A small, Florida Panhandle town recently declared its own death as utility giant Progress Energy prepares to mar its historic district with mammoth power poles. The popular tourist town located 75 miles southwest of Tallahassee on Florida’s Gulf Coast is fighting an 11th-hour battle against Progress Energy, which continues to ignore public concerns in its march toward the heart of downtown.

 More than 100 people attended  the Nov. 21 mock funeral, where both Apalachicola natives and more-recent transplants gave impassioned speeches pleading with Progress Energy to bury the lines, not their town. Citizens here say the monster transmission towers, which loom nearly 100 feet in the air, would kill the charm and character of the historic town that boasts about 900 landmark buildings and homes.

 The morning event began with bells from one of the town’s churches tolling the hour. Under an overcast sky, mourners gathered outside the historic Raney House, the base of the Apalachicola Area Historical Society. A black, wooden coffin, draped with the city of Apalachicola’s flag, was loaded onto a horse-drawn caisson, and mourners filed in behind the processional.

 Marching to a melancholy dirge, the group somberly moved toward the historic working waterfront, passing out black carnations to onlookers. City police officers blocked the main thoroughfare while the protesters made their way past shops and restaurants closed for the occasion.

 At the riverfront, standing before the city’s signature shrimp boats, speakers extolled the virtues of their beloved city and lamented the loss that will be felt if Progress Energy continues on its path.

 “Today, the tallest structures in town are shrimp boat masts,” said internationally acclaimed photographer Richard Bickel, who has lived in Apalachicola nearly two decades. “These poles will dwarf the buildings along the waterfront.”

 Apalachicola’s historical society has been fighting the installation of the mammoth structures for more than a year. The 30,000-pound concrete poles are connecting substations in towns on either side of Apalachicola, and Progress Energy has repeatedly said the lines will provide more stable electricity for the town.

 But residents say that stability can be provided without scarring the historic character and aesthetic beauty of the small fishing village, known internationally for its oysters and tourism.

 “We’re not here to bury our community—we’re here to save our community,” historical society president Tom Daly said during the event.

 Grassroots efforts in opposition to Progress Energy have swelled in recent weeks, and the historical society has ramped up its message. The group’s media push has included newspaper and radio advertising, the flying of two aerial banners at well-attended events, and the mock funeral. That event came on the heels of the Apalachicola City Commission on Nov. 16 unanimously asking Progress Energy to halt all utility work for 90 days. The company hasn’t responded to the city’s request.

 The town’s plight recently caught the attention of prominent Florida attorney Arthur “Buddy” Jacobs, who successfully battled Wal-Mart and kept the corporate giant from building a Supercenter in Fernandina Beach, Fla. Jacobs has taken the matter to state and federal lawmakers, including U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, former U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez and Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi.

 “I recently learned the word ‘Apalachicola’ means ‘friendly people,’ Jacobs told the funeral crowd Saturday. “Today, you are a friendly people. But we may not be friendly for long.”