Suwannee is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Dixie County,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It is located on the Suwannee River near its mouth, at the southern end of the Big Bend region of Florida. It is 23 miles southwest of

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...

, to which it is connected by County Road 349. Suwannee is a fishing village, with a population of about 300. It caters for both freshwater fishing in the river and saltwater fishing in the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

. During the 19th century, the area on which the town sits was an important staging ground for goods traveling to and from the cotton and tobacco plantations throughout the Suwannee Valley. The 1939 Florida guide notes that "small wood-burning

sternwheelers A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were w ...

of the Mississippi type plied the lower stretches of the Suwannee, carrying cotton, tobacco, peanuts, naval stores, and lumber from the interior to the high-masted schooners anchored at the river mouth. The ''Belle of the Suwannee'', Captain Robert Bartlett commanding, was the queen of the fleet. During the war blockade runners traveled up and down the stream; several were burned and sunk, but many succeeded in eluding the

Federal Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...

gunboats." The town is surrounded by the

Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge The Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge (LSNWR) is part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System. It is located in southeastern Dixie County, Florida, Dixie and northwestern Levy County, Florida, Levy counties on the western coast ...

. There is a canoe/kayak trail into the refuge from launch sites in the town.U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Lower Suwannee NWR Canoe/Kayak Trail
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References

External links

Unincorporated communities in Dixie County, Florida Unincorporated communities in Florida Populated coastal places in Florida on the Gulf of Mexico {{DixieCountyFL-geo-stub