Apalachicola, the county seat of Franklin County is 80 miles southwest of Tallahassee and 60 miles east of Panama City on the Apalachicola River and the Gulf on US-98. Once known as West Point, the town took the name of Apalachicola deriving from the Hitchiti Indian words "apalahchi" (on the other side) and "okli" (people) "people on the other side" soon after it was incorporated.
Apalachicola, the county seat of Franklin County is 80 miles southwest of Tallahassee and 60 miles east of Panama City on the Apalachicola River and the Gulf on US-98. Once known as West Point, the town took the name of Apalachicola deriving from the Hitchiti Indian words "apalahchi" (on the other side) and "okli" (people) "people on the other side" soon after it was incorporated.
Formed in the 1820s and 1830s, the town plan was based on one developed for Philadelphia in a rectangular fashion with an open square located near each of its four corners and a larger square at the town's center. A trading post called Cottonton was located on the current site of Apalachicola. In 1827, the town was incorporated as West Point. Apalachicola received its current name in 1831, by an Act of the Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida.
In the 19th century, Apalachicola was Florida's largest cotton port and the third largest on the Gulf behind New Orleans and Mobile.
Dr. John Gorrie who invented an ice-making machine to cool the rooms to prevent yellow fever put Apalachicola on the map in 1848. Botanist Alvan Wentworth Chapman settled in Apalachicola in 1846. In 1860, he published his major work, Flora of the Southern United States.
Apalachicola Bay is a very productive tidal bay system fed by the nutrient-rich Apalachicola River. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, the sponge trade, led by Greek immigrants, was a major industry in the town. Apalachicola is still the home port for a variety of seafood workers, including oyster harvesters and shrimpers. The majority of Florida's oyster harvest comes from Apalachicola Bay.
Local attractions include the St. Vincent's National Wildlife Refuge, Fort Gadsden State Historic Site, Cape St. George Lighthouse, John Gorrie State Museum, Apalachicola Maritime Museum, Apalachicola's Historic District including the Trinity Episcopal Church holding services since 1836 and the half million-acre Apalachicola National Forest.
Community events include the Florida Seafood Festival and Light Up Christmas Celebraton.
Nearby communities include Eastpoint (8 miles), Port St. Joe (21.5 miles), Carrabelle (24 miles), Wewahitchka (30.5 miles), Mexico Beach (32 miles), Sopchoppy (41.5 miles), Tyndall AFB (47 miles) and Bristol (48.5 miles).
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