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List of Florida state forests

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Florida State Forests
Tall green pine trees stand above a dense underbrush which is divided by a sandy two-track walking trail.
Area1,236,322 acres (500,322 ha)[1]
Established1936; 90 years ago (1936)[2]
VisitorsMore than 2.2 million (in 2016[2])
Governing bodyFlorida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service
Websitewww.fdacs.gov/Forest-Wildfire/Our-Forests/State-Forests

The Florida state forest system consists of 38 state forests and one working ranch managed by the Florida Forest Service (FFS), a division of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Together they cover more than 1,236,000 acres (500,000 ha)[1][n 1] in 39 of Florida's 67 counties.[n 2] The forests are managed for multiple use, a concept set out in Florida law under which timber is harvested on a sustainable basis alongside outdoor recreation, habitat for game and nongame wildlife, and the protection of water resources and archaeological and historical sites.[3][4] Most of the forests are also run as wildlife management areas under a cooperative agreement with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and they offer hiking, camping, paddling and designated off-highway vehicle trails.[3]

Florida's state forests and state parks began as a single program. In 1935 the Legislature authorized the Florida Board of Forestry to manage forests and parks that the federal government had acquired and turned over to the state, and each tract was assigned to one system or the other by its "highest use": land suited to timber and lacking unusual scenic, historic or botanical value went to forestry.[2] The first state forest, Pine Log State Forest, was bought from the Henderson-Waits Lumber Company in 1936,[4] and Cary State Forest followed in 1937.[5] Three more began as federal land-use and resettlement projects of the 1930s, Blackwater River, Welaka and Withlacoochee, and came to the state by lease or deed between 1938 and 1958.[6][7][8] Most of the system is far younger. Purchases in almost every year from 1987 to 2009, funded through the Conservation and Recreation Lands Trust Fund and the Preservation 2000 program, brought the number of state forests to 35,[2] and later land has come through Florida Forever.[6] Of the 39 units in this list, 29 were first acquired after 1989. The newest, Sandy Creek State Forest in Bay County, was bought in 2025 and has not yet opened to the public.[9]

This list covers all 38 currently managed state forests as well as Babcock Ranch Preserve, a Florida Heritage Working Ranch that the FFS has managed alongside them since 2016.[1][10] The units range in size from Blackwater River, at more than 226,000 acres the largest state forest in Florida, to the 58-acre Holopaw State Forest.[6][11] Acquisition years, areas and notable features in the table come from each forest's current ten-year land management plan, except for Sandy Creek, which does not yet have one.

Interactive map

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Map
Florida Forest Service boundaries for state forests (Green) and Babcock Ranch Preserve (Brown)

Florida state forests

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References

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Notes

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  1. ↑ The Florida Forest Service's figure of 1,236,322 acres is a current system total. The areas in the table below come from each forest's most recent management plan and do not include land bought since, so they add up to about 1,181,000 acres.
  2. ↑ Count of the counties named in the table below.
  3. ↑ The year the State of Florida acquired, or first leased, the parcel that forms the initial area of the forest. Where the land was already state-owned, the year it was assigned to the Florida Forest Service is given instead. Later additions are not reflected.
  4. ↑ Counties are those named in each forest's land management plan. Coordinates mark the centroid of the forest's largest parcel in the Florida Forest Service boundary layer.
  5. ↑ Acreage as stated in each forest's current ten-year land management plan, as of that plan's approval; later acquisitions are not reflected. Figures include sovereign submerged lands where a plan counts them.
  6. ↑ Babcock Ranch Preserve is designated a Florida Heritage Working Ranch rather than a state forest. The Florida Forest Service took over its management on August 1, 2016, and administers it alongside the state forests.[10]
  7. ↑ Leased from the federal government in November 1938; the United States Forest Service deeded the land to the state in 1955.[6]
  8. ↑ The Florida Forest Service's full name for the unit is Carl Duval Moore State Forest and Park.[15]
  9. ↑ The plan dates the forest's establishment to 1937; its original parcels were bought between 1935 and 1942.[5]
  10. ↑ The land has been state-owned since 1921; it was assigned to the Florida Forest Service in 2015.[30]
  11. ↑ Includes the Woodville Tract, deeded to the state in 1946, a separate state forest from 1990 and merged into Wakulla State Forest in 2002.[42]
  12. ↑ The federal government deeded the land to the state in 1954; it was assigned to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services in 1992.[7]
  13. ↑ Leased from the federal government under a 1958 lease-purchase agreement; title passed to the state in February 1983.[8]

Citations

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  1. 1 2 3 "State Forests". Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "History of the Florida Forest Service". Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Florida State Forests" (PDF) (Brochure). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. January 2024. DACS-P-00142. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Pine Log State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. February 11, 2022. pp. 3, 9–10, 25. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Cary State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. June 10, 2024. pp. 3, 9–10, 28. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Blackwater River State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. April 13, 2026. pp. 3, 11, 13, 49. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Welaka State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. August 17, 2026. pp. 3, 9, 20, 32. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Ten-Year Resource Management Plan for the Withlacoochee State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. February 13, 2015. pp. 11, 13–14, 35–36. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 12, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "DEP Celebrates Acquisition of Florida's Newest State Forest" (Press release). Florida Department of Environmental Protection. July 31, 2025. Archived from the original on September 24, 2026. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Babcock Ranch Preserve (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. 2016. Executive Summary; pp. 2, 10, 11, 25, 39. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Holopaw State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. November 28, 2023. pp. 3, 6. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Florida State Forests". FDACS Geospatial Data Portal. Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  13. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Belmore State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. December 11, 2020. pp. 3, 9–10, 17, 25. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  14. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Big Shoals State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. December 16, 2025. pp. 3, 9–10, 26. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Carl Duval Moore State Forest and Park (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. August 13, 2021. pp. 3, 8–9, 23. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  16. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Charles H. Bronson State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. August 13, 2021. pp. 1, 3, 8, 26. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  17. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Resource Management Plan for the Etoniah Creek State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. July 9, 2015. pp. 2, 9–10, 28. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  18. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Four Creeks State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. 2022. pp. 3, 9–10, 16, 24. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  19. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Goethe State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. November 15, 2024. pp. 3, 10–11, 33. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  20. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Indian Lake State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. 2023. pp. 3, 8–9, 26. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  21. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Jennings State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. pp. 3, 9, 11, 18–19, 29. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  22. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the John M. Bethea State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. February 19, 2016. pp. 2, 8–9, 17, 29. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  23. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Kissimmee Bend State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. June 16, 2025. pp. 3, 8–9, 23. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  24. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Resource Management Plan for the Lake George State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. 2015. pp. 2, 8, 10, 23. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  25. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Lake Talquin State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. February 13, 2024. pp. 3, 8, 10, 17, 27. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  26. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Lake Wales Ridge State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. pp. 8, 10, 23–24, 62. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  27. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Little Big Econ State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. February 12, 2021. pp. 3, 8, 10, 26–27. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  28. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Matanzas State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. pp. 3, 9, 11, 18, 26. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  29. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Myakka State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. pp. 3, 8, 10, 17. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  30. 1 2 3 4 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Newnans Lake State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. June 15, 2018. pp. 15–16, 23–24. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 31, 2022. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  31. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Okaloacoochee Slough State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. April 14, 2025. pp. 3, 11, 19, 29. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  32. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Peace River State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. June 14, 2019. pp. 2, 9–10, 17. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  33. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Picayune Strand State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. June 15, 2020. pp. 3, 10, 12, 19. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 5, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  34. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for Plank Road State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. February 14, 2020. pp. 3, 8–9. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  35. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Point Washington State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. pp. 2, 8–9, 26. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  36. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Ralph E. Simmons Memorial State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. March 8, 2016. pp. 2, 10, 23. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  37. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Ross Prairie State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. October 18, 2019. pp. 2, 8, 10, 27. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  38. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Seminole State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. June 10, 2024. pp. 1, 3, 10, 13. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  39. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Tate's Hell State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. October 18, 2019. pp. 3, 9, 11, 32–33. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  40. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Tiger Bay State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. October 14, 2022. pp. 1, 3, 10, 31. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  41. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Twin Rivers State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. 2016. pp. 2, 9, 11, 28. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  42. 1 2 3 4 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Wakulla State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. pp. 2, 8–9, 17, 27. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  43. 1 2 3 Ten-Year Land Management Plan for the Watson Island State Forest (PDF) (Report). Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida Forest Service. April 14, 2023. pp. 1, 3, 9, 15, 23. Retrieved September 24, 2026.
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