Crystal River Archaeological State Park - Crystal River, Florida

Preserving a group of ancient Indian mounds, the Crystal River Archaeological State Park home to one of the most significant archaeological sites in the United States.

The site was occupied for a span of more than 2,000 years and the first burial mound was built several hundred years before the birth of Christ. Over the centuries that followed, the inhabitants developed their town into a major ceremonial center.

Researchers believe that the mounds and mysterious stone stele or monuments found there were aligned to form a giant astronomical observatory, so that the inhabitants could time the passing of the seasons. Two of the unusual limestone stele can still be seen on the grounds. One of them bears the weathered carving of a human face.

The most stunning aspect of the park, however, is Mound A, a large platform mound overlooking the Crystal River. Wooden stairs lead up the side to the top, where visitors can take in a stunning view of the river and entire archaeological site. Sadly, even though what remains is impressive, only 1/4 or so of the original mound remains. The rest was carried away years ago and used as fill.

To learn more about the park, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/crystalrivermounds.

Yulee Sugar Mill Ruins Historic State Park - Homossassa, Florida

David Levy Yulee was one of the first great business leaders of the fledgling state of Florida. While little remains to commemorate the role of this industrious 19th century leader's role in the development of our state, the picturesque ruins of one of his enterprises have long attracted the attention of visitors to the Gulf Coast north of Tampa.

Yulee Sugar Mill Ruins Historic State Park in Homossassa preserves the surviving ruins of a sugar mill built by David Yulee on his 5,100 acre Margarita plantation.

The man who served as Florida's first U.S. senator when the former Spanish colony became a state in 1845 lived on a nearby island in the Homossassa River from which he could supervise his vast holdings. Sugar was then a major export product and the marshes and lowlying swamps along the rivers of Central and South Florida provided ideal for growing sugar cane.

The mill began operating in 1851, served by the labors of 69 slaves who planted and chopped the sugar cane, ran the stalks through the rollers of the cane press and then boiled the juice to make sugar. Packed into hogsheads (large barrels), the sugar was then placed aboard vessels in the Homossassa River for shipment to both American and foreign ports.

The mill operated until the Civil War, when the Union blockade brought the sugar export business to a temporary end. Yulee's house was burned by U.S. sailors, but the mill survived the war only to fall into disuse and eventually crumble into ruins.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/yuleesugarmill.

Rainbow Springs State Park - Dunnellon, Florida

Although archaeologists believe that early Native American hunters camped around Rainbow Springs thousands of years before Christ, the beautiful Florida spring is perhaps best known for its more recent history.

A large first magnitude spring, Rainbow Springs is actually the fourth largest spring in Florida. It pours out 490 million gallons of water a day. A naturally beautiful and scenic spot, it was picked during the 1920s as the site for an early Florida amusement park. The park opened in the 1930s and operated for four decades before the new interstate highway system diverted traffic away from U.S. Highway 41 leading to a major reduction in visitors that led to the closing of the park. Before it closed, however, Rainbow Springs drew in hundreds of thousands of tourists who enjoyed such attractions as "submarine boats" and a leaf shaped monorail.

With development spreading rapidly in Florida, local residents ignited a drive to save the springs after the amusement park closed. Thanks to the vision of Florida's governor and cabinet, Rainbow Springs State Park opened its gates to the public in 1995. The park now preserves more than 1,400 of beautiful and historic land surrounding the head spring and the short but highly scenic Rainbow River.

To learn more about this stunning spring and a state park that may well be the best $2 attraction in the South, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/rainbowsprings.

Wakulla Springs State Park - Wakulla Springs, Florida

One of the most popular places in the Tallahassee area this time of year is Wakulla Springs State Park.

Located just south of the capital city, the park encompasses thousands of acres of fragile wilderness and protects one of the largest and deepest freshwater springs in the world. Divers using special equipment have explored the caves that open in the spring for miles and have descended to depths of over 300 feet.

The Wakulla Springs basin is rich in history. Evidence of prehistoric Native American hunters has been found here and divers have retrieved the bones of prehistoric animals, including mastodons, from the bottom of the spring. Other bones, in fact, can still be seen lying on the bottom 80-feet down from the glass-bottomed boats operated by the park service.

The Creek Prophet, Josiah Francis, established a village on the Wakulla River downstream from the springs after he fled Alabama at the end of the Creek War of 1813-1814. It was here that his daughter, Milly Francis, rescued a captured Georgia militiaman and became known as the Creek Pocahontas.

The land around the spring was purchased in 1934 by Florida industrialist Edward Ball, who saved it from development for decades. Ball built the historic Wakulla Springs Lodge in 1937 and zealously protected the property from unauthorized intrusion. Wakulla Springs is now a state park and is open to the public daily. The historic lodge offers dining and overnight stays and the park features glass-bottomed boats, river cruises, swimming, nature trails, picnic areas and much more.

To learn more about historic Wakulla Springs, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/wakullasprings.

Falling Waters State Park - Chipley, Florida

The heavy rains and spring flooding have caused problems for a number of Florida State Parks this year, but for at least one, a rainy spring makes its main feature even more spectacular.

Falling Waters State Park, just off Interstate 10 near Chipley, is home to Florida's tallest waterfall. Over 70 feet tall, the waterfall is one of the most unique in the nation because it is created by a small stream that flows over the rim of a deep cylindrical sink.

A beautiful nature trail winds through an area of unique sinks and caves to a wooden staircase that leads down to a viewing platform in the sink. While the waterfall is barely more than a trickle during dry months, it roars with surprising intensity when a lot of rain has fallen in recent days.

In addition to the waterfall, Falling Waters State Park is the site of a number of other historic sites. Among them are the remains of one of Florida's first commercial attempts to find oil. An oil well was dug in what is now the park in 1919. Visitors can also learn about a watermill and legal whiskey still that operated in the park at various times.

Falling Waters also has beautiful picnic areas, camping, a small lake, swimming beach and hiking trails. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fallingwaters1.

Suwannee River State Park Reopens

Suwannee River State Park near Live Oak has reopened, although parts of the park still remain closed due to flooding. The entire park has been closed for the last week as a result of heavy flooding along the Suwannee River.

The park is the location of a number of key historic sites, including the Fort at the Suwannee Bridge (a key Civil War earthwork) and the site of the vanished riverboat town of Columbus. To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/suwanneeriver.

Here is the latest list of state park closings from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection:

TALLAHASSEE — Thirteen of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s state parks are experiencing closures today after severe weather recently caused flooding. These are temporary closures and services will resume once conditions allow. Florida Caverns State Park in Marianna has re-opened today.

Continued state park closures include:

Adams Tract River Camp
C/o Troy Springs State Park
674 N.E. Troy Springs RoadBranford, Florida 32008
*Closed until further notice.

Holton Creek River Camp
C/o Suwannee River State Park
3631 201st Path
Live Oak, Florida 32060
*Closed until further notice.

Dowling Park River Camp
C/o Suwannee River State Park
3631 201st Path
Live Oak, Florida 32060
*Closed until further notice.

Fanning Springs State Park
18020 N.W. Highway 19Fanning Springs, Florida 32693
*Closed to swimming until further notice. The cabins and park remain open for day use visitors.

Ichetucknee Springs State Park
12087 S.W. U.S. 27
Ft. White, Florida 32038
*River is closed to tubing until further notice. The park remains open for other day use activities.

Lafayette Blue Springs State Park
799 N.W. Blue Spring RoadMayo, Florida 32066
* Closed until further notice.

Madison Blue Springs State Park
8300 N.E. State Road 6Lee, Florida 32059
*Closed until further notice.

Manatee Springs State Park
11650 NW 115th Street
Chiefland, Florida 32626
* Closed until further notice.

Peacock Springs State Park
12087 SW US Highway 27
Ft. White, Florida 32038
*Closed until further notice.

Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center State Park
U.S 41 North
White Springs, Florida 32096
* Hiking trails and some portions of the park are closed to visitors until further notice.

Suwannee River State Park
3631 201st Path
Live Oak, Florida 32060
*Campground is now open, but some portions of the park remain closed.

Troy Springs State Park
674 N.E. Troy Springs RoadBranford, Florida 32008
*Closed to swimming and diving until further notice. The park remains open for day use visitors.

Topsail Hill Preserve State Park7525 W. Scenic Highway 30ASanta Rosa Beach, Florida 32459*The isolated day use area accessed by Topsail Road, off of Highway 98 is closed until further notice. The rest of the park remains open for day use and overnight visitors.

Visitors can contact state parks directly for the most up to date information on park closures, or visit http://www.floridastateparks.org/. For additional information on flood conditions, visit http://www.floridadisaster.org/, or visit http://www.fl511.com/ for traffic updates.

Maclay Gardens State Park - Tallahassee, Florida

The beautiful and historic gardens at Maclay Gardens State Park in Tallahassee are now moving into full bloom. If you want to visit, now is the time!

The park entrance is located one-half mile north of Interstate 10 on U.S. Highway 319 and features more than 1,000 acres of beautiful North Florida woods, hills and lakes, which surround the famed 28-acre ornamental garden that is one of the most beautiful in the United States.

Used for farming during the 19th century, the state park area had become a hunting plantation by 1900. The historic Maclay House and several other structures on the grounds were built between 1906 and 1909.

The gardens themselves got their start in 1923 when Alfred B. Maclay purchased the property for use as a winter home. He and Mrs. Maclay soon began planting flowers in what they came to call "Killearn Gardens" and by the time of Mr. Maclay's death in 1944, the gardens had attained note as one of the most beautiful locations in the country.

In 1953, Mrs. Maclay and her children gave 307 acres containing the gardens to the people of Florida as a lasting memorial to Mr. Maclay. Renamed Maclay Gardens State Park, the property has grown to become a major state park incorporating 1,176 acres. In addition to the gardens, which are open during the spring blooming season, the park features swimming, hiking, picnicking, biking, fishing and more. Admission to the park is $4 and there is another $4 fee to enter the gardens themselves.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/maclaygardens1.

Fort Cooper State Park - Inverness, Florida

Located just south of Inverness, Fort Cooper State Park preserves the site of a rough log stockade constructed during the early months of the Second Seminole War.

Named for Major Mark Anthony Cooper, the fort was built to protect a number of wounded and sick U.S. soldiers during General Winfield Scott's campaign against the Seminoles during the spring of 1836. The war at that point was not going well for the army. Dade's Battle, the previous December, had witnessed the death of more than 100 soldiers and attempts to advance by armies under Generals Edmund P. Gaines and Duncan L. Clinch had also been blunted.

Scott attempted to bring the Seminoles to bay by marching three columns into the wilderness of Central Florida, but the European style strategy was not successful. His already slow movements became even slower due to the necessity to move sick and wounded that he decided to leave them behind under a guard of five companies of Georgia Volunteers and a small company of artillerymen.

The men, commanded by Major Cooper, built Fort Cooper and fended off several attacks by Osceola and a large force of Seminole warriors.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/fortcooper.

Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park

Just off U.S. 90 between Tallahassee and Monticello is a state park preserving what remains of a massive prehistoric mound group. One of the surviving mounds, in fact, is believed to be the tallest "Indian mound" in Florida.

Letchworth-Love Mounds Archaeological State Park was the site of a significant Native American city of the Weeden Island time period (A.D. 300-900). Former owners of the property indicate that there were once as many as 15-20 mounds at and near the site. Four of these can be seen at the park.

The largest mound at the site, once called the "Miccosukee Mound," rises 46 feet high and measures nearly 300 feet across the base.

The park is one of the newest in Florida, but is already in danger of being closed due to budget constraints. To learn more about it, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/letchworth.

Maclay Gardens State Park - Tallahassee

As we move into late February, it will not be long before azeleas and dogwoods begin to bloom in Florida. By mid-March, flowers will begin to cover much of the state.

One of the most extraordinary places to visit in late March and early April is Maclay Gardens State Park in Tallahassee. Covering hundreds of acres just off Interstate 10, the park offers one of the nation's most spectacular gardens.

Conceived and planted by Alfred and Louise Maclay, who had purchased the property as a winter home, the first plantings in the gardens date back to 1923. Considered a "masterpiece of floral architecture," the grounds feature a walled garden, hundreds of blooming shrubs and trees, a reflecting pool, and paths leading through acres and acres of beautiful plantings.

The gardens usually reach their peak in late March, so if you are interesting in taking a trip to Tallahassee this year, consider making plans to see the blooms.

For more information, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/maclaygardens1.

Florida Caverns State Park - Marianna, Florida

Florida's fascinating karst topography means that the state is rich in caves, caverns, sinkholes and springs. The best place to explore these without crawling through the mud and braving snakes and other wild animals is Florida Caverns State Park in Marianna.

Established during the Great Depression, the park contains Florida's only tour cave, a beautiful cavern that is toured by tens of thousands of visitors each year.

In addition, the state park preserves a phenomenal natural setting of towering hardwood trees, limestone bluffs, flood plains, a beautiful spring and numerous smaller caves. One of the other caves, the "Tunnel Cave" on the park's nature trail, can be toured without a guide.

The park is rich in Florida history. Early Spanish explorers crossed the Natural Bridge of the Chipola River here, as did later British and American explorers. Andrew Jackson's army crossed the bridge in 1818 as he marched overland to Pensacola during the First Seminole War.

A visitor center in the park displays artifacts recovered there and interpretive panels provide information on the rich natural and cultural history of the area.

To learn more, please visit www.exploresouthernhistory.com/floridacaverns.