Suwannee River

Map of the Suwannee River

The Suwannee River ( also Suwanee River or Swanee River ) is a river that flows through the U.S. states of Florida and Georgia. Its length is 426 kilometers.

The river has its source in the Okefenokee Swamp in Fargo. The river then flows in a southwesterly direction to Florida. In its course it has the only waterfalls in Florida. In White Springs, the flow direction changes in a westerly direction, here also open the Alapaha River and the Whitlacoochee River in the Suwannee River. In the vicinity of the place in Suwannee Florida, the river empties into the Gulf of Mexico.

History

At the time of Spanish exploration expeditions in the 1530s, lived on the river banks the people of the Timucua, who called the river Suwani. The name can be translated with Echo River. In the 18th century Seminoles lived by the river. Shortly before the American Civil War perverted a steamboat on the river. In the late 19th century was a health resort in White Springs, because there discovered sulfate sources, which one zusprach a healing effect.

Music

The Suwannee River is the theme of Stephen Foster's ballad " Old Folks at Home ," in which he speaks of a Swanee River. Foster was actually referring to the Pedee River in South Carolina, but wrote the name of the river wrong. Foster himself never saw the river, which he made famous. George Gershwin song that was made famous by Al Jolson, the river also spelled wrong. Here he is, Swanee. In both pieces of music banjos play a role and draw on reminiscences, which are more typical of the plantation life in South Carolina than in the swamps and small farms on the coast of Georgia and Florida.

Starting in 1952, a country show called Suwanee River Jamboree was from Live Oak, Florida, sent, whose name is based on the Suwanee River. Moderators were the Stanley Brothers.

The Suwannee River Wilderness Trail

The Suwannee River today has a long-distance trail, called the Suwannee River Wilderness Trail. It is thanks to the joint efforts of the Ministry of Environment of Florida, the Suwannee River Water Management District and eight counties along the Suwannee River Valley. The trail leads from the Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park to the Gulf of Mexico.

Swell

  • River in North America
  • River in Georgia
  • River in Florida
  • Water System Gulf of Mexico
Georgia (U.S. state) Pee Dee River
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