Though it was closed when i came by, the outside and lands are beautiful. I cant wait to come back…read moreand visit.

The state park is a great little gem on Cedar Key. We…read moreenjoyed checking out the history of Cedar Key in the building with the various displays showing the native American history and how prosperous it became when the railroad was built for the logging community. The trails to the water were great as it wasn't a far walk to get see tons of itry bitty crabs scurrying around. So cute! No one was in the building when we visited but a ranger was sitting on the porch of the building across from it. He was sitting there prohibiting people from going into it as it was being rehabbed- I think windows were being replaced. Looking forward to going back to check it all out.

The United States has a dark past and it is markers like this that help remind us so that we can…read morenever let it happen again. This marker points out one of those events. On the front, "Racial violence erupted in the small and quiet Rosewood community January 1-7, 1923. Rosewood, a predominantly colored community, was home to the Bradley, Carrier, Carter, Goins, and Hall families, among others. Residents supported a school taught by Mahulda "Gussie" Brown Carrier, three churches, and a Masonic lodge. Many of them owned their homes, some were business owners, and others worked in nearby Sumner and at the Cummer Lumber Mill. This quiet life came to an end on January 1, 1923, when a white Sumner woman accused a black man of assaulting her. In the search for her alleged attacker, whites terrorized and killed Rosewood residents. In the days of fear and violence that followed, many Rosewood citizens sought refuge in the nearby woods. White merchant John M. Wright and other courageous whites sheltered some of the fleeing men, women and children. Whites burned Rosewood and looted livestock and property; two were killed while attacking a home. Five blacks also lost their lives: Sam Carter, who was tortured for information and shot to death on January 1; Sarah Carrier; Lexie Gordon; James Carrier; and Mingo Williams. Those who survived were forever scarred." And on the reverse, "Haunted by what had happened, Rosewood residents took a vow of silence, lived in fear and never returned to claim their property. That silence was broken seventy-one years later. In 1994 survivors, including Minnie Lee Langley, Arnett Turner Goins, and Wilson Hall, filed a claims bill in the Florida Legislature. A Special Master, an expert appointed by the Speaker of the House, ruled that the state had a "moral obligation" to compensate survivors for the loss of property, violation of constitutional rights, and mental anguish. On May 4, 1994, Governor Lawton Chiles signed a $2.1 million compensation bill. Nine survivors received $150,000 each for mental anguish, and a state university scholarship fund was established for the families of Rosewood and their descendants. A fund was also established to compensate those Rosewood families who could demonstrate property loss." It is marker number F-407 and it was erected in 2004 by The Real Rosewood Foundation, Inc. and the Florida Department of State. [Review 369 of 2025 - 2020 in Florida - 23931 overall]

I'm a history buff! The Rosewood Massacre of 1923 was "the first time in United States history that…read morea state compensated victims of racial violence." A sign now marks the site on SR 24 where the Rosewood community once stood. I believe in visiting historical landmarks, and knowing the stories of the past. I grew up about 45 minutes from Rosewood, and didn't know about this event until I watched the movie as a teenager. I visited this site in high school, but before the marker was dedicated. The Rosewood Massacre is a sad part of Florida's (and African American) history. Thankfully (and prayerfully) we can all learn from it and be better humans.

There aren't many tunnels in Florida, seeing as how most of the state is at sea level. A tunnel…read morewould put you into the water table and you would be digging into coral bed, both of which present significant challenges. The other tunnels are the New River Tunnel (aka the Henry E. Kinney Tunnel) in Fort Lauderdale https://www.yelp.com/biz/henry-e-kinney-tunnel-fort-lauderdale?hrid=fXumVP8axkh_tcxVRR4Fww and the Port Miami Tunnel (aka State Road 887) that joines the MacArthur Causeway with PortMiami https://www.yelp.com/biz/port-of-miami-tunnel-downtown-miami. I've been to the former, I have not been to the latter, but I'm passing through Gainesville and now I need to visit the third publicly accessible tunnel in the state. The Norman Hall Tunnel is also known as the 13th Street Tunnel. It connects the two halves of the University of Florida (Go Gators!) and was opened to the public in 1957. It is not open to vehicles, but rather pedestrians and bicycles. It's pretty well covered in graffiti from end to end. I found parking nearby. Probably not legal but I was only here long enough to check out the tunnel and then time to move along. [Review 19657 overall - 1679 in Florida - 629 of 2023.]

Located along SR24, this marker is the pointer in front of the Haile Homestead and is easily…read moreaccessible from the road. You might not be touring the homestead but reading the marker at least gives you an idea of what you can expect. It reads, "One of the oldest houses in Alachua County, the Historic Haile Homestead was the home of Thomas Evans Haile, his wife Esther Serena Chesnut Haile and 14 of their children. The Hailes came here from Camden, South Carolina in 1854 to establish a 1,500-acre Sea Island Cotton plantation which they named Kanapaha. Enslaved black craftsmen completed the 6,200-square-foot manse in 1856. The 1860 census showed 66 slaves living here. The Hailes survived bankruptcy in 1868 and turned the property into a productive farm, growing a variety of fruits and vegetables including oranges. Serena Haile died in 1895; Thomas in 1896. The Homestead, which passed to son Evans, a prominent defense attorney, became the site of house parties attended by some of Gainesville's most distinguished citizens. The Hailes had the unusual habit of writing on the walls; all together over 12,500 words with the oldest writing dating to the 1850's. The Homestead was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. A restoration was completed in 1996. Still partly owned by descendants of Evans Haile, the Homestead is one of the few remaining homesteads built by Sea Island cotton planters in this part of Florida." It is marker number F-548 and it was erected in 2005 by the Historic Haile Homestead and the Florida Department of State. It was too early in the morning to tour the home. Maybe the next time I'm in Gainesville. [Review 364 of 2025 - 2016 in Florida - 23926 overall]

This plantation house, built in 1854, is a national historic landmark, maintained by the Haile…read morefamily and a public historical foundation. It is open 10-2 Saturday and 12-4 Sunday. It's $5 to get in, which includes a guided tour. Can you even comprehend the value?! Oh, the value! The most interesting thing about the house isn't that it's pre-civil war, but that there are names, dates, records, and more scrawled across the walls. The Haile family who lived there were evidently encouraged to practice their handwriting on the walls. My favorite scrawling reads "THE HOUSE WAS BRIEFLY ALIVE." There's so much material written, though, that you're likely to find something even better.

When I learned about the Mayan excavations in the area, and the possibility that the dugout/boat on…read moredisplay in the museum may be of Mayan origins, I knew that I would end up here eventually. Many years passed until I finally had the opportunity to visit. I was not disappointed. The location of this park is very urban, but once you enter the park you feel like you are in a magical land, with the river, the sun, the moon, the marshes greeting you. The pottery found looks strange to me, I see an extraterrestrial and a spaceship. One of the rock pillars also has a similar extraterrestrial face, and one of the hands in the pottery has tattoos on it. I don't know what happened here, but I "feel" something here, and I like it. This place feels like sacred ground. I hope that I can visit again and again.

Wow! What a great park that I never knew existed until I got out to explore my state…read more We paid our $3 parking fee (These fees go back to maintain the parks, don't skip them please) and parked, then got out to do our loop. The wind was lovely and the day was beautiful, so it was the perfect day to be out in the weather. While the park isn't very large, it is informative about the Indigenous Peoples who once settled here on the banks of the Crystal River. There is a small Museum that was closed by the time we arrived, but usually it's open, that has displays and more information. The highlight of this park though is the elevated tower - well, it's not really a tower, it's steps up the large Burial Mound on this site. Yes, this site is sacred to the indigenous people, and should be treated as such by those who visit it.

I love going to historical spots and learning about the past. Fort King has the fort and it has the…read moreinside museum, which is small but has plenty to check out. The fort itself is awesome to explore, but once you walk inside it's bare, would be nice to see a wagon or the setup they might have had back in the days. Overall, a great stop for any history buff.

Nice historical park - has hiking trails and dogs are welcome to! Saw the Reenactment this year was…read morefun! And free!

New York City has 6th Avenue, Avenue Of The Americas - big deal. Gainesville has 8th Avenue, Avenue…read moreOf The Galaxy. You don't have to be an explorer to know which of these is more monumental. And indeed it IS monumental - the planetary representation of our solar system is a series of monuments starting at the cross section of 34th St (the Sun) and ending with Pluto at 22nd (strict astronomical interpreters may end at Neptune, but understand you're missing out in your understanding of the cosmos). The beauty of it is that the planets are installed as a 4-billion (read that in a Carl Sagan voice) to 1 scale model, giving you a glimpse of just how far these planets are from each other. And 8th Ave is straight and flat here, so you can aim to see the whole run should you choose (though standing at the sun my eyes gave out around Saturn). The respective monuments stand about 15 feet high with a planet-esque sphere atop it - all of equal size, which was a slight disappointment until I realized a truly scaled Jupiter would take out a streetlight. Planetary stats and info is engraved on each monument, with impressive sketches of the mythological namesake gods and some choice quotes - can't get better than "Gangrene Uranus, ghoul of the heavens." This was exactly the quirky kind of thing I was hoping to find on my brief stay in Gainesville. The whole length of the run is 0.9 miles one-way, and even better there's a park trail (Loblolly Woods? Something like that) around Jupiter that looked promising had we more time. You can drive it for a quick science lesson, or you can walk it if you feel the calling to be a true galactic navigator (and this is the city of 'gators after all). I did a round trip, so I walked the scale model twice - only 3,999,999,998 more times and I can truly say I've walked the length of the solar system! That'd be cool if they can give me a badge when that happens.

These monument's were one of the first things I noticed when I moved to Gainesville. If you are a…read morepassenger riding towards Downtown or UF on 8th Avenue from the Oakview Mall it is pretty hard to miss this display of the planets on large cement columns on the right hand side of the road. Depending on traffic, you may miss 1 or 2, but I like the roadside display of the planets in our solar system. If you feel like you might want a better view of the columns you can easily plan to walk, run, or bike Solar Walk when you have the time.

Cool little downtown area of Alachua, Florida. There are multiple small businesses call Amelie…read morestores and restaurants that remind us that there was a world and still is a world in certain places before the big box stores came and took over. It is tranquil here, a nice place to walk and see the world slowly going by. All in all, I would definitely recommend coming down here.

Quaint, and charming small downtown! I love the vibe on Main Street. Small businesses for shopping…read more A few different restaurants to try. Conestogas' Restaurant has been in business since 1988. Alachua also hosts several craft fairs during year, with music, food. Worth visiting for sure!

As an English teacher, a lover of nature, and someone who loves to travel, I can say that our long…read moreanticipated journey to visit Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park did not disappoint. I first stumbled upon "The Yearling" earlier this year after having a conversation with a wonderful woman on the Cumberland Island boat ferry tour over the summer. She mentioned how much she enjoyed her visit to cross Creek. As a California resident, I borrowed the book from a family member who had it, and thus my love for Marjorie, her life, and work was born! We first arrived at her house, and walked around the citrus orange groves. We played with the pet chickens, and made numerous observations of the property. Shortly after, the tour began. The house tour was led by Emma, a young, extremely warm, and knowledgeable tour guide. Emma made everybody feel extra comfortable, inviting questions and comments openly. The tour takes you through her living quarters, her bathroom, master bedroom, and guest rooms. The artifacts, decor, and design have been preserved to fit the exact historical era of Marjorie's life, and the artifacts are original belongings. The tour offers visitors a chance to learn colorful stories about Marjorie's life, a close look at her literary accomplishments, and a bonus is to get to see her kitchen to truly appreciate her love of cooking. After the tour, it's highly recommended that you make a stop at the yearling restaurant, just around the bend in the country road. It is there were you can enjoy delicious southern cuisine inspired by her, and buy from the incredible selection of books and gifts they offered in their gift shop. The tour guide also had mentioned that the park offers great cooking demonstrations from her cookbook "Cross Creek Cookery" in the spring months. I certainly look forward to visiting again to participate!

This place was surreal. It's was a flash in the past, made you feel like you were in the early…read more1900's. The trails are beautiful, have inspirational quotes along the way, and safe/short. I was totally impressed with the tangerine trees full of fruit. The park rangers were super helpful and friendly. We also enjoyed the park area. Bathrooms were okay, kinda outdated but adequate. It's not a big place but you can feel the history in this park.

Historic cemeteries offer us not only a glimpse into an area's past, but also show us the reverence…read morefor those no longer with us that past generations held. I find it interesting to walk through a necropolis, reading simple, but powerful words, that sum up a life spent within this realm. Words such as "beloved father" or "beloved mother", with the date they came upon this world to the time that they walked their last step in this incarnation of their journey speak leagues. Simple words that cannot begin to explore the depths of the love and ultimate mourning of a life and the inevitable departure of that person. Perhaps most tragic is to stand before the grave of a child, sadly so tiny, and think about a life cut so short, so much that wasn't experienced. I find it comforting to walk amongst the aisles of headstones, each a testament to a life lived, lives of joy and sadness, of triumph and tragedy. Lives lived to their inevitable conclusion.

North Central Florida is lucky to share similar flora and fauna with Savannah and Louisiana. Even…read moreafter those similarities our cemeteries are no where near as expansive or spooky. With that being said, the Micanopy Historical Cemetery is still my favorite in the area. The expansive canopy of oak trees covered in moss will give you a chill even before you find the Victorian headstones, sculptures, and ironwork. The ground is covered with a bright green moss carpet that is soft under your feet, and your are shaded by the low hanging canopies above. It is difficult not to be taken in, when you are being sandwiched between the two. The Historical Society claims that the oldest grave is from 1825, but who knows... The best time to visit is when the sun is setting. Scared to get out of the car? Both gates are open on either side, so you can slowly and carefully drive your car through and safely come out the other side. Happy Halloween! http://www.flickr.com/photos/ragdollco/sets/72157627686774267/