For travelers in the Tallahassee area who are seeking a trip to the gulf coast, U.S. Highway 319 has long been a convenient choice. Heading due south through Crawfordville, it connects with U.S. Highway 98 which meanders close to the coast, east and west.
Initially a two lane road south of the capitol city, it has been widened in recent years to four lanes for a few miles. The lane expansion extends until about 3 ½ miles north of the Wakulla County line where it returns to two lanes.
With the increased interest in Wakulla County for residential development and many of those citizens working in Tallahassee, the demands on the thoroughfare have increased dramatically. Highway 319 clogs up twice daily during the week and on holiday weekends.
In response to the traffic situation and future population growth, expansion of U.S. 319 is currently ongoing. In addition to being a benefit to commuters’ schedules, it also serves as an evacuation route for the unforeseeable day when “The Big One” puts its sights on this section of the coast.
Traffic demands resulting from the increased population and development in Wakulla County have necessitated the widening of U.S. Highway 319. The multi-year project’s first construction leg is between the Leon County line and the northern outskirts of Crawfordville.
As one might expect, there are byproducts of the construction process. Speed limits are reduced in the construction areas, occasional delays occur and the sandy soil has been upturned, often exposing huge chunks of limestone.
Most of the tan stones are simply a uniform record of the shifting sands over eons of time. A few have clues to the long forgotten resident’s lives long before human occupation began.
The unwritten history of north Florida is recorded in the fossil record of the area’s limestone and with relics often darkened by tannic acid from trees. The remains from this prehistoric era are not dinosaurs which were long gone before many of the area’s fossils were produced.
From a geological standpoint, the Florida landmass known today is a very recent occurrence. It is thought glacial activity caused the Gulf of Mexico to retreat several times during the Pliocene Epoch, exposing what would become Florida.
The development of fossils was aided by environmental factors present at the time. First the area was geologically tranquil for 25 to 30 million years.
The remains of a variety of sea creatures which once populated the area are evident in the limestone upturned during the highway construction. Snails, bivalves, coral and other signs of prehistoric life are scattered about the work area.
While Florida was submerged, the shallow bays became stable collection points for the remains of sea-life which died. The ebb and flow of tides covered and preserved the hard tissues based on calcium.
Once the retreating sea left dry land, no mountains were pushed up by subterranean plates that would have changed rainfall patterns or caused rushing waters. The steep inclines and scouring water movement would have removed the potential fossil remains.
There were no volcanoes which would have covered large areas with lava and ash, deeply burying anything on the surface. Nor were there earthquakes which would have dropped large chunks into the gulf.
The results are shells and shell imprints, sea urchins, and bones from fish and marine mammals in the soil. Most are broken, but occasionally a complete specimen is encountered.
In the future, motorists will increase their pace of travel on U.S. Highway 319, speeding past the remnants of Wakulla County’s first residents.
What to Expect: Road construction on U.S. Highway 319 begins at the Wakulla/Leon County line and proceeds to the outskirts of Crawfordville. The speed limit is reduced in the construction zone. When the north section of the highway is complete, work will proceed on the portion south of Crawfordville to U.S. Highway 98. The final portion of the widening will occur through the town of Crawfordville.
Interesting