The access road into the great Okefenokee Swamp was named by the Georgia Legislature in 1946 in memory of Vereen Bell, Lieutenant USNR, a young Georgia patriot and writer whose novel “Swamp Water” gave the world insights into this unique area and who gave his life for his country in World War II. Born in Cairo, Georgia, on October 5, 1911, he graduated from Davidson College with an A.B. in 1932, later made his home in Thomasville, and left a wife and two children. His brilliant but brief literary career included two novels and many short stories and articles, written mostly about nature and outdoor life, including the Okefenokee, which he loved and used as the setting for several stories. Two separate motion pictures were made from “Swamp Water” by 20th C. Fox in 1942 and 1952. After volunteering for the Navy in 1943, he became Intelligence Officer of Air Combat Squadron VC-10 on the aircraft carrier Gambier Bay. The ship was sunk in the Battle for Leyte on October 23, 1944; Bell was injured, died the next day, and was buried at sea off Samar Island, P.I. He died nobly and unafraid.