The island has been in existence for 5,000 years. During most of this time, no one had seized it to use for habitable living. The military used the area for training exercises that were conducted in the dunes portion of the island. The state of Florida acquired the land for the park in 1963 and the causeway was completed was completed in 1965. After the causeway was built, more people flocked to the beaches. Park construction was completed in 1980 and opened to the public.

In addition to the long beaches and dunes, the park also features live oak hammock and rows of slash pines. There is an ocean nearby that caters to marine life. Even though the climate in the area is dry, there are some small freshwater ponds and sloughs that cater to a limited aquatic lifestyle. At the opening of the Apalachicola River, the oyster industry is prevalent there. Commercial and sport fisheries abound there, also.

Because of the dryness in the area mixed in with the island park itself, there is limited animal life dwelling here. You may see osprey fishing in the water and their habitat nests a located on tops of pine trees in the park. They nestle on pine trees that are thriving or unresponsive. You may also spot raccoons, ghost crabs, diamondback terrapin and marsh snakes. These creatures make their dwelling in the marsh and bay water area. In the shores of sand and grass flat areas, you can find different species of birds, such as the black skimmer, least tern and the snowy plover. Birds move from one place to another during the fall and spring seasons. They usually end up along the Gulf Coast’s barrier islands for what are called rest stops. After the cold fronts have come and gone, you have a better chance of seeing them.

If you’re looking for recreational things to do at the park, you have your choice of hiking trails, boardwalks and observation platforms. Gap Point is a campsite that also has a nature trail that spans 2.5 miles. The campground area is in the vicinity of the pine forests. You can either camp out on the bay side or in the primitive campsite areas.

Swimming and sunbathing is allowed along the white sandy beaches and the Gulf waters. You are taking a chance because there are no lifeguards available in this area. So you are basically swimming at your own risk. If you want to fish, you can do surf and bay fishing. During your excursion, you may catch a variety of Spanish mackerel, whiting, pompano, redfish, sea trout, or flounder. You are only allowed to fish here if you have a valid saltwater fishing license.

If you do drive on the park roads, the speed limit is 25 miles per hour. Driving is prohibited in the dune areas. You are not allowed to hunt, use the grass or land to feed animals, or removing trees and related items from the park. For the animal’s safety as well as yours, you are prohibited from feeding them. If you bring a pet, they are restricted from most of the park area. They are not allowed on the campgrounds, beaches (including bathing beaches), concession areas and other areas that are designated off limits. The only exception to this is service dogs (seeing-eye dogs for the visually impaired).

The park is open from 8 A.M. until sundown and operates every day of the year, including holidays.

Between the 10^th and 15^th centuries, the Creek Indians were the first inhabitants to settle on St. George Island. In the late 1700s, the European colonists came trying to get control of the island from the Creek Indians. The Creek Indians surrender a large piece of land that included St. George Island, to a trader, John Forbes in 1803. This area that was given to him was called “Forbes Grant”. During World War II, St. George Island was used for military training exercises.

Little St. George Island, which neighbors St. George Island to the west, is known for its history of lighthouses. In 1833, the first lighthouse was built on Cape St. George. Thirteen years later in 1846, the light, which was 65 feet tall, was destroyed due to numerous storms in the area. Two years after that, in 1848, another light was built and it was ten feet taller than the previous one. Three years later, in 1851, a hurricane destroyed and flattened the second one. The hurricane also got rid of two other lighthouses, the Cape San Bias and the Dog Island.

The next year, in 1852, a third lighthouse was built. This lasted the longest of all of them, 153 years. In October 2005, a mixture of hurricanes, wars and erosion caused this lighthouse to fall apart. Devastated about what happened, the St. George Lighthouse Association was formed in 2004. The group, along with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, was able to find the pieces of the destroyed light. They also refurbished over 20,000 of the original bricks to use in rebuilding the lighthouse. In 2007, the association received state funds in the form of a grant to use for the tower reconstruction. This project is scheduled to be completed in 2008. The county park was renamed St. George Lighthouse Park. This landmark will continue to be a part of St. George Island’s maritime history of the Florida Panhandle.

Since St. George Island is known as being environmentally friendly, the State of Florida purchased the bayside of the island and the entire Little St. George Island. In addition to that, you will not see a bunch of subdivisions or homes popping up everywhere. The beauty of the land is protected by low density zoning regulations. There are also building codes in place that have certain square footages you can use and there is a height restriction for building. No high rises are allowed to be built here. These rules and restrictions are put in place to preserve the island’s natural beauty and integrity.

St. George only has about 1,000 permanent residents and never has to concern itself about crowding. Even when the summer months are at their peak, you don’t find people jammed up together. There is something to do for everyone, whether it’s swimming, sunbathing, seashell hunting, bird watching, fishing, or just watching the sunrise and sunset. If you’re looking for tranquil vacation you can enjoy, St. George Island is the place to be.

The Cape St. George Lighthouse was first built in 1833. It was located on Little St. George Island in the Gulf of Mexico. It’s located in the Florida Panhandle, about 8 miles from the shore of Apalachicola. The first lighthouse lasted about 13 or 14 years before it was destroyed. The presence of multiple storms removed the 65-foot light from its existence.

In 1846, rebuilding of the light was in motion at the southern tip of the island. It was completed in 1848 and the light was made 10 feet taller than the previous one. The rebuilding included materials from the first lighthouse. This one lasted only three years. This time its demise was caused by a hurricane. In addition to this one being destroyed, the hurricane also destroyed the Cape San Blas and Dog Island lighthouses.

In 1852, the third light was rebuilt again. This one was placed 500 yards inland from before. During the Civil War, the light was inactive as to divert the Yankee ships from coming that way. In 1865, the lighthouse keeper at that time, James Reilly, activated the light. Even though they tried to protect the area from Yankee ships, the light lens had been damaged, so it was replaced in 1888. The Coast Guard came on board in 1949 and placed an automatic light in the lighthouse, so by the 1950s there was no use for lighthouse keepers. Despite that, the keeper’s dwelling and oil house stayed there along with the lighthouse.

Once again, in 1992, the emergence of more storms and erosion caused the lighthouse to start deteriorating. When Hurricane Andrew came ashore that same year, most of the beach portion around the lighthouse was pulled back into the Gulf. To prevent anything further from happening, the Coast Guard turned off the light in 1994. Before the area could get back to normal, Hurricane Opal visited the area in 1995 and its strong winds forced the lighthouse from its foundation. The hurricane also ripped the iron staircase from the walls ad the tower was leaning. Also included in the damage were the oil house and the lightkeeper’s house. These residences received major damage.

That same year in 1995, a group got together and called themselves The Cape St. George Lighthouse Society. They were passionate about having the lighthouse rebuilt again. Funds were raised for the project and they also received grants from the state of Florida. By 1999, the group had raised over $200,000. Three years later, the society disbanded the group and the lighthouse had been restored once again.

This was not to be outdone by the storms and erosion that caused the lighthouse to sit 20 feet out into the water. In October 2005, the lighthouse totally gave way and disintegrated into the Gulf of Mexico. At least it had withstood over 140 years this last time. The St. George Lighthouse Association came on board to salvage the broken light pieces. The pieces were then placed in storage for rebuilding once again. They are working to get the light and the lighthouse back up again with donations from others and help from volunteers. This light and lighthouse have proven to be an important part of the island’s history and will continue to be for years to come.

John Collins first went to St. George Island, Florida in 1959. He ended up purchasing a home site for $500. After he married Alice in 1960, they went back to the island together and spent their honeymoon there. They visited the island many more times after that. They liked it so much they ended up moving there.

Alice Collins was already working in commercial real estate in Tallahassee prior to her and her husband moving to St. George Island. In 1973, she decided to open up a real estate office there. At that time, the island only had 20 people living there full-time. Her office specialized in selling and renting out residential properties on the island. As her business grew, she became more involved with the island community and environmental issues.

In 1992, Collins Realty went under the Century 21 umbrella and the business was renamed Century 21 Collins Realty, Inc. Since then, her company has blossomed from a one-person running the business part time to a 24-person full time real estate staff and agents and two part time employees. Her company is well known is the St. George Island area and has been dubbed “St. George Island’s Real Estate Specialist”.

The real estate agents at Century 21 Collins Realty have been around for a long time and know just about everything that’s going on in the real estate market for the island. They will help you in any way they can to make your real estate transaction flow smoothly from start to finish. They know how to market their properties so that people will be running to purchase them.

They specialize in promoting St. George Island by letting people know that it’s a destination you’ll want to at least consider. Since the island has been touted for being secluded, never crowded and the beaches filled with white sugar sand and sparkling water, how could you refuse to come here? If you are environmentalists, the island takes nature seriously. The island received a grant from the State of Florida to rebuild the lighthouse that was destroyed a few years ago. The environment rules are so strict that they don’t allow high rises to be built here. This is put in place to keep the environment safe and free from pollutants and other anti-environmental issues.

St. George Island has single family homes from 1,000 to 8,000 square feet. Their residential sites are from one-third to one acre. Property owners that have island homes use them as rental property for vacation rentals or as another home. Even though there are a few full-time residents on the island, they do enjoy being a close-knit community amongst themselves.

The realty company also specializes in vacation rentals. They know that the island is a great place to stay for a vacation away from the everyday hustle and bustle. It helps that they have so much to offer, such as kayaking, fishing, swimming or just watching the sunrise or sunset. These are just a few of the things available to do on the island. There is so much to do, you would never get bored. The vacation rentals can range from condos, duplexes, a multi-bedroom luxury homes that you can rent for a week or more. You can get one that has palm trees or you can rent one that has boat access in front of your door.

Century 21 Collins Realty can make your vacation dreams a reality. They have a top-notch quality staff that can’t be beat.

If you are into the wildlife scene, St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge is a nice place to visit. It is located in Franklin County, Florida, off of the opening of the Apalachicola River, in the Gulf of Mexico. Since St. Vincent is a barrier island, you can only get to the wildlife refuge by boat. The Apalachicola Chamber of Commerce can provide a list of boat transportation vendors that can assist with this.

The wildlife’s natural environmental atmosphere includes plants and animals. Also dwelling there are tidal marsh, freshwater lakes and streams, dune, scrub oaks, cabbage palm and different types of slash pine communities. Birds that migrate make a stop here and it is also home to endangered species, such as sea turtles, bald eagles, indigo snakes and gopher tortoises. Wood storks come and stay for awhile and then leave. Endangered red wolves breed their offspring here as well. There used to be plenty of red wolves in number, but plans were put in place to control the population and eliminate them, they became less in number.

You are allowed to fish here, but only in refuge lakes. During the nesting season, the lakes are close to preserve the bald eagles. Prior to fishing, check regulations to see if you can fish. Surf fishing is allowed all year round, with the exception of where the birds are. You can hunt white-tailed deer in parts of the refuge. You can also hunt for feral pig and sambar deer. You must have a valid hunting permit to do so. You can check to see what the requirements are.

Refuge roads allow for hiking and wildlife observation. The roads are marked by letters and numbers. The North-South roads are marked by numbers; the East-West roads are marked by letters. On the Gulf Beaches, you are allowed to do shelling. At the Visitor Center, there are exhibits and in October and May, interpretative tours are offered. There are also educational programs available for schools, colleges, universities, clubs and other groups. You can contact the refuge for additional information.

During the different seasons, different animals are nesting and producing their offspring. This process consists of three month intervals, including each of the four seasons.

In the spring season, which is from March to May, soft-shell turtles produce eggs in the sand roads; ospreys use the dead snags in freshwater lakes to do their nesting; The nest boxes are where the wood ducks can be found; dropping antlers are what white-tailed deer bucks are doing during this time; and young eagles are learning how to fly.

In the summer season, which is from June to August, velvet is in for white-tailed bucks; strolling through as wood storks, the beaches have company in the form of American oystercatchers and snowy plovers, in the marshes; the female alligators are the protectors of their nests; and loggerhead sea turtles are producing their offspring on the beaches.

In the fall season, which is from September to November, you may spot some peregrine falcons; polishing their antlers are white-tailed bucks getting sexually charged; and migrating time has approached fro waterfowl, songbirds and shorebirds.

In the winter season, which is from December to February, you can find alligators soaking in the sun, provided it’s warm weather; the nesting period begins for great homed owls and bald eagles; and its peak season for the increase of waterfowl.

The wildlife refuge is open every day from sunrise to sunset. The only exception to this is during the hunting, wildfire or burning season. The wildlife refuge takes pride in the environment, conservation and the preserving of wildlife animals.