To everyone who has been visiting our site, or has sent us an e-mail, thank you so much. Thanks to Lee S. from Naples, FL for the story on the post office! We appreciate those of you who’ve been kind enough to check us out, and we hope you tell your friends about us. Now we’d like to ask you for your input by sending us some stories of your own. We’d like to hear about someplace you’ve been That’s left a memory. Or maybe you know someone who would qualify for our page. And pictures are great, too. We need those as well. So to all of you who have a story to tell, here’s your chance! Drop me a line at Lois@ImUnusual.com. Again, thanks for the support. ---Dorothy Ochopee, Florida (pop. 950) is home to what is believed to be the smallest post Office in the U.S. At a mere 62 square feet, the building is located on the Tamiami Trail, US 41, between Miami and Naples, in the Big Cypress National Preserve. The Preserve is home to Alligator, bear, deer, and Florida panther that live in the Everglades.
The building was originally a pipe shed for a tomato farm. A 1953 fire destroyed the local Post Office and the shed was pressed into service. The mail carrier drives 132 miles a day, making 350 stops to deliver mail to about 950 customers, according to the Postmaster. Thanks to Lee S. from Naples for the great pics!
Everyone’s heard about the Chattanooga Choo-Choo and the Last Train to Clarksville, but not everyone has heard or seen the Ferry at McMillan’s Landing, on the Cumberland River. One of two ferries in Kentucky, it is the only one that operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, all year long. It connects two sections of Monroe County, and since the only other method for residents to get to and from town is to go to Celina, TN or Burkesville, KY, which involves driving about 30 miles, the ferry is a necessary part of travel in the county. The first ferry in the area was operating before the civil war, and probably used mule-power to move the ferry from one side of the river to the other. After the development of the engine, a fuel-powered ferry was built, and they’ve used it on the Cumberland ever since. Friday evenings are the busiest, according to one of the ferry’s workers, Joey Smith. “After about 2 a.m. it gets pretty quiet,” Joey said.
The ferry has a diesel motor to move the barge and its passengers from one side of the river to the other. A long bar or arm rotates the barge, and allows the driver to see where he’s going when moving from one side to the opposite side. This method of operation is one of the few of its kind in the world. The barge itself holds three to four vehicles per trip, and the ferry uses about 35 to 40 gallons of fuel per day to operate. The people along Coe Ridge use the ferry for school and work, and most are back and forth at least twice a day; that’s in addition to those who just like to enjoy the scenery in the area.
“We saw a couple of guys coming down river one day a few months ago in a canoe” the driver said. “Seems they were a college professor and his student taking pictures and following the river to its beginnings. They were writing a book and taking pictures of the places they’d seen. They set up a tent and sat here for hours talking about what they’d seen as they traveled.” Over the years, there has been talk of building a bridge over the Cumberland river and taking out the ferry, but most of those living around here prefer this method of travel to the mundane.
