Eden Gardens State Park

Eden Gardens State Park consists of 163 upland acres just north of Seagrove Beach, across highway 98 in Point Washington, along the shores of Tucker Bayou and the Choctawhatchee Bay.

After entering, take a left toward the picnic shelters where you can launch a paddle board or kayak into Tucker Bayou which has an opening to the Bay.

Gracing Eden are gardens everywhere, the beautiful legacy of the many gardeners and master gardeners who belong to the Friends of Eden Gardens State Park, and give lovingly of their time and labor.

The focal point of the park is the Wesley house, a beautifully renovated, two-story house with elegant white columns and wraparound porch complete with rocking chairs. Surrounded by moss-draped live oaks and ornamental gardens, the Wesley house inspires visions of hoop skirts and landed gentry.

It’s a favorite place for weddings and other events, and includes a covered stage for performances, a large screened pavilion, and bricked areas under the oaks for event tents.

The park is part of the estate owned in the 1800s by the Wesleys, a wealthy Florida timber family. Wooden pilings can still be seen in the bayou where lumber from the sawmill was loaded onto ships to be sent all over the world. After the mill closed, many of the company-owned worker cottages were dismantled and taken to Grayton Beach where they were rebuilt as beach cottages for vacationing families, mostly from Alabama.