Arcadia Mill- Longleaf Pine

Longleaf pines once dominated ecosystems in the Southeastern United States from southeast Virginia to eastern Texas. In the past 400 years, Longleaf grew on over 90 million acres across the US and was the dominant tree species on 60 million of ...

Arcadia Mill- Swamp Walk

On this portion of the boardwalk, guests can learn about a variety of trees, plants, and animals. On the swamp walk, interpretive panels line the boardwalk to provide information on our vast assortment of flora. As with any wetland ecosystem, ...

Arcadia Mill- Simpson House

The Simpson House was a three-story, Louisiana-style mansion built by Ezekiel Simpson ca. 1835. Located in the southern uplands, the Simpson House consisted of a brick paved basement, veranda and main floor, and a second story. The front of the ...

Arcadia Mill- Textile Mill and Plunge Pool

The textile mill replaced the second sawmill and was a two-and-a-half story brick structure that opened in 1845. The mill operated under the name “Arcadia Manufacturing Company” with 960 spindles and 24 looms. The labor force consisted of female slaves ...

Arcadia Mill- Millrace

The millrace was a narrow, board-lined channel that flowed behind the wall of the dam and carried water to the second mill site. After the water flowed through the millrace and turned the water wheel, it dropped into the plunge ...

Arcadia Mill- Area A

In addition to the mill facilities, Arcadia included a multi-ethnic village located in the uplands surrounding the low-lying industrial complex.  From 2009 to 2011, archaeologists from the UWF Division of Anthropology and Archaeology conducted archaeological excavations in the uplands north ...

Arcadia Mill- Twitchells Mill and Flume

In 1830, Joseph Forsyth sold the northeast corner of the property to Timothy Twitchell for $121.  Twitchell then began to construct his own sawmill, which shared the mill pond with Arcadia. From the mill pond, Twitchell’s Flume carried hewn timber ...

Arcadia Mill- Trails

Welcome to the Arcadia Hiking Trails. A helpful reminder is that hiking north or northeast will take guests away from the Visitor’s Center, and hiking south or southwest will bring hikers back. Our main trail, marked in orange, runs north ...

Arcadia Mill- Dam and Blowout

Arcadia’s dam was constructed with layers of locally excavated ironstone as the foundation. The stacked ironstone, which ranged from 12 to 15 feet high, was covered with layers of dirt. At its completion, the dam stretched a half mile long ...

Arcadia Mill- Sawmill

In 1830, Joseph Forsyth partnered with Ezekiel and Andrew Simpson to construct the first sawmill at Arcadia. The dammed up water passed through the sluiceway to the waterwheel and powered the open-air mill.

The absence of walls allowed wind to ...