History

Know Before You Go

Effective May 15, 2025: The Thursby House at Blue Spring State Park will be closed to the public during an ongoing preservation project. Please check back for reopening dates and contact the park ranger station for more information. 

Construction Project Underway

Effective May 23, 2025: In-water activities including swimming, snorkeling, tubing, diving and paddling at Blue Spring State Park are now open. A small area of boardwalk near the spring boil remains closed for construction. Please adhere to all posted signs and avoid closed areas when visiting the park. 

Know Before You Go

During periods of high visitation, visitors may experience long lines to enter Blue Spring State Park. The park frequently reaches capacity and may temporarily close. Closures occur intermittently and may last several hours. Visitors with camping or boat tour reservations will be admitted to the park while it is closed, but pedestrians and bicyclists will not be allowed to enter until the park reopens.

Blue Spring is a first magnitude spring on the St. Johns River.

Thursby House
The Thursby House, built in 1872

Gold Rush prospector turned orange-grower Louis Thursby purchased Blue Spring in 1856. Before the railroad rolled through in the 1880s, Thursby's Blue Spring Landing was a hotbed of steamboat activity, shipping tourists and goods to Jacksonville and beyond. Mrs. Thursby was Orange City's first postmistress.

'The Forgotten Mermaids,' an episode of the Underwater World of Jacques Cousteau, was filmed here in 1971. The documentary brought attention to the manatee and the importance of Blue Spring as a winter refuge, greatly influencing the state's decision to purchase the land.