Sunken Gardens

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The Sunken Gardens are an important example of a 1930s Florida roadside commercial attraction, and is probably the oldest commercial tourist attraction on Florida's west coast.

The Gardens were a commercial tourist attraction for many years, but are now operated by the city and maintained with the help of volunteers.

The four acres of The Gardens currently contain over 500 species of tropical and subtropical plants amidst pools and cascading waterfalls, lushly planted in a collection of more than 50,000 tropical plants and flowers.

The Gardens began in 1903, when plumber and avid gardener George Turner Sr. purchased the site, including a shallow lake 10 feet below sea level, which he drained to form his private "sunken" garden.