Bagdad Elementary School, one of the oldest schools in Santa Rosa County, recently celebrated its 100th anniversary at its current location on Forsyth Street.

The milestone was celebrated by staff and students Jan. 6.

On Saturday, Jan. 17, people from across Santa Rosa County gathered at Santa Rosa Auditorium in Milton to share a breakfast meal in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Dayna Hood, a teacher at Milton High School, was due for professional development training Friday morning, Jan. 16. That plan was delayed when she was called back to Milton High for a big surprise.

Hood was selected as the district teacher of the year for 2027.

Late last month, a Milton resident posted a picture of a river otter swimming through Annie’s Basin near the Blackwater River. The woman was on her dock when a little furry head stuck out of the water.
While not an uncommon sight, river otters are not exactly the poster child for Florida animals. Despite not being as famed as alligators, manatees and Florida panthers, river otters play an important ecological role.

In 2026, Santa Rosa County plans to continue pursuing the expansion of Chumuckla Highway (County Road 197), a major infrastructure project the county hopes can become reality in the next few years.

There were 1,229 crashes in Milton from 2018 to 2022. Five percent of the wrecks were fatal or led to serious injury. Twelve percent of the wrecks involved injury.
Those were some of the figures the Milton City Council heard ahead of a vote on whether to accept a $300,000 grant from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). The council ultimately approved the resolution to accept the funding at their Jan. 13 meeting.

As the U.S. House of Representatives and the rest of the nation wrapped up 2025, Santa Rosa Press Gazette spoke with Jimmy Patronis, the Republican representative of Florida’s 1st Congressional District, about his expectations and legislative priorities for 2026.

2026 will serve as an opportunity for many Floridians to elect new leaders or reaffirm their satisfaction with those already representing them in local, state and federal offices.
In Santa Rosa County, primary elections are set for Aug. 18, with early voting from Aug. 3 to Aug. 15. The general election will be held Nov. 3, with early voting from Oct. 19 to Oct. 31.

A man connected with the Danika Troy crime scene has pleaded not guilty to charges he stole from the scene and failed to report her death. Troy, 14, was murdered last month and her body was found in the woods off Kimberly Road in Floridatown.