COMMUNITY SHOWCASE featuring CRAWFORDVILLE HISTORIC SQUARE
Crawfordville, county seat of Wakulla County, had its earliest beginnings in the riverside town of Port Leon, located on the eastern side of the St. Marks River not far from the present day town of St. Marks. In 1843, a devastating hurricane and tidal surge destroyed the town and shipping port. Subsequently the county seat along with the surviving townspeople moved upriver to the new town aptly named New Port. It was decided in 1865 to move the county seat to Shell Point which was renamed Crawfordville after Senator John L. Crawford. Because the county continued to grow to the south and to the west, in 1892, the county seat moved once again to be more centrally located and remains where it is today.
This Historic Courthouse still standing was completed in 1894. It is solidly constructed of heart pine with a cupola graced by a unique cypress weathervane, hand carved in the shape of a mullet, a commercial fish important to the history of Wakulla. The Old Wakulla Courthouse is listed in the National Register of Historic Places, one of the only three existing wooden courthouses in the state.
Across the street from the Historic Courthouse stands the Old County Jail. Built in 1947-48, the jail operated there until 1972. The building was saved from proposed demolition to make way for a courthouse parking lot. It is now houses the Wakulla County Archives and Museum operated by the Wakulla County Historical Society. Inside the fully functional museum are historic displays, a museum shop, and a genealogy room for research.