Madison, Florida

Have you ever watched a movie where someone closes their eyes and finds a destination on a map by stabbing at it with their finger? That's pretty much how I chose Madison, Florida as a midway point between DeFuniak Springs and Winter Springs during my automobile trip to Florida in October, 2012.

The Town

As it turned out, Madison is a quintessential small town and the seat of Madison County. Its wide streets, historic buildings and Four Freedoms Park containing several monuments make it attractive. I knew I was in Florida when I saw palm trees and live oaks draped with Spanish moss. 

Madison County Courthouse at dusk

And I knew I was in the South when I saw the commanding Confederate soldier's monument in the center of the park. Since African Americans made up 62.43% of the population in the 2000 census, I thought it fitting that a monument to the former slaves of Madison County was placed on one of the corners of the park in 1996. 

Four Freedoms Monument

Also prominently displayed in the park is the Four Freedoms Monument, based on the ideals articulated in a speech to Congress in January, 1941 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. It's one of four such monuments in the United States, with the others located in Indiana, Ohio and on Roosevelt Island in New York City. 

Four Freedoms Monument. Confederate monument is seen in the right rear

Natural North Florida

Madison is situated in the midst of Natural North Florida, making it a hub for outdoor activities of all types. The water enthusiast can enjoy canoeing, cave diving, fishing, and swimming in the rivers that border the county on three sides and in the nearby Madison Spring Blue State Park. 

The Ladell Brothers Outdoor Environmental Center on the campus of the North Florida Community College was developed to preserve the homes of as many species of plants and animals as possible. It's also a site for the Great Florida Birding Trail, a network of 514 sites covering 2,000 miles in the state.

The cycling enthusiast can enjoy a 100+ mile loop on country roads with some cycling lanes. Billed as the Four Freedoms Trail, it begins and ends at the park in downtown Madison. Additionally, the Adventure Cycling Association of America includes Madison in their Southern Tier, Section 7 map. Linda, the hostess at my B&B told me that she had had some European guests who flew to California with their bicycles and rode cross country to Madison!

Adventure Cycling's Southern Tier, Section 7, map

Lodging

TripAdvisor lists five motels and two B&Bs for Madison. I stayed at The Unity House B&B because I liked the looks of the colorful, clean and modern rooms on the website. Linda told me how her faith had led her there, even though she'd never stayed in a B&B or been to Madison before. Even so, she was successful in creating a peaceful atmosphere in which I enjoyed a restful sleep and a delicious filling breakfast in the sunny breakfast room the next morning. 

Breakfast at the Unity House 

The dining room - all the furnishings purchased from a Miami resale store

Scenes from Madison

I couldn't resist taking a photo of this fire engine 'vignette'

Fountain in Four Freedoms Park with Courthouse across the street

One of the historic homes near Four Freedoms Park

Museum in the downtown area

 

Lake Frances

Happy cows. Florida ranks 11th in the nation in total cattle numbers

DeFuniak Springs, Florida

I lived in Florida for 18 years. Before that, I read a chapter about it in the Reader's Digest's book, America From the Road, entitled 'A Land Like No Other'. If you're a writer, you've no doubt heard of the importance of "the hook". Well, I was hooked by that title, and once I moved there, by Florida. I read about it voraciously and made it my goal to visit every corner of that strangely shaped state. One place that always intrigued me was DeFuniak Springs, in the panhandle, between Pensacola and Tallahassee. At the time, I lived eight or nine hours away, in Ft. Lauderdale. I tried to visit DeFuniak Springs several times, but something always happened to prevent me.

  Perhaps that intrigue stemmed from its claim of being the home of one of only two perfectly round lakes in the world, the Victorian homes that line it, or the area's rich history, including the fact that it was the winter home of the Chautauqua movement from 1885 to the early 1900's. People from all over America converged there by train, paid a gate fee and attended keynote speeches and sessions relating to art, education, recreation and religion. 

Today, only a handful of Chautauqua communities are left, but the idea of Chautauqua is experiencing a rebirth. The North Carolina mountain town of Andrews, 20 minutes from my home, hosts Chautauqua Andrews twice a year, which I've enjoyed attending several times. 

DeFuniak Springs Chautauqua Hall of Brotherhood on Circle Drive

Devotees have put together the Chautauqua Trail of towns, including DeFuniak Springs, home of Florida Chautauqua, to help people find them.

Hotel DeFuniak and Bogey's Restaurant


Finally, I was successful in visiting DeFuniak Springs, and I enjoyed it as much as I had hoped I would. I booked a room at the Hotel DeFuniak, which terms itself a small boutique hotel, and has received 4&1/2 stars from TripAdvisor reviewers, earning it their "Seal of Excellence". Well deserved, I might add.

Hotel DeFuniak lobby

After fortifying myself with the delicious full breakfast that was included in the moderate room rate, which I enjoyed in the charming dining room that is attached to both the hotel lobby and Bogey's Restaurant, the venue for the excellent dinner that I enjoyed the night of my arrival, I set out to explore.

My first stop was at the Visitors Center, where I picked up a Walking Tour of historic Circle Drive brochure, listing 39 buildings and homes of interest around the lake. 

I had brought my bicycle with me, anticipating rides on the flat terrain of Florida, and I was not disappointed here. I enjoyed the sun, balmy breezes and birdsong as I happily pedaled along, with a few stops to take photos.

650 Circle Drive, built for Judge Angus Graham Campbell, c 1905

Magnolia Grandiflora, with a spreading crown of 72 feet, the 8th largest of Florida's champion trees

Plantation style house

Brick house and oak tree

At 3 Circle Drive, stands the Walton-DeFuniak Library, the oldest structure in Florida built as a library and still serving that purpose.

In the 1880's, Wallace Bruce, who moved to DeFuniak Springs around 1890, was the ambassador to Scotland and lived in Edinburgh. His son, Kenneth, began collecting European armor, which is housed in the library. Some of the pieces date back as far as the Crusades (1100-1300 AD). Sadly,I was "foiled" in my attempt to see the collection. The librarian told me that they had closed that part of the library until they could get the bat infestation there under control! I had to console myself by enjoying the library's reading garden.

Too soon, I had to leave DeFuniak Springs for my next stop, Madison, Florida. Next time, I hope to stay longer and to see that armor collection. If you go, you might consider picking up these guidebooks:

Scenic Driving Florida, by Jan Annino Godown, and

Off the Beaten Path Florida, a guide to unique places, by Diana & Bill Gleaner, 

both of which can be ordered through our local vendor, Curiosity Shop Bookstore.