CRESTVIEW — When amateur and professional historians delve into North Okaloosa County’s past, one reference is consistently on their must-peruse list.
Betty Curenton and Claudia Patten’s regional and city history, “Crestview: The Forkland,” is a chronological guide of facts, figures, maps, pictures and stories of the people who formed the community. The timeline extends from the native Muskogee (Creek) through the 1990s.
“Those ladies published the book out of their dedication and love of local history,” Baker Block Museum Director Ann Spann said.
As the city prepared to observe its 100th birthday, the authors gifted “The Forkland” content to the Crestview Historic Preservation Board, of which Spann is chairman.
“This is their way of keeping the book alive and available for future generations,” Spann said
CENTENNIAL EDITION
The only change to the centennial edition is its cover, which features the original 1918 Okaloosa County courthouse and the 1955 courthouse, which will soon be demolished.
“We’re kind of proud that we got the first two courthouses on the cover,” Spann said.
Curenton and Patten, both of whom have long family roots in the area, took more than 10 years to gather and assemble “The Forkland,” including countless hours of recording and transcribing oral histories and memoirs.
That content is invaluable to researchers, from students doing local history reports to historians preparing regional history books or presentations, said Crestview Public Library research librarian Sandra Dreaden.
Patrons use the library’s copies, including one available for checking out and one permanently in the local history research stacks, for many reasons.
“Sometimes they’re looking for a particular family name. Sometimes they’re looking for pictures by the decades,” she said. “It’s everything: Family history, pictures of buildings and history by the decades.”
BRISK SALES
“The Forkland” reprint has been selling briskly, Spann said.
Buyers include members of long-time area families as well as newcomers eager to learn about their new hometown.
Copies are available in the Baker Block Museum’s reference library, where “people look at it all the time,” Spann said.
The book may also be purchased for $65, and Spann said the museum can arrange delivery of “The Forkland” to buyers who can’t get to the museum.
“The Crestview Historic Preservation Board is grateful to Mrs. Curenton and Mrs. Patten for their incredible gift,” Spann said.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Crestview history book reprinted for city centennial