Page 129 - some-stuff-i-wrote-and-some-stuff-i-didn't-(2011)-h-morris-williams

Some Stuff I Wrote (2001) H. Morris Williams

The ceremony at 3:00 p.m. next Sunday will mark the first Florida Historical Marker to be

placed on a church in this county - and it will be the last one the State of Florida sponsors as they
are revising their policy of sponsoring markers. The church is located four miles south of Lake City
on SR 41 South. The public is invited to attend this historic ceremony.

Dead Man ’s Curve
April 19,1994

There used to be an S-curve near Lake City that local people called “Dead Man’s Curve.”

The curve was located a few miles north on Highway 41. It was a deadly curve, made all the more
dangerous by the narrow, single lane road and the railroad track that ran smack dab in the middle of

the “S”.
Local people knew about the curve and respected it. They knew to slow down and be careful.
But tourists didn’t know about it - they would sometimes ignore the warning signs and barrel into

the curve at high speeds, even at night or during heavy rains. The result was that a lot of bad wrecks
happened there and over the years several people were killed. Thus, the name “Dead Man’s Curve”.

What was the worst accident that ever happened there? I don’t know for sure but I can tell
you about one I remember hearing the most about - and it still makes chill bumps run down my

spine every time I think about it. You should stop reading right here if you are faint of heart.
The accident involved two vehicles, a tourist car and a log truck, and it happened at night.

The tourist car was approaching the curve heading south. The loaded log truck, also pointed south,
was parked on or near the highway just beyond the curve, with one long log hanging way out beyond
the other logs. Inside the tourist car were three riders; a couple sitting in the front seat and a lady

seated in the middle of the back seat. The tourist’s car made it safely through the curve but then
immediately came upon the log truck stopped directly in front of them. With no time to stop or turn,

the tourists drove directly into the long, overhanging log, at highway speed. Like a high powered
battering ram, the log crashed through the car’s windshield and went exactly between the couple
seated in the front seat. Miraculously, they were barely injured. But the lady in the back seat... .the

log just decapitated her, took her head right off and out through the back window. You can imagine

-124-

www.LakeCityHistory.com LCH-UUID: CD05D759-5273-4705-A6D7-381FCF749098