The mid-20th century also brought social upheaval. Like elsewhere in the South, Crestview faced the challenges of segregation and civil rights. Schools and public spaces were legally desegregated in the 1960s, though not without resistance. African American communities, long integral to Crestview’s labor force and culture, pressed for equality in

Like much of rural America, Crestview suffered during the Great Depression. Crop prices collapsed, sawmills slowed, and poverty deepened. Yet the resilience of Crestview’s residents carried the town through—families grew gardens, bartered goods, and leaned on churches for support. The 1940s brought dramatic change. The U.S. military expanded

Crestview’s formal establishment would come later, but pioneer families already lived in the area during the antebellum era. They farmed corn, raised livestock, and harvested lumber from seemingly endless longleaf pines. Settlers relied on sandy roads and ox-drawn carts, with homesteads scattered across the rolling hills. The Civil War left it

Introduction Nestled in the Florida Panhandle, far from the neon coastlines of Miami or the colonial streets of St. Augustine, lies Crestview—a city whose story is one of resilience, adaptation, and surprising significance. Known today as the “Hub City” because of its central location in Okaloosa County, Crestview embodies the interplay betw