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Quirky Attractions in Pensacola: Flying Fish, Fighter Jets, and the Land of Hairy People

Through some 465+ years of history, our little berg along the Gulf has collected some cool stories and tall tales. We hear chatter of America’s “almost” first city, and fake news about a long lost Beatles’ Rolls Royce. We even have fish that can fly across state lines. Well, sort of. We’ll get to that.

With the help of my Greek friend Wikipedia and friendly historian/bartenders, let’s share some non-fake, tweet-worthy tidbits about Pensacola. So come on, set a spell.

The Land of Hairy People

Some 465+ years ago, Spanish explorer Don Tristan de Luna landed in “Panzacola” to establish what would be considered the first European settlement in the continental U.S.

Today, De Luna’s landing is celebrated by Fiesta Pensacola. Every June, the Fiesta forces relive the historic landing — aboard a fleet of air-conditioned cabin cruisers, sport fishers and luxury yachts.

If only Don Tristan de Luna had such radars, shrimp cocktails and luxury suites. He would have secured the supplies and the ships that got battered by that hurricane in 1559. Don Tristan eventually departed to settle in the Yucatan, leaving the honor of first city to our opposite-coast town of St. Augustine. (It’s OK, we have better beaches, and St. Augustine eventually got sacked by the English pirate and explorer Francis Drake).

So, what about our name? “Panzacola” was a Native American origin given to Spanish settlements in the 17th and 18th centuries. It means, roughly “Land of Hairy People.”

Could this have been the first hipster settlement in Florida?

The Lost Bay, Found

In 1693 Spanish scientist and cartographer Carlos de Sigüenza y Góngora was sent here to find a hidden pass that would provide safe harbor to the Spanish fleets. The story goes that Gongora was blown off-course, but a friendly native who was camped along the coast led the storm-tossed explorer to find the pass. The lost or “perdido” bay was found.

The Spanish name stuck. Perdido Key became a found treasure that proudly lives up to its name today.

The Mighty O: The Great Carrier Reef

The once mighty, combat-tested aircraft carrier USS Oriskany is serenely docked at her final resting place in the Gulf, about 28 miles south of Pensacola. Imagine an 872-foot aircraft carrier, encrusted with barnacles and harboring hulking grouper and amberjack, as it rests on the seafloor. The Mighty O was decommissioned and later donated as an artificial reef in 2006. She has since been named by The Times of London as one of the top ten wreck diving sites in the world. Local divers call it “The Great Carrier Reef.”

Finned Flyers of the Flora-Bama

Many years ago, a musician named Jimmy Louis was inspired by acow chip-tossing contest in Oklahoma. But with a shortage of cow chips in Florida, he spotted a mullet soaring briefly over the Gulf. Eureka!

So, about 1978, the soon-to-be-famous Flora-Bama Interstate Mullet Toss beach party took flight. Now, on a long weekend in late April every year, tens of thousands of people are drawn to the Florida-Alabama state line to celebrate the miracle of finned flight (sort of). Fin Facts: Mullet is one of few fish to have a gizzard, a bird-like attribute. And, scientists believe the mullet’s aimless leaps help generate oxygen

Another fun fact? Flora-Bama could have just been “The Flora.” The state-straddling lounge opened in 1964. By then, the state line had moved! Florida gave Alabama two miles of Florida's beaches in exchange for Alabama building the Perdido Pass Bridge.

Birth of the Blue Angels

The Navy’s Flight Demonstration Team — er, the Blue Angels -had numerous home bases after they started by the order of Admiral Chester Nimitz in 1946. They were originally stationed in Jacksonville, then briefly stationed at Whiting Field in nearby Milton, but set their roots at Sherman Field on NAS Pensacola in 1955 — and have nested here ever since.

Blue Angel Bullets:

- Blue Angels in Hellcats — The Blues’ first flight demonstrations were in World War II battle-tested F-6 Hellcats.
- 1946: Omaha! — The Blue Angels adopted their name after an Omaha airshow, where they saw the “Blue Angels” name coined by an article in New Yorker Magazine.
- 1947 - The Blues flew their first Diamond Formation.
- 1954 — Now That’s a Change of Command: the Blues conducted an aerial “change of command” while performing their famous, intricate Fleur de Lis maneuver. The former commander soars up and away, while the new commander slips into the lead spot.

A Morgue? What a Lovely Spot for a Ghostly Burger and a Haunted Slice of Pie!

The huge gothic stone walls of Old Sacred Heart Hospital tower over the block along 12th Avenue in Pensacola’s East Hill neighborhood. The historic Sacred Heart Hospital first opened in September 1915 as the first Catholic hospital in Florida. It flourished until 1965, when Sacred Heart relocated to its current location on Ninth Avenue. In the decades since, the grand old stone walls host a mix of residences and small businesses, including Emerald Coast Yoga & Expressive Arts, A Mano Panino and Lamonte Gelato (yum!).

They say ghosts roam the upstairs halls, but the best bit is the basement. Ozone’s Pizza Pub, located in the basement of the old hospital, and The Burrow, an indoor/outdoor hotspot for dining and live music, are rumored to be where the old morgue was. And the food is terrific!

Rarest Sea Turtle Nests

Sea turtles lumber ashore to dig their nests every spring and summer. You’ll see the nests marked by park rangers and volunteers. But did you know – Pensacola beaches host the rarest and smallest species of sea turtle too? The Kemp’s ridley nests on our beaches, so please - tread lightly and TURN OUT THE LIGHTS!

The Quartz Coast

Our squeaky, soft, sugar-white sand has traveled a very long way, for a very long time, to squeeze between your toes. Quartz particles were eroded from the Appalachian Mountains and carried south by our rivers, such as the Apalachicola, to the Gulf Pensacola Beach and Perdido Key.

Tall Tale: Lennon’s Lost Rolls Royce

For years, the white Rolls Royce sat weathering in a business parking lot along Pensacola’s Bayfront. Rumors said it once belonged to John Lennon, and its current owner did little to dissuade the story. Nope. Lennon’s 1965 Phantom V never left the British Isles. This once beautiful Gulf-coastified relic is a Silver Cloud — or Shadow.

Bushwacker, I’ll drink to that

It seems so tasty and innocent. This creamy, chocolatey alcoholic concoction enchanted former Sandshaker Lounge owner Linda Murphy when she visited the Caribbean. So, she brought the Bushwacker recipe back to Pensacola Beach. It was in the 1970s, although Bushwacker historians argue over exactly when this happened. But don’t blame the Bushwacker — it’s a Pensacola native now and you can find it in different flavors and doses from Pensacola to Perdido Key.

Take this as your sign to go discover the quirky side of Pensacola, there's a lot to go and experience.

Sean Smith

Author

Sean Smith

Sean Smith is a native of Liverpool, England, but has been Gulf Coastified since he moved to Pensacola in 1992 after serving as a weather specialist in the Air Force. A journalist and writer for more than 20 years, he loves to share his affection for the natural beauty of Pensacola and the Northwest Florida Gulf Coast.

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