Hailey Heseltine
ECB Publishing, Inc.
Today, Monticello is the only incorporated town in Jefferson County. This has been true for nearly the county's entire history, with the exception of only a few brief years, when Lloyd and Aucilla incorporated into towns. Both reversed the decisions shortly after.
This 1915 photograph shows an unidentified man on horseback, standing in front of Elijah Grantham's sawmill. Grantham, who was a county commissioner, owned the largest mill in Fanlew.
Even though there is only one town, a lot lies between Georgia and the Gulf, the Aucilla River and Leon and Wakulla. Communities have been established in all corners and boundaries and everything between. Those communities were particularly important historically, especially before the widespread use of technology like cars, which allowed people to travel further distances easier and faster. Before then, communities had to be somewhat self-reliant, with their own businesses, schools, churches and post offices, such amenities could not be easily accessed elsewhere. Even though many of these places are not nearly as populous as they used to be, they still have interesting histories as valuable parts of the county's past and present.
The Malloys were a prominent family in the Fanlew area even before it was called Fanlew. This photograph, dated 1880, shows the family at their home. From left to right are Angus, Bell, Sam and Tom.
One of Jefferson County's lesser-known communities is Fanlew, which is officially an unincorporated place according to the U.S. Geological Survey. As identified in the survey, it sits on the southwest side of the county, near where Jefferson, Leon and Wakulla counties meet, fairly close to the Wakulla and Aucilla rivers. The community is said to have been named for Mr. and Mrs. Phillips, John Lewis and Fannie, allegedly credited as founders of the Florida Central Railroad. The place the community emerged from was a distribution center for that railroad, and later the Atlantic Coast Line. The Fanlew Trading Company opened there in 1905, supported by several railroads and extensions: Tallahassee and Southeastern and the Natural Bridge Railway.
This photograph was taken in 1910, when Fanlew was at the height of its activity and population. It was mostly supported by nearby sawmills. This is an employee group portrait at an unnamed sawmill. Some of the workers seem to be children.
Fanlew, like many of Jefferson County's unincorporated communities, was supported by the logging industry. Multiple logging camps and sawmills, including Pinhook,Wainwright and the Tallahassee Sawmill Company, brought workers and their families. By 1910, about 450 families had taken up residence there.
The community's original name wasn't Fanlew. In 1904, it was actually named Delph, after its first postmaster, Waring Hudson Delph. However, the post office was short-lived, and by 1909 mail for the community went through the Cody community instead. Thus, the name was changed.
The Granthams were among the most prominent families in the Fanlew area, due in part to Elijah Grantham's Mill. Pictured in this early 20th century photo are Charles Malloy and Carolyn Grantham Malloy with their horse and buggy in Fanlew. They were longtime residents of the community.
At the height of its activity around 1910, Fanlew had two stores and a large hotel in addition to the logging and turpentine mills. Elijah Grantham, a county commissioner, was among the most prominent businessmen in the area. He operated a large turpentine still and sawmill in addition to lumber holdings elsewhere.
Though Fanlew never boomed quite as much as it did in the 1910s, it was still alive and well in the 1920s, when county commissioners voted to extend a county road from Fanlew to Flint Rock by the Gulf. According to the Monticello News, it was said to open up “50 miles of the best fishing” and would thus benefit property owners, who could have easier transportation, and tourists.
Though Fanlew's heyday was in 1910, and it declined as access to the automobile rose, it was still home to many by the mid-20th century. Pictured here is a large group gathered for Carolyn and Charles Malloy's 50th wedding anniversary in 1950.
Growing access to the new automobile, along with the the shuttering of many local turpentine mills by the mid-20th century, likely contributed to Fanlew's decline. Today, it is simply designated as an unincorporated place. Since it is not a census-designated place, data of population and other factors are not recorded. There are still, however, plenty of people who call it home, and plenty of local history to learn.