The Bellamy Road was the first major U.S. federal highway in early territorial

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. It was completed in 1826. Laborers included slaves. It was preceded by El Camino Real.

History

Land travel and transportation in Florida prior to its acquisition by the United States was by foot over trails. The

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

used existing Native American trails to reach missions established in the interior of Florida. The main route from St. Augustine to the

Apalachee Province Apalachee Province was the area in the Panhandle of the present-day U.S. state of Florida inhabited by the Native American peoples known as the Apalachee at the time of European contact. The southernmost extent of the Mississippian culture, the ...

was known as ''el Camino Real'', the Royal Road. In the latter part of the 17th century the Spanish tried, with limited success, to improve the Royal Road to allow use by ox carts. In 1824, three years after Florida became a United States territory, the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

authorized the construction of a road connecting

Pensacola Pensacola ( ) is a city in the Florida panhandle in the United States. It is the county seat and only city in Escambia County. The population was 54,312 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Pensacola metropolitan area, which ha ...

to St. Augustine. The law specified crossing points for the

Choctawhatchee River The Choctawhatchee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map , accessed 15 April 2011 river in the southern United States, flowing through southeast Alabama and the Panhandle o ...

, Econfina Creek (using the natural bridge there) and the

Apalachicola River The Apalachicola River is a river, approximately long, in the state of Florida. The river's large drainage basin, watershed, known as the ACF River Basin, Apalachicola, Chattahoochee and Flint (ACF) River Basin, drains an area of approximately ...

. From Tallahassee the road was to follow the old Spanish Road (''Camino Real'') to St. Augustine, crossing the

St. Johns River The St. Johns River () is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and is the most significant one for commercial and recreational use. At long, it flows north and winds through or borders 12 counties. The drop in elevation from River s ...

at Picolata. Congress authorized US$20,000 for the project. The

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

, which was responsible for constructing the road, solicited proposals to build the eastern portion of the road. John Bellamy of

Monticello Monticello ( ) was the primary residence and plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting l ...

, with the endorsement of Florida Territorial Governor William Duval, offered to construct the road between the

Ochlockonee River The Ochlockonee River ( ) is a fast running river, except where it has been dammed to form Lake Talquin in Florida, originating in Georgia and flowing for before terminating in Florida. Background The name is from the Hitchiti language wor ...

and St. Augustine for US$13,500. The Army contracted with Bellamy, and the Ochlockonee River to St. Augustine section became known as Bellamy's (or Bellamy) Road. Old Bellamy Road sign01

Bellamy built the road using equipment and slaves from his plantation, and completed his portion of the road in 1826. The congressional act stated that the road was to be wide, but the contract with Bellamy required that the road only be wide. Tree stumps were to cut as close to the ground as possible, in order to clear a wagon's axles. Travelers quickly complained that the road was not always wide enough to let two wagons pass, that the bridges were inadequate, and that some stumps ("stump knockers") were too tall, jolting passengers and breaking axles. The Bellamy Road followed the general route of the Spanish Royal Road (''el Camino Real'') or Old Mission Trail, used by Native Americans and Spanish missionaries, running from

Mission San Luis de Apalachee Mission San Luis de Apalachee (also known as San Luis de Talimali) was a Spanish Franciscan mission built in 1656 in the Florida Panhandle, two miles west of the present-day Florida Capitol Building in Tallahassee, Florida. It was located in th ...

near Tallahassee to St. Augustine. It headed eastward through present-day Jefferson County, and then crossed the

Aucilla River The Aucilla River rises in Brooks County, Georgia, Brooks County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, USA, close to Thomasville, Georgia, Thomasville, and passes through the Big Bend (Florida), Big Bend region of Florida, emptying into the Gulf of M ...

by ferry into Madison County. The road continued eastward most of the way across Madison County until close to the

Suwannee River The Suwannee River (also spelled Suwanee River or Swanee River) is a river that runs through south Georgia southward into Florida in the Southern United States. It is a wild blackwater river, about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrog ...

, turning south into Lafayette County. The road crossed the Suwannee River by ferry into Suwannee County and ran southward close to the Suwannee River. It then passed into Columbia County, running past the Fig Springs mission site on the Ichetucknee River and entering

Alachua County Alachua County ( ) is a county in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 278,468. The county seat is Gainesville, the home of the University of Florida. History Prehistory and ear ...

using the natural bridge of the Santa Fe River at O'Leno State Park. The road continued across northern Alachua County to near Lake Santa Fe. From there, the route of Bellamy Road forms the current boundary between the northwest part of Putnam County and the southwest part of

Clay County Clay County is the name of 18 counties in the United States. Most are named for Henry Clay, U.S. Senator and statesman: * Clay County, Alabama * Clay County, Arkansas (named for John Clayton, and originally named Clayton County) * Clay County, Fl ...

. The road then crossed southeast Clay County, crossed the

at Picolata, and continued through St. Johns County to St. Augustine. Old Bellamy Road sign

Neil Coker, a former enslaved person who was interviewed by the WPA, described the Bellamy Road and its history, including stating that Mr. Bellamy exploited it as a toll road. In 1979, the road was designated as a Florida Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the

American Society of Civil Engineers The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is a tax-exempt professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, it is the oldest national engineering soci ...

References

External links

History

See also

References

External links