Marianna & Blountstown Railroad

Old Panhandle Railroad Still Chugs Down Memory Lane

January 2018

Very few images evoke a sense of Americana quite like those of the old railroad.

They remind us of the romance we have with our past and are a symbol of the progress we’ve made throughout the fledgling years of our existence. Railroads helped shape our nation, and put us on track to a more prosperous union.

The M & B Railroad served a small corridor in Northwest Florida beginning in 1909. The line ran between two nearby cities, Marianna, the “M”, and Blountstown, the “B”.

“If you wanted to go anywhere other than maybe [by] a steamboat, this was the only way to get out of town,” said Blountstown Mayor Tony Shoemake.

The line was just 29 miles long and it cost 15 cents for a one-way trip. It was the shortest railroad line in Florida.

What takes 25 minutes to travel today, took two hours back then. The train traveled at 15 miles an hour. It also had a line that went 15 miles down to Scott's Ferry, but that was shut down in 1936.

The M & B offered passenger service until 1929. The automobile and improved roads proved to be tough competition, but the need for commerce did not go away.

“Blountstown was always known as [a] lumber [town],” said Shoemake.

And lumber was what the train carried for years, among other products. Many would say M & B stood for "meat and bread" because of the commodities the railroad carried.

“Then in the later years when it started to decline it started to stand for 'many bumps' 'cause the railroad was in, you know, such bad shape,” explained Shoemake.

The railroad ultimately outlived its usefulness and in 1972 the last locomotive and its accompanying rail cars barreled down the M & B tracks for the final time.

“A lot of local businessman tried hard to save the railroad…but weren’t able to,” said Shoemake.

But the railroad would not go quietly off into the sunset. In 2007, Blountstown leaders received a grant to restore the old train depot.

“We wanted to turn it into a small, local museum so we could showcase local history,” said Shoemake.

Inside the museum you’ll find artifacts of the railroad’s storied past. From manifests to tickets to old typewriters and telegraphs, the museum showcases prized historical remnants of an era many want to keep alive in the hearts and minds of those who share a connection with the M & B.

“And it’s an original seal for the M & B railroad," said Shoemake as he pulled out a stamp. "It’s what they used to put on all their official documents, and it embosses the emblem into the paper. What it says on it, it says, ‘Marianna & Blountstown Railroad Company’ and in the center it says ‘God help us!’”

The museum extends outdoors and across the street as well.

"The steam engine is a big draw," said Shoemake. "People stop in all the time."

Locomotive number 444 was the last steam engine that roamed the tracks of the M & B Railroad. It was tracked down in Texas and brought back and restored. It sits on tracks where the old rail line once sat.

“People [visit] that can remember when the train was running when they were young, and then you have people that just like trains in general because lots of people collect train memorabilia,” said Shoemake.

The M & B's history is rich. Its stories unique. It may no longer make that 29-mile trek from Marianna to Blountstown, but it forever chugs down the tracks of the community’s collective consciousness.

Ron Marasco / WJHG Panama City FL