population.
The Apalachicola River is an available and dependable means of transportation both to and from Liberty County. The increasing cost of overland transportation is making water transportation increasingly cost-efficient.
There is a brand new bridge, opened just this year, across the beautiful Apalachicola River located between the towns of Bristol and Blountstown.
There are two existing barge ports with excellent access to Liberty County industries: the barge port at Blountstown and the Port of Florida West at Sneads.
The nearest deepwater port is located at Panama City, just 53 miles southwest of Liberty County. The Panama City Port has a depth of 34 feet.
The major east-west highway serving Liberty County is State Road 20, which connects Panama City and the State Capitol at Tallahassee. Both cities are approximately 45 miles from the county seat of Bristol.
The major north-south routes through Liberty County are State Road 12 and State Road 65. The City of Bristol is linked to Interstate 10 and U.S. 90 to the north by State Road 12. State Road 65 links Hosford with Interstate 10 to the north and runs south to the Gulf of Mexico.
Liberty County is served primarily by four lines: Smith Transfer, Ryder, AAA, and the United Parcel Service. Smith Transfer maintains a terminal in nearby Marianna with interchanges in Tallahassee, Atlanta and Mobile.
The Apalachicola Northern Railroad, a class 11 carrier, travels north-south through the county passing through Telogia, Hosford, and the industrial site northe of Hosford. Its principal terminal is in Port St. Joe and it joins the Family Lines systems at River Junction (Chattahoochee) to the north. The Apalachicola Northern Railroad measures just over 100 miles in length and is composed mainly of 90 pound rail with some 132 pound bolted rail sections. The principal inbound commodity is pulpwood to supply the paper industry at Port St. Joe with shipments reaching 80 carloads per day. Various other materials vital to the paper industry such as chlorine and aluminum sulfate are also received.
Liberty County has no local airport, however, the City of Blountstown (4 miles west of Bristol) has a 3,700 foot grass landing strip.
Commercial air service is available in Tallahassee and Panama City, both approximately 45 miles from Bristol, and Dothan, Alabama, approximately 60 miles.
Liberty County is centrally located with respect to serving the market areas of Southwest Georgia and Southeast alabama and all of Northwest Florida. Liberty County is located approximately midway between Panama City to the west and Tallahassee to the east.
Electric power from the City of Bristol is supplied by the Florida Public Utilities Company. The remainder of Liberty County is served by the Talquin Electric Cooperative.
Potable water in Liberty County is supplied from the Florida Aquifer. The water obtained from the Florida Aquifer is considered to be "a good quality and large quantity". Liberty County has three established water systems; in Bristol, Hosford-Telogia and in Sweetwater.
The local paper published weekly in the county is The Calhoun-Liberty Journal. Daily delivery is available from Tallahassee (Tallahassee Democrat) and Panama City (Panama City News Herald).
Although there are no television or radio stations physically located in the county, excellent reception is available from Tallahassee, Panama City and Dothan, Alabama. Blountstown also has a radio station which covers local events.
Telephone service is provided by the GT Com.
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