LIVING HISTORY
21
Driving up to The Grade in his beat-up Mercury at dark,
Adams was preparing to face trouble, but instead was met
with a pleasant surprise. “They asked, ‘Who’s going to
manage this land?’ Then I said, ‘We’ve hired a World War II
veteran,” Adams recalled. “Then they said, ‘Well, we’ll tell
everybody he’s the meanest son-of-a-gun in the country and
to leave his fences and cattle alone.’ I said, you know, I’d really
appreciate that.”
The property was fenced without incident, and Adams
arranged for 1,500 Brahman cows to be sent to Bettle’s ranch.
Only three men on horseback, Adams included, drove those
herds down Martin Grade.
One Grade local even credits the highway with miracles.
Laura Mae Evans, who, with her husband, Mickey, has
operated Dunklin Memorial Camp, an alcohol rehabilitation
center along The Grade, since 1962, says they have witnessed
divine interventions here for years, seeing men’s lives
changed and restored from drug abuse. But one particular
memory stands out with her:
“It was our first Thanksgiving. We didn’t have a turkey,
and so we prayed,” said Evans. “On the way driving home,
I killed a turkey. I ran into him with my car and brought it
back for Thanksgiving dinner.”
Those early days are past, but traces of Old Florida remain,
and the Martin Grade Scenic Highway Group is bent on preserving
them, along with the timeless beauty of the canopy.
Says Mary Dawson: “If we can’t save something that is so
unique, so beautiful, and so meaningful — then what can
we save?”
For more information about the Martin Grade Scenic
Project, visit www.martingrade.org
Bud Adams,
one of Florida’s
leading ranchers,
once led a
cattle drive down
Martin Grade.
H. ALLEN HOLMES, INC.
GALLERY STUDIO
INTERIOR DESIGN SPACE PLANNING
MORE THAN 30 YEARS OF DESIGN EXPERTISE
8998 S.E. BRIDGE ROAD HOBE SOUND, FL 33455
772-245-8586 LIC. # IB0000008
www.hallenholmesinc.com
JON KRAL
/www.hallenholmesinc.com
/www.martingrade.org
/www.hallenholmesinc.com