When Dr. Cyrus Teed founded a commune along the banks of the Estero River in 1894, he envisioned a utopia in the tropics. Koreshan State Park preserves that slice of history.
Resources
Resources for exploring the area
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Overview
Location: Estero
Trailhead: 26.43117,-81.814781
Address: 3800 Corkscrew Rd, Estero
Fees: $4-5 per vehicle. Tours $2 per person.
Restroom: Yes, several
Land manager: Florida State Parks
Phone: 239-992-0311
Open 8 AM until sunset daily. Leashed pets welcome. Expect mosquitoes.
Location
About the Park
Koreshan was planned as a “New Jerusalem,” a Utopia where women had equal rights with men and everyone lived by the Golden Rule.
The commune slowly faded away, and the last few members deeded the property to the state in 1961. Learn its full story here.
The well-preserved village is now a major part of the park, where you can stroll the streets as they looked more than a century ago.
Restored gardens with tall stands of bamboo line a walk between the community and the rest of the park, which includes nature trails and a campground.
Launch your kayak (or rent one at the outfitter outside the park gates) for a paddle into Estero Bay to see Mound Key, a man-made island of oyster shells rising 32 feet high and now a separate state park.
This outstanding archeological site was was the capital city of the Calusa, where King Carlos received the Spanish explorers who came to his shores in the 1500s.
Explore More!
Florida’s Utopia
At the Koreshan Unity in Estero, Florida, a group of believers gathered in 1894 to build their paradise. It is now a National Historic Site and a Florida State Park. Walk the trails and streets of “New Jerusalem” to learn its story.
Mound Key Archaeological State Park
Launch your kayak from either Koreshan Historic State Park or Lovers Key State Park for a paddle into Estero Bay to see Mound Key, a significant Calusa archaeological site that is now its own state park.
Slideshow
See our photos of Koreshan State Park
Nearby Adventures
More worth exploring while you’re in this area.
Estero Scrub Preserve State Park
A tough hike when it’s wet, Estero Scrub Preserve State Park has several loops through wet flatwoods and tidal marshes along the rim of Estero Bay
Estero Bay Preserve State Park
Providing a buffer between the heavily developed Gulf Coast between Fort Myers and Estero and the delicate estuaries that serve as nurseries for the aquatic life of the region, Estero Bay Preserve State Park encompasses ten miles of shoreline along Estero Bay.
CREW Flint Pen Strand
Just four miles east of Interstate 75, get your feet wet in one corner of the vast the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed on the trails of Flint Pen Strand.
CREW Cypress Dome Trails
On this 4.4 mile loop, experience an impressive array of habitats in Florida panther habitat – from sandy flatwoods to flooded cypress swamps – in the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed.