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General Note

Captain Laurence White is on dock in the foreground.

Biographical Note

Accompanying note: "Bryant Grady Patton was born on October 8, 1896, in Apalachicola, Florida to Mr. and Mrs. George A. Patton. Patton served in World War I and later as a Colonel in the National Guard. During the 1920s, Bryant Patton sold life insurance and worked as a broker for oil leases before becoming an oil company executive in Oklahoma. During this time, Patton helped organize the national American Legion. Sometime after 1930, Patton moved back to Apalachicola and formed a partnership in cattle ranch and saw mill businesses in Apalachicola between 1941 and 1943. In 1944, he started his seafood business, the Apalachicola Fish and Oyster Company, which he operated until 1951. During the late 1940s, Patton hired a photographer to take photographs of his seafood business to promote his business.

He served in the Florida House of Representatives from Apalachicola for three terms in 1949, 1951, and 1953. During his term, he worked to obtain the Sikes Channel through Saint George Island and Eastpoint Channel from the Federal Government and passed legislation authorizing County Commissioners to build bridges to islands. In 1949, He conducted a legislative investigation that resulted in the removal of the president of Florida A&M University in Tallahassee. Also, Patton helped persuade the Florida Park Service to adopt the Gorrie Museum project. He died on July 30, 1954, while serving his third term. His wife, Mary Patton succeeded her husband and served two terms. She later sold real estate in Franklin County until her death in 1987. The Saint George Island Bridge was named for him in 1965. A new bridge was built completed in 2004 and dedicated to him."