Turkey Creek Preserve is a 375-acre preserve located in the Turkey Creek community of Alachua County, Florida. [1]
Turkey Creek Preserve is a 375-acre preserve located in the Turkey Creek community of Alachua County, Florida. [1]
Turkey Creek Preserve is located at 6300 NW 93rd Ave, west of Northwest 59th Terrace and north of Northwest 93rd Avenue in Alachua County, Florida. [2] [3] It borders San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park. The preserve harbors nearly a mile of its namesake Turkey Creek's waters. [3] Two miles away is Four Creeks Preserve, which opened to the public in 2019, [3] and houses the Turkey, Blues, Possum, and Hogtown Creeks. [4] Turkey Creek Forest is also the name of a residential area that lies north of Four Creeks Preserve. [4]
The preserve contains 5 miles of marked trails, open to hikers. [1] Additionally, off-road bicycling and equestrian use is allowed on select trails. [1] The preserve has trailheads at Northwest 93rd Avenue and Northwest 59th Terrace. [3]
For much of the 20th century, the Cellon family owned the area, using it as pasture. [1] Nearby Cellon Oak Park in Gainesville is named after the family. The land was once set to be used for housing for the Turkey Creek community, of which there are around 2,200 residents, as of 2021. [1]
Using a combination of Wild Spaces Public Places [lower-alpha 1] funds and a $1.5 million grant from the Florida Communities Trust, Alachua County purchased the preserve from the Gainesville Investment Group for $4 million in 2009. [1] A management plan for the preserve was approved in 2012. [3] The preserve underwent over a decade of restoration; trash and exotic plants were removed, while native plants were introduced to replaced them. Timber harvesting of planted slash pine was a central step of the preserve's development process, which also saw a wild hog population controlled. [3] A parking lot was also added to the area. [1]
Alachua County is a county in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 278,468. The county seat is Gainesville, the home of the University of Florida since 1906, when the campus opened with 106 students.
Levy County is a county located on the Gulf coast in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 42,915. Its county seat is Bronson. It has been included in the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area since 2018.
Alachua is the second-largest city in Alachua County, Florida and the third-largest in North Central Florida. According to the 2020 census, the city's population was 10,574, up from 9,059 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Alachua has one of the largest bio and life sciences sectors in Florida and is the site for the Santa Fe College Perry Center for Emerging Technologies.
Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area with a population of 350,903 in 2022.
Hawthorne is a city in Alachua County, Florida, United States, incorporated in 1881. Indigenous peoples of the Americas had been living in the area since around 100 CE; Hawthorne grew around their trading trails. Throughout its history, Hawthorne has been known for its agriculture, railroad, and rural lifestyle. Hawthorne's population was 1,478 at the 2020 census, up from 1,417 at the 2010 census, with an area of 7.38 sq mi (19.1 km2). It is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.
LaCrosse is a town in Alachua County, Florida, 15 miles (24 km) north of Gainesville. The LaCrosse is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 US census, the town population was 316, down from 360 in 2010 US Census.
Newberry is a city located in the southwest corner of Alachua County, Florida, United States. The population was 7,342 as of the 2020 Census, up from 4,950 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Much of the city borders neighboring Gilchrist County, to the west.
Jonesville is an unincorporated community in Alachua County, Florida, United States. It is located roughly at the intersection of County Road 241 and State Road 26. Jonesville has no city government but is an informal name for a region on Newberry Road between Gainesville and Newberry.
The Kanapaha Botanical Gardens is a botanical garden in Gainesville, Florida, operated by the North Florida Botanical Society. The name for the garden comes from the nearby 250-acre Lake Kanapaha. "Kanapaha" originating from two Timucua words for "palmetto leaves" and "house". The gardens were established in 1978 when the society leased 33 acres for a public botanical garden. Another 29 acres were added in 1982. The gardens opened to the public in 1986.
Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park is a Florida State Park, encompassing a 21,000-acre (85 km2) savanna in Alachua County, Florida lying between Micanopy and Gainesville. It is also a U.S. National Natural Landmark. It is crossed by both I-75 and U.S. 441. It is in the center of the Paynes Prairie Basin. The basin's primary source of drainage is Alachua Sink. During occasional wet periods, the basin will become full. A notable period occurred from 1871 to 1891 when the Alachua Sink was temporarily blocked. During this period, shallow draft steamboats were a frequent sight on Alachua Lake in the center of the prairie. The region was also historically known as the Alachua Savannah. Its drainage has been modified by several canals. Since 1927, Camps Canal has linked the basin to the River Styx which leads to Orange Lake and eventually the Atlantic Ocean through the St. Johns River. That reduced the basins water intake by half. Additional changes to the prairie's environment have been detrimental to its hydrology. In 1970, the state of Florida acquired the land and has been in the process of restoring the environment to a more natural condition ever since.
Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail is a paved rail trail in Florida.
Alachua County Public Schools is a public school district serving Alachua County in North Central Florida. It serves approximately 29,845 students in 64 schools and centers.
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park is a Florida State Park and historic site located on the former homestead of Pulitzer Prize-winning Florida author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (1896–1953). A National Historic Landmark, it is located in Cross Creek, Florida, between Ocala and Gainesville at 18700 South County Road 325.
San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park is a Florida State Park in Alachua County, Florida. It is located northwest of Gainesville, Florida on CR 232, just south of the town of Alachua.
Newnansville, Florida was one of the first American settlements in the interior of Florida. It became the second county seat of Alachua County in 1828, and one of the central locations for activity during the Second Seminole War, during which time it was one of the largest cities in the State. In the 1850s, the Florida Railroad bypassed Newnansville, resulting in the county seat being moved to the new town of Gainesville in 1854. Consequently, Newnansville began to decline, and when a second railway bypassed the town in 1884, most of its residents relocated and formed the new City of Alachua. By 1900, Newnansville was deserted.
Cross Creek is an unincorporated community in Alachua County, Florida, United States. It is located on Cross Creek, a short stream connecting Orange and Lochloosa lakes.
Rochelle is an unincorporated community in Alachua County, Florida, United States. It was found in the 1830s on a former native settlement and mission site. and was built around the Plantation of Madison Starke Perry.
Orange Creek is a small stream in north-central and northeast Florida, that drains Orange Lake to the Ocklawaha River. Privately owned Orange Springs provides part of the water volume.
The Newberry Six lynchings took place in Newberry, Alachua County, Florida, on August 18, 1916.
The historic communities of Alachua County were populated places and/or places with a post office that were established in the 19th century or early 20th century in what is now Alachua County, Florida, but which were abandoned, annexed into an incorporated municipality, or had a much reduced population by the later part of the 20th century.