Forest Capital Museum State Park

The museum interprets the history of forestry in Florida, highlighting turpentine production, forest products and the ecology of the forest. The park features an 1863 Cracker Homestead with antique furnishings and tools, a visitor center, picnic pavilions and playground.

The forested area of the 13-acre park consists of longleaf pines, live oaks, water oaks and cabbage palms. Dogwood trees and wild azalea bushes bloom in the early spring. Amidst the trees, Spanish moss sways gently in the breeze while animals and birds scamper and flutter about.

At the Cracker Homestead, wild rose vines grace the gated entrance to the cracker home. The yard is sandy and swept clear of debris, as it would have been in the late 1800s. A vegetable garden is planted during the spring and fall. Sugar cane grows during the summer for cane grinding and syrup making in the fall. Pomegranate and fig trees grow just beyond the grapevines behind the home. Florida anise and wax myrtle plants border the split-rail fence surrounding the homestead.

The park lawn is landscaped with beds of coontie ferns (Zamia floridana) and hedges of evergreens. Paths throughout the park invite visitors to leisurely stroll and enjoy a day in the park.