First installment of a series of articles that highlight the lives and achievements of Baldwin County residents who worked to preserve the natural, historical and cultural memory of Baldwin County.

The depth of historical and cultural sites and events within Baldwin County naturally has drawn the amateur and professional historian alike to the area to study, work and live. From the beaches of Gulf Shores to the hills of Blacksher, history lives in every corner of this county; yet it takes someone special to work diligently so those areas are not taken for granted.

Baldwin County is likely one of the most diversely rich historical sites anywhere in the Unites States, claiming a part in the early exploration of the continent by the Spanish, French, and British, and playing a part in the conflicts that defined the United States, including the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the American Civil War.

Forts Morgan, Blakeley and Mims played pivotal roles in all those conflicts and are open to those who wish to immerse themselves in our past. Nevertheless, those sites might not exist except in memory if not for the historians who have given their personal time and energy to maintain them.

One of these historians is Stockton’s Davida Richerson Hastie.

Ms. Hastie was born in 1924 and was a lifelong resident of Baldwin County. She passed away four years ago in March 2009.

Knowing her the way I did for the four years I was in Baldwin County before her untimely passing, I realize she would not want this attention paid to her, but instead would want the focus placed on the landmarks she sought to preserve.

Yet in writing about her, we can focus on those sites and events and hopefully inspire others to care as much as she cared.

Ms. Hastie married John M. Hastie in June 1948, and they embarked on a lifelong passion of operating Live Oak Landing. They did just that until 1981, when the landing was sold and Ms. Hastie began to devote even more of her time to the preservation of the history of this region.

In doing so, she also found that the environment of the delta, the bay and of the gulf so intricately intertwined with the history of the area that the two were virtually inseparable. And with that belief in hand, she labored as intensely as ever to raise awareness about the beauty and the precariousness of the life in this water-rich county.

The list of achievements and involvement that can be attributed to Ms. Hastie is both staggering and humbling, making people like myself wonder where she found the time — and thankful she did.

Her first involvement in history officially came when she was a part of the Baldwin County Historical Society, which has, over the years, garnered several awards for its members' work to preserve the essence of our past. It was awarded the Governor’s Environmental Quality Award in 1977 for its development of the William Bartram Canoe Trail, just to name one award.

Ms. Hastie also helped established the county’s Historical Development Commission and the Fort Mims Restoration Association, in addition to participating in many other projects over the years.

In recent years, Ms. Hastie was involved in the development of the Tensaw Parkway, which is the state’s newest Scenic Byway route. She also worked an untold number of hours promoting the development of Baldwin County’s Bicentennial Park, which she believed would serve future generations of Baldwin countians as a teaching tool for understanding the area's rich background.

When asked what Ms. Hastie’s motivation was to devoting her life to historical and environmental preservation in Baldwin County, her daughter Lynn Bozone related a story that her mother had told previously.

“She would tell the story of the old man who was devoted to building a bridge,” Bozone said. “People would ask him, 'Why do you devote such time to this project? You are old and will not see the fruits of your labor.' He replied that he may not, but the next generation will benefit.”

May we all be as modest and devoted to preserving the history around us, a craft that Ms. Hastie loved so much.