In the late 19th century, steamboats docked regularly at the old depot in Branford, originally called Rowland's Bluff, when the settlement was a major port on the Suwannee River. From there, steam-powered vessels carried the region's cotton, lumber, and naval stores to market. In 1882, the depot also became the terminus for the Live Oak and Rowland's Bluff Railroad. Steamboat traffic on the Suwannee ended before 1920, but the depot continued in use as a railroad station for many years. The wrecks of the steamboats Madison, the City of Hawkinsville, and others on the river's bottom remain reminders of that vanished era. In 1982, the Branford Shrine Club purchased the depot from the S.C.L. Railroad and moved it to its present site for use as a clubhouse and community center.