We Found a 150-Year-Old Ghost Town Hidden in a Florida Wilderness

Weathered entrance sign for Ethel Cemetery, established in 1880, standing beside a grassy field within Rock Springs Run State Reserve in Florida.

Some Places Refuse to Be Forgotten Most people visit Rock Springs Run State Reserve for the hiking trails, wildlife, and beautiful Florida wilderness. We came looking for a ghost town. Hidden beneath towering pines and miles of sandy trails lies the forgotten community of Ethel, Florida. Once home to pioneering families, a railroad stop, a … Read more

Tannehill Historic State Park: Alabama’s Iron Furnace of War & Memory

Tannehill Historic State Park entrance sign in Alabama

We hadn’t planned this stop. With Sloss Furnaces closed and a little time to kill after visiting The Old Grist Mill, Dusty and I pointed the truck toward Tannehill Historic State Park, not really knowing what we’d find. Honestly, I thought it might just be a quiet patch of Alabama nature—a picnic spot, maybe a … Read more

Florida State Hospital: Florida’s Most Haunted History Book

Florida State Mental Hospital

Chattahoochee, FloridaMay 25, 2025 | by Ki If Florida had a psychiatric hospital with main-character energy, this would be it.Tucked into the sleepy river town of Chattahoochee, Florida State Hospital is where Southern Gothic meets institutional history—where red brick walls still whisper stories of arsenals, asylums, and everything in between. And yes—some people say it’s … Read more

Romeo Ghost Town, Florida: The Forgotten Community Behind the Legend

Romeo Church of God in Romeo Ghost Town, Florida, an overgrown historic community in Marion County

In Marion County, beneath Florida’s pines and sprawling oaks, there is still a place called Romeo. The town is gone. But Romeo isn’t. And that distinction makes this one of my favorite kinds of ghost towns. You won’t arrive to find abandoned streets lined with collapsing storefronts. There isn’t a preserved downtown waiting beneath the … Read more