Bus driver suspended for texting while driving
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Bus driver suspended for texting while driving

A longtime Franklin County school bus driver will face a hearing before a Tallahassee administrative law judge, and possible termination by the school board, after an investigation by school officials found multiple instances of her using her cell phone while driving a bus. At the March 28 school board meeting, the board voted 3-2 to…

Volunteers honored at boat and car show
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Volunteers honored at boat and car show

Shiny varieties of vintage boats and classic cars lined up in front of Riverfront Park April 20, for the Apalachicola Bay Chamber of Commerce’s 25th Boat & Car Show. But the real cream puffs were the names announced as the county’s top volunteers. In a presentation amidst the show, Chamber Director John Solomon and Board…

Carrabelle twirls along the river
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Carrabelle twirls along the river

It was as if the stars of the show got pulled away at the last minute, and the understudies had to perform, and they ended up doing a pretty fine job. The Adventure Family Circus, an internationally touring small family circus show slated to perform at Saturday’s 2024 Carrabelle Riverfront Festival, canceled a few days…

Franklin County kids design license tags
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Franklin County kids design license tags

Franklin County Tax Collector Richard Watson has announced the 2024 Kids Tag Art winners All fifth graders in Franklin County were invited to compete for small cash prizes by drawing a specialty license tag with a theme of Historical Franklin County.  Leeah Ward from the Franklin County School took first place. Second place went to…

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Unemployment up in Gulf, down in Franklin

Joblessness in Gulf County rose in March, and fell in Franklin, as both Forgotten Coast counties hovered around the 3.2 percent mark. According to preliminary data released Friday by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, Gulf County unemployment rose by three-tenths of 1 percentage point last month, from 2.9 to 3.2 percent. Franklin County joblessness…

Lady Seahawks seeded second, Liberty first, for districts
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Lady Seahawks seeded second, Liberty first, for districts

The Lady Seahawk fastpitch team won two out of three games last week and improved their record to 14-9. The team is currently ranked ninth in the Class 1A FHSAA power rankings, and will host the District 4 tournament as the #2 seed from April 30 through May 2.  Liberty County is the top seed,…

City backs new pavilion, restrooms at gardens
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City backs new pavilion, restrooms at gardens

After several residents questioned the plan, and several came forward to defend it, a divided Apalachicola city commission earlier this month approved of a plan by the Florida State Parks to add bathrooms and a permanent covered pavilion to the Chapman Botanical Gardens adjacent to the Orman House Historic State Park. At the April 2…

Apalachicola boat captains charged with vessel homicide
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Apalachicola boat captains charged with vessel homicide

Nearly a year after their boats collided in the Apalachicola River on April 29, 2023, two Apalachicola boat captains have been charged with vessel homicide stemming from the collision. On April 20, Austin Jarrett Finch, 24, and James Ellis Maxwell, 60, both of Apalachicola, were charged with vessel homicide, a second degree felony, following an…

Apalachicola Home and Garden Tour marks 30 years
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Apalachicola Home and Garden Tour marks 30 years

The Porter House, a Queen Anne-style home built around 1901, highlights the Historic Apalachicola Home and Garden Tour Saturday, May 4, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Now in its 30th year, the annual event hosted by Trinity Episcopal Church, 76 Sixth Street, showcases some of the town’s most distinguished homes, both old and new….

Abell to spend life in prison for Seiden murder
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Abell to spend life in prison for Seiden murder

Almost exactly six years since the evening he pummeled to death a woman he claimed he asked to marry him just weeks earlier, Zachary Abell will spend the rest of his life in a state prison for the crime. Dressed in the county jail’s orange jumpsuit, a sharp contrast to the three-piece suit he wore…