Spring house amid the plantation ruins
Burned to the ground by a Seminole war party in 1836, the Bulow Plantation fell into ruins, and the remaining towering ruins of a sugar mill are the focus of Bulow Plantation Ruins Historic State Park.
Resources
Overview
Location: Flagler Beach
Lat-Long: 29.434253,-81.138069
Fees: $4 per vehicle
Open: 8 AM until sunset daily
Leashed pets welcome
Location
Details
In 1831, John J. Audubon painted his Greater Yellowlegs on a Christmas visit to this former sugar plantation, clearly showing a row of slave cabins in the background. Established in 1821, the Bulow Plantation was a powerful economic force in the region, 2,200 acres of sugar cane, cotton, rice, and indigo.
Walking amid the towering coquina walls, it’s hard to imagine how busy this place was in the 1830s. Cane crushing. Syrup boiling. Packing molasses and cane sugar for shipment.
More than 200 slaves worked the plantation, and a small town, Bulowville, grew up around it. Products would be shipped down Bulow Creek to the Halifax River and on to Mosquito Inlet in New Smyrna, where ships sailed out to the Caribbean and the East Coast.
Today, it’s a well-interpreted place for contemplation, including the mill, foundations of slave cabins, and a spring house. Looking out from the canopy of oaks across Bulow Creek, you can see snowy egrets along the shoreline and white ibis soaring, a scene echoing Audubon’s visit.
Trail Map
Explore the park
Bulow Creek Loop - Stretching 5.2 miles through an primordial forest of sluggish, fern-lined waterways, ancient live oaks, magnolias, and cabbage palms, the Bulow Creek Loop is one of North Florida's most scenic hikes.
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