A Story by Melissa Farlow

Okefenokee Swamp | Blackwater, National Geographic Magazine

Mahogany-colored waters stained by tannins flow through the Okefenokee Swamp, giving life to primitive creatures such as the American alligator in this isolated and backcountry wetland. A mysterious aura surrounds the Okefenokee, named by Native Americans for “bubbling water” or “Land of the Trembling Earth.” The bottom of the spongy bog was once was ocean floor, a shallow basin on the edge of the ancient Atlantic coastal terrace. The swamp has built up over the past 6,500 years by accumulating peat. Gasses formed by decomposing plant material bubble up from the bottom, vegetation attaches itself, and little islands form. The springy, unstable land moves and shifts as you walk. The Okefenokee is one of the most remote regions in the American South. …

Okefenokee Swamp | Blackwater, National Geographic Magazine

By Melissa Farlow

Mahogany-colored waters stained by tannins flow through the Okefenokee Swamp, giving life to primitive creatures such as the American alligator in this isolated and backcountry wetland. A mysterious aura surrounds the Okefenokee, named by Native Americans for “bubbling water” or “Land of the Trembling Earth.” The bottom of the spongy bog was once was ocean floor, a shallow basin on the edge of the ancient Atlantic coastal terrace. The swamp has built up over the past 6,500 years by accumulating peat. Gasses formed by decomposing plant material bubble up from the bottom, vegetation attaches itself, and little islands form. The springy, unstable land moves and shifts as you walk. The Okefenokee is one of the most remote regions in the American South. There are no roads except on the edges. Only a canal and a few trails and boardwalks penetrate it. And two rivers — the St. Mary’s and the famed Suwannee — run out of it. Besides the unusual environment, the region has other charms. Rural traditions of the Old South include family reunions and children’s beauty contests. Music and religion remain an important part of people’s lives. Locals are described as “fiercely independent”. Many carve out a meager living harvesting pine from planted forests and fish from surrounding waters. Little pockets of communities surround the swamp where it is possible to live in near isolation. The Okefenokee is a National Wildlife Refuge, home to 440 species of birds, fish, mammals, and amphibians, thirty-two of which, including the Florida panther, are designated as endangered.

Read The Full Story
Evening light falls on a bald Cypress tree growing on the bank of the Suwannee River in northern Florida. The Suwannee headwaters are located in the Okefenokee Swamp. The river has 25 clear springs that feed into the black water as it winds through northwest Florida to the Gulf of Mexico. The river is well known because of Stephen Foster’s song “Old Folks at Home” where he immortalized the “Swannee River.” Native American tribes lived on the banks of the river prior to European settlement.
A boat cuts through reflections of clouds in the placid waters of the St. Mary’s River in Southern Georgia. The St. Mary’s forms a division between Florida and Georgia as it flows east to the Atlantic Ocean out of the Okefenokee Swamp.
An American alligator suns in the shallow, tannin-rich waters of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in Georgia. The mahogany-red hue of the water which, when reflective looks like black coffee, is caused by the acid released from decaying vegetation. An adult alligator can reach 8–12 feet in length and weigh 400 to 500 pounds. The primitive reptile was nearly hunted to extinction for sport and for its leathery hide, which is used for shoes and purses. Established in 1937, the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge protects the waters, wilderness, and wildlife of the 402,000-acre Okefenokee Swamp.
Elderly bachelor William McKinley Crews looks out the back door of his home near the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. A new bull he bought earlier in the day broke through a fence and ran away, and he has waning hopes that it will return. Crews led a reclusive life on his 160-acre farm in Moccasin Swamp, which borders the Okefenokee. His only company for many years was his older brother Daniel who was also a bachelor. Both were known for their skepticism of the outside world. Sought out by a reporter from the Miami Herald in 1982, the brothers were quoted as only fearing “God, the devil, women and electricity.” Having no running water, electricity or telephone after his brother’s death, Crews lived mostly in isolation with his fourteen cats and four heifers he jokingly called his “nuns.”
Elderly bachelor William McKinley Crews lived his life on his 160-acre farm in Moccasin Swamp that borders the Okefenokee Swamp. He began a typical day wearing his “morning hat,” a paper sack, cooking breakfast on a wood stove and pumping water from a well. Having no running water, electricity or telephone, Crews lived mostly in isolation with his fourteen cats and four heifers he jokingly calls his “nuns.”  Locals called him the “last of the old swampers.”
Campers take refuge in a cabin adorned with an American flag as they stop for the night on Billy’s Island while canoeing through the Okefenokee Swamp. There are approximately 70 islands in the Okefenokee, and local lore suggests this one was named for a Native American Seminole chief named Billy, who was murdered on the island. Established in 1937, the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge protects the waters, wilderness, and wildlife of the 402,000-acre Okefenokee Swamp.
A Florida panther lies under a fallen tree, keeping on eye on his surroundings. Few survive in the forests and swamps of southern Florida. The species is also known as the cougar, mountain lion, and puma, but in Florida it is exclusively known as the panther. The Florida panther currently has only two natural predators—alligators and humans. The highest causes of mortality for Florida panthers are automobile collisions and territorial aggression between panthers, but the primary threat to the population as a whole is loss of habitat. Efforts to save the endangered Florida panther, which number between 80 and 100 according to Defenders of Wildlife, are being made at the White Oak Conservation Center in Florida. Located along the St. Marys River, the center spans 600 acres and is surrounded by 6,800 acres of pine and hardwood forest and wetlands. Established in 1982 by philanthropist Howard Gilman, White Oak Conservation Center maintains genetically diverse populations of threatened species in spacious, natural facilities. According to the White Oak web site description calls it a “complex of research, husbandry, education and conference facilities,” which “leads professional efforts to improve veterinary care, develop holistic animal management techniques, and better understand the biology of critically endangered species. “
Fishermen break the still waters of Billy’s Lake on a foggy morning in the Okefenokee Wildlife Refuge. Located on the west side of the swamp, the lake was named for a Seminole Indian chief who lived there. Billy’s Lake is the largest of the 60 lakes in the Okefenokee. A mysterious aura surrounds the Okefenokee, a boggy, unstable wilderness in southern Georgia commonly known as “Land of the Trembling Earth.” More accurately translated, “Okefenokee” means “waters shaking” in Hitchiti, an extinct dialect in the Muskogean language family spoken in the Southeast by indigenous people related to Creeks and Seminoles. Established in 1937, the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge protects the waters, wilderness, and wildlife of the 400,000-acre Okefenokee Swamp.
Cooking dinner involves creative thinking on a wilderness canoe trip through the Okefenokee Swamp. This outdoorsman stands on seat cushions taken from his boat to keep his feet dry while boiling potatoes over a campfire. The Okefenokee Swamp is a deep bog of thick peat moss and fresh “blackwater” that is home to 440 species of birds, mammals, and reptiles, many of which are endangered. The 402,000-acre wetlands was designated a national wildlife refuge in 1937.
Sunday morning baptism in the Suwannee River is a tradition near Bell, Florida. Outdoor baptisms were common in the South in the 1950s, but many Christian churches have indoor facilities today, so few believers gather at the water for submersion in a river to proclaim their belief in Christ.
Barefoot swimmers take cover under a bridge in a summer rainstorm in South Florida. The moist climate, in combination with Florida’s heat, leads to frequent development of air-mass thunderstorms. The region receives approximately 60 inches of rain a year.
A glassy-eyed alligator that is blind in one eye glides through reflective waters of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in Georgia. This gator, frequently seen in the Suwanee Canal, is thought to have been injured during a fight with another alligator. Or perhaps it was possibly shot. The once endangered species hunts in the darkness of night. An adult alligator can live 30 to 35 years in the wild, growing 8–12 feet long and weighing from 500 to 1,000 pounds.
A rocking chair on the front porch of the St. George country store in Georgia is the best place to take refuge from a summer thunderstorm and enjoy the view along Florida Avenue.
Canoes stacked for the evening are reflected in the still waters of the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in Georgia. Okefenokee holds many mysteries. It is a boggy wilderness tract in southern Georgia commonly known as “Land of the Trembling Earth.” More accurately translated, “Okefenokee” means “waters shaking” in Hitchiti, an extinct dialect in the Muskogean language family spoken in the Southeast by indigenous people related to Creeks and Seminoles. The name refers to the gas that forms as submerged vegetation decomposes and bubbles up from the bottom of the swamp. Plants begin growing and clump together to form spongy little islands. The effect of walking on this unstable land is commonly joked about as allowing one to dance with a tree of similar weight. Established as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1937, the 402,000-acre Okefenokee is the oldest well-preserved, freshwater marsh in the U.S., the largest peat-based “blackwater” swamp in North America, and one of the largest in the world.
Candles are lit on a cake and family surrounds four-year-old Jake while singing “Happy Birthday” during a party in rural Florida.
Children are shushed during a prayer at the porch of the homestead where sometimes up to 1,000 relatives gather for the three-day celebration in Waycross Georgia. Traditional family reunion activities include an afternoon luncheon and feature music as well as historic skits that highlight a family’s history.
Children lie in a hammock during a family camping trip along the St. Marys River, a quiet meandering river popular with local families on a 4th of July weekend. White sand beaches line the black water river as it makes it 126-mile long trek from the Okefenokee Swamp to the Atlantic Ocean, forming the border between Florida and Georgia.
Early morning fog rises off the Suwannee River as it flows 246 miles from the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia through northern Florida to the Gulf of Mexico. There are 250 documented fresh water springs rising out of the ground that flow into the Suwannee watershed according to the Suwannee Water Management District. Among the more well known are the Ichetucknee Springs, Manatee Springs, and Fanning Springs. The river was immortalized by Stephen Foster with his song “Old Folks at Home,” in which he calls it the “Swanee River.” Several different Native American Indian tribes lived along the river until Spanish explorers arrived in the 1500s and settlers moving west pushed them out.  
A fisherman prepares to go out for the night to work the waters in the Gulf of Mexico. His wife, child, and dog see him off from their home in Suwannee, Florida. The secluded community is where salt waters meet spring-fed river water creating a scenic estuary surrounding the small fishing village.  Salt marshes and tidal flat attract shorebirds and act as a nursery for fish. Pompano, trout, grouper, redfish, shrimps, oysters, and sharks live in the surrounding waters.
Russ Colson pulls mullet from a net as he fishes off an airboat at night at the base of the Suwannee River in the Gulf of Mexico. He grew up in the town of Suwannee where his father was a fisherman. The famed river is one of two that drain the wetlands marsh known as the Okefenokee Swamp. The fishermen shine a light onto the water, attracting the fish, and then chase the fish into their nets by circling them.
Canoers paddle through a path in Chesser Prairie that is thick with water lilies and small islands in the Okefenokee Swamp. The wilderness trip into remote parts of the swamp takes three days to complete, and are planned so visitors see no one else on the trails. Established as a wilderness in 1937, the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge protects the waters and wildlife of the 402,000-acre swamp. The Okefenokee Swamp wilderness is in southern Georgia, and commonly known as “Land of the Trembling Earth.” More accurately translated, “Okefenokee” means “waters shaking” in Hitchiti, an extinct dialect in the Muskogean language family spoken in the Southeast by indigenous people related to Creeks and Seminoles. The name refers to the gas that forms as submerged vegetation decomposes and bubbles up from the bottom of the swamp. Plants begin growing and clump together to form spongy little islands. The effect of walking on this unstable land is commonly joked about as allowing one to dance with a tree of similar weight.
A mysterious aura surrounds the Okefenokee, wilderness of a boggy, unstable land in southern Georgia commonly known as “Land of the Trembling Earth.” More accurately translated, “Okefenokee” means “waters shaking” in Hitchiti, an extinct dialect in the Muskogean language family spoken in the Southeast by indigenous people related to Creeks and Seminoles. The name refers to the gas that forms as submerged vegetation decomposes and bubbles up from the bottom of the swamp. Plants begin growing and clump together to form spongy little islands. The effect of walking on this unstable land is commonly joked about as allowing one to dance with a tree of similar weight. Established as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1937, the 402,000-acre Okefenokee is the oldest well-preserved, freshwater marsh in the U.S., the largest peat-based “blackwater” swamp in North America, and one of the largest in the world.
A young girl dressed in a long gown follows her mother down the hallway to the stage to compete in the beauty pageant honoring Mr. and Miss St. George, Florida. Beauty pageants became part of American society in the 1920s, and children’s pageants in the ‘60s.
Fire fighters carefully watch flames and smoke from a prescribed burn set in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge. Controlled fires in the swamp help reduce the thick undergrowth in the jungle-like environment. Lightening strikes from frequent summer storms cause wild fires, which can spread to private land. The Okefenokee Swamp is a boggy, unstable wilderness in southern Georgia commonly known as “Land of the Trembling Earth.” More accurately translated, “Okefenokee” means “waters shaking” in Hitchiti, an extinct dialect in the Muskogean language family spoken in the Southeast by indigenous people related to Creeks and Seminoles. Established as a National Wildlife Refuge in 1937, the 402,000-acre Okefenokee is the oldest well-preserved, freshwater marsh in the U.S., the largest peat-based “blackwater” swamp in North America, and one of the largest in the world.
A soldier put his hat over his heart in prayer honoring his relative who was a Confederate soldier. Up to 1,000 family members gather annually for a reunion at the homestead near Waycross, Georgia, belonging to the Tatum family. On the first day of the three-day family reunion, folks arrived in costume and uniforms for a skit and reenactment of a skirmish.  
Reflected in the mirror while shaving, elderly bachelor William McKinley Crews will choose which hat he’ll wear for the day from the collection that hangs on his wall. He lived his entire life on his 160-acre farm in Moccasin Swamp located on the southwestern side of the Okefenokee Swamp in rural Georgia. With no running water, electricity or telephone, he lived with 14 cats and four heifers.
A summer evening blue sky is reflected in the waters of the St. Marys River estuary, creating a peaceful scene as the last light of the setting sun fades behind a building thunderstorm in the distance.

Find a Photograph

TIP: Use this to find a stock photo in the OlsonFarlow stock archives. Enter a name, region, country, activity or keyword phrase, For example: “Alligator, Okefenokee Swamp”

Subscribe To Newsletter

"*" indicates required fields

Hidden
Name
Hidden
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

© 2024 olsonfarlow.com. All rights reserved. Images are protected under the U.S. DMCA.

To Top ▲