| City/Town: • Blountstown |
| Location Class: • Commercial |
| Built: • 1950s | Abandoned: • N/A |
| Status: • Abandoned • Private Property |
| Photojournalist: • David Bulit |
Located Fl-20 just outside of Blountstown, the Seminole Restaurant was operated by James O. Holt and his wife Iris M. Holt. The restaurant advertised selling hamburgers, grilled steaks, and catfish. James Oren Holt was born December 5, 1918, and was known for having started the first catfish hatchery in Calhoun County. He was a World War II veteran where he served in the United States Navy. He died on March 11, 2000, at the age of 81. Iris McFarland Holt was born December 5, 1923, in Clarksville, Florida. She was a member of the Order of Eastern Star Chapter 179 in Blountstown where she was inducted into the Eastern Star on November 28, 1950, serving as Worthy Matron in 1954. She died on July 23, 2011, at the age of 87. Both are buried at Boggs Cemetery in Blountstown.
In 1988, the property was purchased by Michael Dennis Parrish. He was born in Los Angeles, California, where he worked in real estate and served in the United States Air Force. He moved to Calhoun County in 1987 where he took over operations of the Seminole Restaurant. He died on February 18, 2015, at the age of 76.
When I photographed the Seminole Restaurant in 2014, Mr. Parrish greeted me wearing nothing but boxers and a t-shirt, screaming at the top of his lungs to not touch his cars. The restaurant had not been operating for quite some time and he was apparently living there with his dog. The living conditions of the building were less than adequate. Garbage littered the floor with trash bags piled high up against a wall, and black mold could be found throughout the building. He explained to me that the cars out front were his own personal collection and without asking, exclaimed they weren’t for sale. After his death, his daughter took over the property and sold it in 2016 to George B. White who operates an air conditioning business in Blountstown. It’s unknown what happened to the cars but it’s most likely that they were sold as well. When Hurricane Michael struck Florida in October 2018, it dealt a considerable amount of damage to the damage, tearing off most of the roof.
