Landmarks

Tallahassee and Leon County are home of the Red Hills, former plantations, canopy roads, national historic sites, state parks, national forests and historic districts. All are worthy of visits — from prehistoric Native American temple mounds to the Governor’s Mansion.

STATE PARKS AND HISTORICAL SITES

ALFRED B. MACLAY STATE GARDENS This park — comprising 1,176 acres — was once the winter estate of talented landscaper and New York financier Alfred B. Maclay and his wife. Their home is located at the center of the ornamentally landscaped grounds featuring 200 varieties of camellias, azaleas trees and shrubs, bejeweled by decorative gates, fountains and a reflecting pool. The park is on Lake Hall, equipped for picnicking, swimming, fishing and non-motorized boating. Surrounding trails are excellent for walking, hiking and cycling. Guided tours are offered on Saturdays and Sundays during the height of blooming season, Jan. 1 through April 30, and the park hosts an annual winter holiday event. Open daily, 8 a.m.–8:30 p.m., year-round. Fee applies during blooming season. 3540 Thomasville Road, (850) 487-4556, floridastateparks.org/maclaygardens CIVIL RIGHTS HERITAGE WALK The 1956 bus boycott and lunch counter sit-ins of 1960–63 helped end racial discrimination in public transportation here. Those peaceful demonstrations are commemorated in 16 terrazzo panels and brass inlays on East Jefferson Street between North Monroe Street and Adams Street. Nearby, find a monument of civil-rights activist Rev. C.K. Steele, and on FAMU campus, look for a monument to Carrie Patterson and Wilhelmina Jakes, students who refused to give up their seats on the bus, were jailed for it, and launched the bus boycott. FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY RESERVATION Located on 73 shady acres along Lake Bradford, the FSU Reservation — “The Rez” — is the picturesque place to enjoy a sunny day. Activities include swimming, rope courses, rock climbing, canoeing, sailing and volleyball. Watersports rentals are available. The Rez also hosts summer camps for children. Open daily. 3226 Flastacowo Road, (850) 644-6892, campusrec.fsu.edu/outdoors/reservation GOODWOOD MUSEUM AND GARDENS Originally a 2,400-acre cotton and corn plantation dating the 1830s, Goodwood Museum and Gardens is now a 16-acre museum featuring an antebellum mansion, spacious lawns, heirloom gardens and centuries-old live oak trees. The main house, on the National Register of Historic Places, contains original furnishings, garments and dishes and the first fresco ceilings made in Florida. Art collected during the occupants’ travels in Europe is evident throughout the house. Other structures, including a water tower and a covered pool pavilion, date from 1835 to 1925. Open Tuesday through Saturday. 1600 Miccosukee Road, (850) 877-4202, goodwoodmuseum.org GOVERNOR’S MANSION On the National Register of Historic Places, the mansion was designed in Greek Revival style to resemble Andrew Jackson’s home, The Hermitage. It serves as home to each sitting Florida governor and first families. Call to schedule tours. 700 N. Adams St., (850) 717-9345, floridagovernorsmansion.com GROVE MUSEUM The Grove Museum, circa 1840, is a Greek Revival-style mansion in downtown Tallahassee set in a venerable grove of magnolia trees and live oaks. Its last owners were former Florida Gov. LeRoy Collins

The Grove Museum strives to preserve and interpret the Call-Collins House, its surrounding acreage and its historical collections, in order to engage the public in dialogue about civil rights and American history.

and his family. Demonstrating the dramatic changes that occurred here across two centuries, the house Collins occupied was built by enslaved people but he, as a public official, rose to national heights as a civil rights champion. The site is on the National Register of Historic Places. Open Wednesday through Saturday. 902 N. Monroe St. (850) 363-5688, thegrovemuseum.com LAKE JACKSON MOUNDS ARCHAEOLOGICAL STATE PARK This archaeological site features four earthen temple mounds — stairs allow two to be climbed — constructed by the native Fort Walton people who inhabited the area from 1050 to 1500 A.D. Artifacts found during excavations include ornate copper plates, carved shell objects and stone and ceramic tools. The park has a nature trail and picnic area. It offers guided tours and interpretive programs. Open daily. Use the honor box to pay fees; correct change is required. 3600 Indian Mounds Road, (850) 922-6007, floridastateparks.org/lakejackson LAKE TALQUIN STATE PARK In 1927, the Jackson Bluff Dam was constructed on the Ochlockonee River. The waters that were held back formed the expansive Lake Talquin, which now offers outstanding recreational opportunities. Visitors can enjoy nature walks, picnicking, boating, canoeing and sport fishing. The River Bluff picnic site is located on Lake Talquin with large tables and a barbecue pit. No swimming is allowed because of the number of logs and stumps in the lake. To reserve the picnic pavilion, call at least two weeks in advance. Open daily. Use the honor box to pay fees; correct change is required. 14850 Jack Vause Landing Road, off State Road 20, (850) 487-7989, floridastateparks.org/laketalquin LEON SINKS GEOLOGICAL AREA At Leon Sinks, within Apalachicola National Forest, visitors find a unique natural experience walking a 3-mile trail through thickets of oak, magnolia, hickory, holly, ash and longleaf pine. Boardwalks and trails form a path for viewing natural sinkholes and water-filled grottos. Wildlife observation and photography is best in the mornings and evenings. Swimming is not allowed. 2564 Wildflower Road, (850) 926-3561, fs.usda.gov/apalachicola

A West Indian Manatee floats in the water taking a breath nearby an alligator resting on the shore in one of the waterways at Wakulla Springs State Park.

LETCHWORTH-LOVE MOUNDS ARCHAEOLOGICAL STATE PARK This state park includes the largest pre-Columbian earthen mound in Florida. Research indicates it is one of the oldest mound complexes in the Southeast, dating to the Late Swift Creek and Early Weeden Island periods (circa 200–900 A.D.). A picnic pavilion is available. Pets on leash are permitted in this park. Open daily. 4500 Sunray Road S., 6 miles west of Monticello, (850) 922-6007, floridastateparks.org/letchworth NATURAL BRIDGE BATTLEFIELD STATE HISTORIC SITE A Confederate victory on these grounds late in the Civil War made Tallahassee the only Southern capital east of the Mississippi River that did not fall into Union hands. Each March, an elaborate reenactment of the battle is held at this site, named a for a natural rock formation over a segment of river that flows underground. Open daily. 7502 Natural Bridge Road, 6 miles east of Woodville, (850) 922-6007, floridastateparks.org/naturalbridge OCHLOCKONEE RIVER STATE PARK This riverside park is ideal for swimming, fishing, boating, hiking, camping, picnicking and viewing of wildlife, especially birds. Open daily. Use the honor box to pay fees; correct change is required. 429 State Park Road, 4 miles south of Sopchoppy, (850) 962-2771, floridastateparks.org/ochlockoneeriver PEBBLE HILL PLANTATION Just north of Tallahassee, near Thomasville, find Pebble Hill, a grand example of an early 20th-century shooting plantation. The main house features sporting art, antiques and Audubon prints. The lush grounds feature brick stables, a kennel, a firehouse, a cemetery and a log-cabin schoolhouse. The plantation hosts annual public events. Open Tuesday through Sunday. 1251 U.S. Highway 319 S., 25 miles north of Tallahassee, (229) 226-2344, pebblehill.com SAN MARCOS DE APALACHE STATE HISTORIC SITE At the convergence of the St. Marks and Wakulla rivers, the site offers picnicking, nature trails and a museum displaying tools and pottery discovered in the area. Open Thursday through Monday. 148 Old Fort Road, St. Marks, (850) 925-6216, floridastateparks.org/sanmarcos FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT SPRING HOUSE Built in 1954 for the Lewis family, the Spring House is the only residence in Florida designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Privately owned, it is on the National Register of Historic Places and offers public tours monthly. 3117 Okeeheepkee Road, (850) 321-6417, preservespringhouse.org ST. GEORGE ISLAND STATE PARK Adjacent to the Gulf of Mexico and Apalachicola Bay, the barrier island named St. George is home to a state park with 9 miles of white-sand beaches. The park has two pavilions with picnic tables, showers, boardwalks, a boat launch and camp grounds. Open daily. 1900 E. Gulf Beach Drive, St. George Island, (850) 927-2111, floridastateparks.org/stgeorgeisland ST. MARKS NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE This refuge along the Gulf of Mexico encompasses 68,000 acres of coastal marshes, islands, tidal creeks and estuaries for seven North Florida rivers. A habitat for migratory birds and home to a diverse community of plant and animal life, the refuge is home to the St. Marks Lighthouse, built in 1832 and still in use today, and has a Visitors Center with park information and binoculars to lend. Open daily. 1255 Lighthouse Road, St. Marks, (850) 925-6121, fws.gov/saintmarks TALLAHASSEE-ST. MARKS HISTORIC RAILROAD STATE TRAIL What once was the oldest operating railroad in Florida is now a 16-mile trail from Tallahassee to historic St. Marks. The trail offers recreational activities for bicyclists, hikers, joggers, skaters and horseback riders. Bicycles and in-line skates are available for rent at the north end of the trail, and a paved parking lot is located on State Road 363, just south of Tallahassee at the entrance of the trail. Open daily. 4778 Woodville Highway, Tallahassee, (850) 519-6594, floridastateparks.org/trail/Tallahassee-St-Marks TORREYA STATE PARK This park is named for an extremely rare species of tree that grows only on the 150-foot bluffs along the Apalachicola River. It provides access to scenic camping with two primitive campsites, hiking trails and a restored 1840s cotton planter’s mansion. A picnic area supplies covered shelters. Guided tours of the restored Gregory House are available daily. The park is located on State Road 271 between Bristol and Greensboro. Open daily. Use honor box to pay fees; correct change is required. 2576 Northwest Torreya Park Road, Bristol, (850) 643-2674, floridastateparks.org/torreya WAKULLA SPRINGS STATE PARK AND LODGE Wakulla is one of the largest, deepest freshwater springs in the world, a place where archaeologists have found and excavated mastodon bones and other prehistoric artifacts from the depths of the spring. It also was the set for portions of the films “Creature From The Black Lagoon” and “Tarzan’s Secret Treasure.” Enjoy nature trails, swimming, picnicking and guided boat tours of the spring-fed Wakulla River, teeming with wildlife including many birds, fish, alligators and, seasonally, manatees. The state park is operated separately from Wakulla Lodge, a once-private resort at springside that offers overnight accommodations, an excellent restaurant and a gift shop. Located 14 miles south of Tallahassee on State Road 267, at State Road 61. Open daily. 465 Wakulla Park Drive, Wakulla Springs, (850) 561-7276, floridastateparks.org/wakullasprings

For more information about historic sites in Tallahassee-Leon County, browse VisitTallahassee.com.