Collier-Seminole State Park takes its name from two people who made their mark upon this land, forever changing it. Barron Collier was a wealthy entrepreneur who financed the building of the Tamiami Trail and purchased the land for this park, and the Seminole and Miccosukee Indians who have resided in this area the last couple centuries. Because of the Tamiami Trail, the two are forever intertwined in the history of this area.

Collier-Seminole State Park covers what is historically known as Royal Palm Hammock. Here is one of three original native stands of Royal Palms in the state of Florida, resembling the coastal forests of the West Indies and Yucatan. The park also extends down to the Ten Thousand Islands and includes mangrove river estuaries and salt marsh preserves that are favorite habitats for wading birds.

The Seminole and Miccosukee Indians settled in this area by the early 1800s and have remained here ever since. In 1841 and 1857 during the Seminole Wars, efforts by the Army to drive them out failed, making the Seminoles and Miccosukee people in Florida known as the "Unconquered." The visitor center in the park is patterned after a blockhouse from the Seminole War era.

In the early 20th century, effort was made to build a roadway across the vast expanse of Big Cypress and the Everglades. This effort was begun, but was ended because of World War One when funding was needed elsewhere. In the 1920's the state of Florida asked Barron Collier, a wealthy advertising entrepreneur and pioneer developer, to help fund and complete building of the Tamiami Trail. It was a monumental engineering feat to build the roadbed between Naples and Miami, but was finally completed in 1928.

Inside the park is the Bay City Walking Dredge, used to construct the roadway that now passes by the front entrance of the park. In 1994 this now-silent machine was designated as a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark. Bay City Walking Dredge

The Tamiami Trail that Collier built had a permanent effect on the Native American Indians in the area. The highway exposed the formerly isolated Seminole and Miccosukees to American culture and economic activity. There are many villages along the trail, and even one within the confines of the park, where the people maintain their balance between modern society and traditional ways.

After building the Tamiami Trail, Barron Collier envisioned developing the Lincoln-Lee national park, but failed to get support for his idea. The land became a county park instead, and by 1947 it was turned over to the state of Florida for management as a state park. Named in part for Collier and for the Seminole Indians who had made this area their home, Collier-Seminole State Park now stands as a monument to the natural environment and historical people that have shaped the landscape.