Koreshan State Historic Site

If you enjoy learning about people and history things that happened in Florida then Set 2 hours aside. A small state park but very interesting to learn about the history of the Koreshans. Some very interesting buildings and displays a very nice Garden and a walking trail that goes along the river. Make sure to see the globe that’s inside of the main home all of it is well documented and has some interesting reading as you stroll from one place to the next through the grounds.

I went there to do a little bit of Canoë. We rented one for 2 people and 1 hour for about $ 5.
It was really nice. The river is wild. The Canoë spacious. You can see turtles everywhere. You river is really long so you end up staying 2 hours. Overall nice activity. I recommend it.

Looking for a great campsite in the Estero area that also offers fishing and kayaking, amongst many other features? Hit up Koreshan for a cheap and very accessible campground with more amenities than you’d think are available.
Of course, reservations are a must and completed easily online. Most of the campsites are made for camping vehicles, but plenty of sites for tents at 2 tents max. Potable water and electricity are available at each site, fire rings and picnic tables as well. Tent areas seem to be more shaded than most of the vehicle spots. Bring your hammocks as most of the campsites have hookups, too.
An ample communal bath house is centrally located with showers, bathrooms, vending, volleyball court and two campsite hosts at all times.
Take a walk or a ride on your bike down to the historic area to see how the Koreshan Unity lived and what they believed in.
One last plus is that camping here is easy if you run short on creature comforts like ice and food of your choice, because even after dusk and gates closed, a key code is provided for re entry if you leave at night.
I can’t wait to go back again.

I love getting portrait pictures here because there are great locations all over the historic park. The trees are magnificent, there are some very cool historic houses from the original community of worshipers who lived here, a beautiful white bridge, and some nice spots by the river that flows through.
They have kayaking, camping, a play ground, museum, historic homes to tour, hiking trails, and biking. During the winter when the snowbirds come into town they host several events, a tea party, luncheon, and some concerts.
Also, if you’re looking for a great place to get married outdoors, there is a ton of space for tents, and nice bathroom facilities.

Pronounced coreshan. If you were a cult founder and the people of Chicago kind of think you are crazy where would you go? While of course you would take your 400 followers and go to a mosquito, snake, alligator infested place. Then you would proceed to alienate the good residents of Ft. Meyers get beat so bad you will die. Then you will be buried somewhere close to the sea. And of course a storm comes up and your body disappears and the cult just knows you have gone to heaven and will be coming back shortly. Only you don’t come back and your theory of the world is not flat but it is (a crap I never did understand this part) Instead. The universe surrounding the earth the earth surrounds the universe. Your last follower will die in 1972 a non believer. As she watched man land on the moon on TV she knew the theory was false.
The Koreshan followers built an amazing self sufficient community. They made everything they needed including electricity. They only thing that prevented them from surviving was once you became a member you gave up sex and having a family. Kind of hard to keep it going without little ones to indoctrinate into your beliefs. But then in 1969 would have been a bad year because man landed on the moon and that theory gets proved wrong.

We had passed the signs to Koreshan State Historic Site on our several visits to the Estero/​Bonita Springs area. But had never visited until we found ourselves with a few spare hours on a Saturday afternoon when we were «between» hotels.
So glad we did. Very interesting and well preserved buildings. The volunteer guides were helpful in giving the history of Koreshan. The movie was also helpful.
Not sure we would make a repeat visit, but certainly glad we did this one time.

This is a pretty interesting place to visit. Not only is it part of the history of this area, it also offers many outdoor adventures.
We walked through the historical site but the tour was already in session. Our timing wasn’t as good as it could have been. However, that wasn’t a problem. What’s great about this place is that you can do a self-​tour. Information is posted along the way plus pamphlets available. It’s a beautiful place place.
There is also a campground in a beautiful area or you can hike through the many trails. Better than that is it sits on the Estero River giving you a wonderful opportunity to kayak or even fish. Heading east it is calm through the mangroves. I’m not sure the distance you can head east but quite a ways. Eventually, the water gets shallow and it’s best to turn around and head in the other direction. Heading west the river widens as it goes towards the gulf.
We put our kayaks in at the boat ramp. Along the way we saw turtles and interesting birds. It’s a wonderful place to kayak and we may just be back.

Although the history is odd, this place is an absolute hidden gem and treasure to the West Coast community. There are nature trails, kayaking areas, fishing, and boating areas on the Estero River. The grounds are beautifully maintained. Public bathrooms are even well kept. The houses on the lot of the Koreshan group of people remain and bring lots of value to the historical spot. The bamboo forest is outstanding and tranquil. There is a small dock behind one of the houses that’s great for pictures. The site is amazing for engagement photos or family photo shoot. Picnics allowed. Many little bridges to cross which are outstanding. Gopher tortoises DO NOT DISTURB if you visit as they are a protected species. Great place for all ages, highly recommend if you love nature and history.

Our day in Estero helped change my views on Florida. I thought it had no real history or depth. This place was pretty awesome. Creepy but really cool and made me think twice about Florida.
First off, the grounds are beautiful. Bamboo forest, funky palms and other vegetation which apparently was brought here from all over the world. There is signage with names of all of the different types. Our morning hike along the Estero river hugging the park was so peaceful. People paddled by on kayaks. Others were camping out! Way cool! We carved our name with the others into the bamboo and sitting listening to it crackle was peaceful. I could’ve sat there all day.
Touring the compound was very interesting. The views and artifacts of the Koreshans were neat to see and well preserved. The movie located in one of the buildings in the middle was very helpful and informative. There were tour guides inside some of the buildings available to answer questions and state facts. Short story, it’s basically a early settlers «cult» although they don’t like that word. It’s just fascinating to see how others lived, what they tried to accomplish and how they viewed the world.
I would definitely recommend a hike through here. It’s just $ 5 a carload and a different way to spend the morning!

If you appreciate history, this is an important stop. One of the Utopian societies from the past century, there’s a lot to learn and see.

This Florida State Park is an extraordinary example of the diverse ecosystems found in SW Florida.

What a fantastic hidden jem here in SW Florida!
Wherever we went, we found ample staff to answer questions and tend to the structures.
Beautiful old Florida fauna, and fresh fruit trees hidden around the property. I jumped up and had fresh mandarin oranges right off the tree! There is a hiking trail that’s leads you next to the river through a forest of bamboo trees. The serenity experienced as the wind rolls up the river and makes the bamboo leaves rustle is not soon forgotten.
Great campgrounds near the river for those that want to brave the bugs.
If you want some strange history of early Florida living, this is the place to go! You’ll see what I mean when you go over the religious cult beliefs of the earth being concave. Lol

I have to admit, we didn’t get to visit the historic site while it was open, but we stayed in the campground that was attached to it, and the campground was the highlight of our 3000 mile camping trip along the east coast!
Although the sites within the campground are close together, the woodland is so dense between slots, that you hardly notice you have neighbors.
Palm trees tightly mixed in among others, that offer a nice privacy screen.
The park is beautiful, with lots of outdoor activities to keep you busy consisting of nature walks, a play area for the kids, and a river to paddle through, with mangroves, and live oaks overhanging the river for a nice secluded feel.
Proximity to the beach:
It is about a 20 minute drive to a very nice stretch of beach on the gulf side, with aqua green water, white sand, and nice warm, clean water to swim in.
Shopping, and restaurants:
If shopping is your thing, there is a very nice mall at Coconut Point, which has a multitude of stores ranging from fashionable to The Sports Authority.
we stayed 3 days, but I wish we would have stayed 5, or more.
We did all of the above activities, hiking, 7 mile kyak trip, eating out, shopping, and going to the beach
This part of the trip was the best!
Below is a video of our 3000 mile camping trip, that includes scenes from this park.
Mark :)

Took a tour with a volunteer guide. He was informative and friendly. The history is interesting, as are some of the trees. I’m glad they’re keeping up some of the buildings. Dade County Pine is beautiful.
The fee is only $ 5 per carload and $ 2 pp for the tour. Certain days during the week they turn on the generator which could be interesting.
I’m not much of a history buff, but in case you’re wondering, this has nothing to do with David Koresh in Waco, TX (I didn’t do a lot of research beforehand). It turns out they both chose that name for completely different reasons and are unrelated.

We enjoyed the historical buildings and walking around the site. It is an interesting take on a cult from the late 1800’s early 1900’s. There is alot of information available and the park rangers where very knowledgable and friendly. We enjoyed some fresh cooking from the park volunteers who set up an authentic lunch and dressed the part.

The former site of a bonafide Cult is now a Florida cultural attraction in Lee County. The buildings and grounds continue to be maintained while every February, volunteers of the historic society associated with Koreshan maintain the cult’s basics by re-​enacting some of the more bland weirdness in their 19^th C. dress during two successive moonlit weekends.
In about 1896, a charismatic Cyrus Teed recruited about 100 of his Chicago friends to come live an alternative lifestyle. As most cult leaders do, Cyrus (who changed his name to Koreshan) required each convert to sign over all of their assets to him. And, the foiks also agreed to a celibate life, with women and children living in one house and the men in smaller surrounding bldgs.
Cyrus travelled the world collecting converts and money but came home to his top floor bedroom in the women’s house called the Planetary chamber. The community was self-​sustaining, baking bread, raising animals, trading on the Estero River, and this is my favorite: generating electricity with one of the world’s first turbine engines. Even Tom Edison came down from Ft Myers to check out their handiwork.
You can witness the turbine fire up, and watch the lights go on in the original shed with that home-​grown electricity during one of the volunteer demonstrations.
When the volunteers arent around, its a good place to walk and see an occassional gopher turtoise, also protected on these grounds. You won’t see any Koreshan settlers since celibacy took care of that a long time ago. The last one died in the ‘70s.
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