"Growing Up In Pensacola" is a collection of humorous essays describing the author's experiences growing up in a large family in a small coastal community in Florida during the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. Its a potpourri of stories that can be read in any order, that share the youthful joys of summers spent at the old swimming hole on Bayou Texar, the challenges of grammar school, the concerns of family and friends during World War II and the family's connection to local politics. The love of community and respect for friends and neighbors, are evident in the stories about East Pensacola Heights;and the love of boats and fishing by the author's family and friends is demonstrated throughout. Adventures in commercial fishing, near disasters in the bays, collisions in the Gulf, and near involvement with U-Boats in the Gulf of Mexico are recounted from interviews with family, friends, and the author's research. The author's conversational style makes reading the stories enjoyable and entertaining.