A hidden gem

MILTON — It has been about three months since the University of West Florida opened Arcadia Homestead and, according to museum educator Krystal Johnson, visitor feedback has been "very positive."

The homestead is part of the Arcadia Mills Archeological Site managed by UWF's Historic Trust. The opening of the site was made possible after John Ripley and his sister Suzanne Kranc donated the current home on the property to UWF in 2016 to honor their mother Suzanne Fischer, who was born, lived and died in the home, Johnson said.

"The official name of the home is the Suzanne Simpson Ripley Fischer House, but I have heard it called various names," Johnson said. "What bothers me is when locals come to visit and they tell me they never knew Arcadia Mill was here. It's a hidden gem."

UWF has realized the marketing issues and is currently working on a re-branding campaign for the active archeological site, Johnson said. The homestead site will also have to start charging an entry fee because of the growth at the site and to maintain the exhibitions, Johnson said. Entry is free to the public until the end of June.

In the mean time, Johnson has implemented activities and programs for visitors. Every other Wednesday at 10:30 a.m., families can come to Story Tree with Ms. Moss. Attendees can spread a blanket on the grass under an oak tree and listen to Ms. Moss read. The next reading is on July 3.

Next summer the public can go to the site and watch UWF students on active digs in what Johnson called field school. The archeology and anthropology departments at UWF use the digs to train students in proper digging techniques.

From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 22, the homestead site will have a crawfish boil to celebrate June 19, 1865, the day the last enslaved people in Texas found out they were free, two years after emancipation.

The home sits on 6.7 acres of landscaped grass dotted with large living oak trees. UWF used a matching grant of $50,000 from the Florida Department of Historical Resources to restore the home to its 1935 condition.

"The original home, built sometime in the 1830s, was called the Big House," Johnson said. "It was a two story Louisiana-style mansion with a basement, a grand balcony and you could see the Arcadia Mill from the house."

The home was set in the northern section of the property with slave quarters behind the house. Ezekiel E. Simpson, one of the original owners of Arcadia Mills, built the Big House. It caught fire in 1935 and the Simpson House was built the same year to replace the original home.

"A lot of life happened here," Johnson said. “Come realize how your community came to be."

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: A hidden gem