http://graytonbeach.com/history.html
"The hogs were all over the place, " Butler said. "They would get under the house and have a big time."
In the early '20's, Butler left Grayton Beach to study at the University of Florida, where he earned an education degree. He returned to Grayton Beach in 1926 to start his own homestead and teach, first in Santa Rosa Beach and later at the Point Washington school. Butler got back to Grayton Beach just in time to survive the hurricane of 1926, the same storm that is credited with creating Destin's East Pass and turning Choctawhatchee Bay into a saltwater body. The hurricane also swept out the foundation of Grayton Beach's largest home, giving it the name the Wash-A-Way. The storm blew away a good portion of the dunes, leaving the beach flat and hard enough, Butler said, that he and a friend drove a Model T along the shoreline to see what was left of Destin.
http://graytonbeach.com/butler.html
Van Ness R. "Van" Butler Sr., of Grayton Beach, Fla., passed away peacefully on Aug. 25, 2000, at the age of 96. He was born in Canova, S.D., on Sept. 21, 1903, and arrived in DeFuniak Springs with his parents, Willis H. and Elsie Holmes Butler, and family in 1907.
He is preceded in death by his wife of 58 years, Helen Enzor Butler; brothers, Bert Butler and James Butler; and sisters, Alice Kennedy and Ruth Gardner. Survivors include his son, Van Ness R. Butler Jr. and his wife, Jonnye, of Grayton Beach; daughters, Helen Janice Toole of Grayton Beach and Elsie Gretchen Enfinger of Tallahassee, Fla.; six grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; three great-great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Van grew up in DeFuniak Springs, where he graduated from Walton High School in 1922, and attended Palmer College. He graduated from the University of Florida in 1926 and began a teaching career in Point Washington and Santa Rosa Beach that same year. Van married Helen Enzors, also a teacher, in 1929. Van taught and was principal of what is now Bay Middle School and also the old Cessna Built School in Santa Rosa for over 30 years. He was honored for his educational contributions by having a new elementary school in South Walton named for him in 1996.
Van homesteaded 80 acres of land in Grayton Beach in 1926. In 1936, he inherited additional property in Grayton Beach and began a second career in the summer season selling lots and renting cottages. In 1938, he built a store and recreation hall in Grayton Beach, where many generations of young people gathered to dance and get acquainted. The building is now a popular restaurant known as the Red Bar.
Van helped organize Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative to bring power to South Walton in 1942 and served on their first board of directors. In the 1950s, he worked with C.H. McGee to get the first telephones in South Walton. He also built the first water system south of the bay in 1939. Over the years, he served his community in many roles.
"The hogs were all over the place, " Butler said. "They would get under the house and have a big time."
In the early '20's, Butler left Grayton Beach to study at the University of Florida, where he earned an education degree. He returned to Grayton Beach in 1926 to start his own homestead and teach, first in Santa Rosa Beach and later at the Point Washington school. Butler got back to Grayton Beach just in time to survive the hurricane of 1926, the same storm that is credited with creating Destin's East Pass and turning Choctawhatchee Bay into a saltwater body. The hurricane also swept out the foundation of Grayton Beach's largest home, giving it the name the Wash-A-Way. The storm blew away a good portion of the dunes, leaving the beach flat and hard enough, Butler said, that he and a friend drove a Model T along the shoreline to see what was left of Destin.
http://graytonbeach.com/butler.html
Van Ness R. "Van" Butler Sr., of Grayton Beach, Fla., passed away peacefully on Aug. 25, 2000, at the age of 96. He was born in Canova, S.D., on Sept. 21, 1903, and arrived in DeFuniak Springs with his parents, Willis H. and Elsie Holmes Butler, and family in 1907.
He is preceded in death by his wife of 58 years, Helen Enzor Butler; brothers, Bert Butler and James Butler; and sisters, Alice Kennedy and Ruth Gardner. Survivors include his son, Van Ness R. Butler Jr. and his wife, Jonnye, of Grayton Beach; daughters, Helen Janice Toole of Grayton Beach and Elsie Gretchen Enfinger of Tallahassee, Fla.; six grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; three great-great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Van grew up in DeFuniak Springs, where he graduated from Walton High School in 1922, and attended Palmer College. He graduated from the University of Florida in 1926 and began a teaching career in Point Washington and Santa Rosa Beach that same year. Van married Helen Enzors, also a teacher, in 1929. Van taught and was principal of what is now Bay Middle School and also the old Cessna Built School in Santa Rosa for over 30 years. He was honored for his educational contributions by having a new elementary school in South Walton named for him in 1996.
Van homesteaded 80 acres of land in Grayton Beach in 1926. In 1936, he inherited additional property in Grayton Beach and began a second career in the summer season selling lots and renting cottages. In 1938, he built a store and recreation hall in Grayton Beach, where many generations of young people gathered to dance and get acquainted. The building is now a popular restaurant known as the Red Bar.
Van helped organize Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative to bring power to South Walton in 1942 and served on their first board of directors. In the 1950s, he worked with C.H. McGee to get the first telephones in South Walton. He also built the first water system south of the bay in 1939. Over the years, he served his community in many roles.
