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Some Stuff I Wrote (2001) H. Morris Williams

Later, a safety officer investigated the accident and questioned whether any one man could
have lifted the heavy weight all by himself. The safety officer estimated that three men, fully
straining, would be needed to lift such a heavy weight. But eyewitnesses like Elwood and Ralph

Tyre and others came forward to say they were there and saw Bo lift the turret by himself. There
were so many eyewitnesses that the safety officer concluded that the sight of a critically injured and

suffering friend had somehow given Bo the extra strength he needed to lift the weight. To top it off,
Bo himself, could not lift the turret later on - could not even budge it — when there was no crisis to

motivate him.

A Dream Come True

April 12,1994

Next Sunday, April 17, a seven-year dream will come true for Aleene Markham Havird and

the people of Bethel United Methodist Church. Their beloved church will receive a historical marker
from the State of Florida.

These words on the marker tell the whole story of the occasion, “Old Bethel Church was first
organized by Alligator area settlers as early as the 1820s. The original church was a small log

structure located some two miles northeast of this site. In 1855, this building was erected to
accommodate a growing number of parishioners. One of only a few antebellum church buildings
which have survived a rural Florida, Bethel Church has served its congregation continuously since

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its mid-19th century founding. The church has been known as the white church by the side of the
road” for over a century.
The Bethel Church will be officially confirmed as one of the oldest in the state of Florida.
Going way back, church records show that Zachariah Randall Roberts joined the Bethel Church on

profession of faith under Rev. John L. Jerry about 1824. The present building was built in 1854-55
by G. C. Mattox and has been in continuous use ever since.

A lot of the church’s members worked together to get the church its official recognition but
everyone agrees that Aleene was the key person. She not only did the research but she also

personally “bought and paid for” the marker.
The ceremony at 3:00 p.m. next Sunday will mark the first Florida Historical Marker to be

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