The focal point of this park is the beautifully renovated two-story house with elegant white columns and wrap-around porch, surrounded by moss-draped live oaks and ornamental gardens.
What was once the home of the William Henry Wesley family is now a place of tranquility. Yet 100 years ago, the site was alive with mechanical and human energy. This was the hub of the Wesley Lumber Company, operating from 1890 until after World War I. Company holdings included a sawmill, planner mill and dry kiln, with a dock to facilitate loading barges in Tucker Bayou for shipping lumber.
Wesley built his home near the mill in 1897, and his family lived there until 1953 when his wife, Katie Strickland Wesley, died and the home was sold with 10.5 acres. Ten years later, Lois Maxon fell in love with the place and purchased it, converting the house into a showplace for her family antiques and heirlooms. Ms. Maxon developed the grounds as ornamental gardens, and in 1968 she donated Eden Gardens to the state of Florida.
The staff and volunteers of Eden Gardens take great pride in protecting and preserving this property for future generations by interpreting its history and resources, and maintaining the beautiful azalea and camellia bushes scattered throughout the grounds.