From Northwest Florida with Love: A Local’s Perspective by Jen Dodrill

I moved to Gulf Breeze, Florida (outside Pensacola), the summer before I started 6^th grade. At that time I think there was one stoplight. We walked to the Tastee Freeze on the weekends for an ice cream. The elementary, middle, and high schools were, still are, all in a line on the main road. I loved to ride my bike around our neighborhood. For a kid, it was a great place to live. 

The Florida Panhandle is more “South Alabama” than what people think of when they imagine Florida living. It’s very different from the rest of the state.

But when I drive “home” from where I live in west Tennessee and see the sparkling water, smell the salty air, and have a pelican follow me across the bridge, I know I grew up in a truly special place.

One of my favorite locations to visit is Pensacola Beach. I think the white sands and emerald-green water are a part of my DNA. In high school we’d go out there to swim in the sound for P.E. The whole beach area has grown in the years between when I was eleven and now, but I still love seeing the Island Cross. Erected in 1959, the cross commemorates the 400^th anniversary of Tristan de Luna’s landing in Pensacola and the first mass celebrated there. It survived numerous hurricanes until Hurricane Ivan in 2004. It was replaced in 2006.

Fort Pickens was the site of field trips, camping trips, and plenty of beach trips for me. Built in the 1800s to protect the Pensacola Bay and Navy yard from attack, the Fort was involved in the Civil War and WWII.

I always thought the fact that Geronimo stayed there was “cool.” Now that I’m older—and since I used Fort Pickens in my second book and did actual research—I understand that while Geronimo wasn’t a good guy, he and his band of men were used as free labor to work on the Fort. He was also exploited as a tourist attraction. In several things I read, he had an average of twenty people come to view him daily.

Probably because I’m a Navy brat at heart, and then my husband served in the Navy for over twenty-two years, NAS Pensacola has always been a favorite of mine. The base was designated as a Naval Air Station in 1911 and is considered the “cradle of naval aviation.” When we moved to Florida, my dad was out of the Navy but worked civil service. I’ve been to the base many times over the years.

Once I had kids, I’d take them to see the Blue Angels and visit the National Naval Aviation Museum. Barrancas National Cemetery, established in 1868, is located on the base. It’s a beautifully peaceful area that features many people of historical significance, including 390 Medal of Honor recipients, soldiers from both sides of the Civil War, and British pilots who died while training at the base during WWII.

My dad and stepmom are also interred at Barrancas.

Before my fear of snakes grew to exponential portions, I loved Blackwater River State Park. When I attended Pensacola Junior College, I took canoeing as one of my P.E.s, but I’d already canoed in Blackwater many times. A state park since 1968, you can canoe, kayak, camp, and picnic for a small fee.

I’d be remiss to ignore the influence of Native Americans in the northwest Florida area. Less than influence really, and more the fact that they settled the region from at least as early as A.D. 1000. Apalachees, Creek, Seminole, and more trace their ancestry to the area.

My memories are tied up in the extreme northwest Florida panhandle, but there are plenty more things to do as you go east along the coast. Maybe one day, when I finish exploring where I grew up, I’ll check those out. In the meantime, if you want to enjoy white sand beaches and lots of history, you need to visit the Pensacola/Gulf Breeze area.

Jen Dodrill is living out her dreams on the pages of her books, bringing readers compelling stories of inspiration and hope for good times and bad. 
As a mother of five, she cherishes the time she has now to tell her stories in between her honored role as Grandma, her passion for reading, and her adoration of all things coffee. 
Her first book, Birds Alive! An Empty-nesters Cozy Mystery was released in 2024. Book #2 in the series, Where’s the Quetzal, came out in February 2025. Book #3, No Egrets, will be published in 2026.

For more information about Jen, her books, and more, check out her blog:
https://jendodrillwrites.com/