by Lauren Lynch
Exploring bygone artists’ studios and writers’ retreats can allow us the thrill of stepping into their shoes for a moment — as if by immersing ourselves in the trappings of their lives we’re transported to the past. When historical sites are preserved as if the former owner had just stepped away, it’s the closest we can come to time travel. Marjorie Kinnan Rawling’s Cross Creek home is just such a place.
“I do not understand how anyone can live
without one small place of enchantment to turn to.”
― Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
There is a shiver of anticipation as we step across the threshold — and perhaps a twinge of guilt as we intrude on their once private domain. Do the ghosts of their muses linger? We can bask in the residual essence of her inspiration and it resonates with us.
The deer-hide chair and cypress table on the Cross Creek verandah where Rawlings loved to write remain today, just as they are pictured in her portrait above.
Rawlings left her Cross Creek property to the University of Florida, where she had taught creative writing. Her home is now preserved as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park and is listed in the National Registry of Historic Places.
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park
18700 S. CR 325, Cross Creek FL 32640
For a more meaningful visit, read some of her books, watch the Cross Creek movie (about her life in backwoods Florida), or watch a documentary on her life.
- The Yearling (link to read free ebook)
A 1938 novel inspired by the lives of her neighbors. There are also films based on the book made in 1946 and 1994.
- Cross Creek (link to read free ebook)
A 1939 Pulitzer prize-winning autobiography of her life at the creek. There was also a 1983 Movie, much less accurate and not filmed on location.
- Cross Creek Cookery (1942)
A best-selling cookbook by Rawlings inspired by her time at Cross Creek.
- Here is Home: Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and Cross Creek
A documentary on Rawling’s life and relationships at Cross Creek.
“We cannot live without the earth or apart from it,
and something is shriveled in a man's heart when he turns away
from it and concerns himself only with the affairs of men.”
― Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Cross Creek
NEARBY RV CAMPING
Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park
100 Savannah Boulevard, Micanopy FL 32667
23,000-acre park with eight trails including the 16-mile paved Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail. 50-foot high observation tower to view wildlife including wild horses, bison, alligators, deer and almost 300 species of birds. (Pets are not allowed on some trails.) Paddling and fishing are available on Lake Wauburg. The Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings home is only a twelve-minute drive from this park.
- Paynes Prairie Preserve Campground
100 Savannah Boulevard, Micanopy FL 32667
Reservations: ReserveAmerica.com or (800) 326-3521
30 shaded back-in RV sites with electricity and water, dump station (no internet)
“The extensive Alachua is a level green plain, above fifteen males over, fifty miles a circumference, and scarcely a tree or bush of any kind to be seen on at. It is encircled with high, sloping hills, covered with waving forests and a fragrant Orange grove, rising from exuberantly fertile soil. The towering Magnolia grandiflora and transcendent Palm stand conspicuous among them… Herds of sprightly deer, squadrons of the beautiful fleet Seminole horse, flocks of turkeys, civilized communities of the sonorous watchful crane, mix together, appearing happy and content in the enjoyment of peace.”
William Bartram (1739-1823)
on the “Alachua Savanna” now known as Payne’s Prairie
Ocala National Forest
Make reservations online at Recreation.gov or 1-877-444-6777
Phone: (352) 685-2048
There are several campgrounds in the Ocala National Forest, but only Salt Springs offers full RV hook-ups at 106 RV sites. Several offer dump stations and showers and dispersed camping is allowed in designated areas. The RV campground is located in Salt Springs, which has a gas station, grocery store, several restaurants, bait and tackle shops, a post office, and a laundromat. There are several springs available to visitors that stay 72 degrees year-round. All three springs have concession stands where canoes and kayaks may be rented. 66 miles of the Florida Scenic Trail meanders through Ocala National Forest with access to the springs areas.
- Salt Springs Recreational Area
13851 N Highway 19, Fort McCoy, FL 32134
Phone: (352) 685-2048
Full hookups at 106 RV Sites - Silver Springs State Park
1425 NE 58th Avenue, Ocala, FL 34470
Ranger Station: (352) 236-7148
Reservations: (800) 326-3521 or FloridaStateParks.ReserveAmerica.com
52 RV sites with electric & water hookups - Juniper Springs Recreation Area
26701 FL-40, Silver Springs, FL 34488
Phone: (352) 625-3147
59 RV sites with electric hookups only
Cross Creek RV Resort
6837 NE Cubitis Avenue, Arcadia, FL 34266
Phone: (863) 494-7300
Email: info@crosscreekrv.com
Camping with all the amenities: Olympic-sized pool, jacuzzi, clubhouse, fitness center, cable TV, Wi-Fi, tennis courts, bocce, laundry facilities and more.
ENJOY THE RELAXING PACE
For years, I was like Rawlings’s first husband (Charles Rawlings, who ended up leaving both his wife Marjorie and Cross Creek behind) — without much of an appreciation for rural settings. I lived in Florida for 25 years. The first three of them were in Gainesville (near Cross Creek). The thing was, I arrived as a young art student who had thrived in cities like Indianapolis and Chicago. I had enjoyed the fast pace and amenities of big city living. I didn’t have much appreciation for the backwoods gems North Florida has to offer at the time.
By the end of my time as a resident of Florida, I’d learned to slow down and enjoy my journey through life. Now I prefer to live in rustic settings with brief visits to the city. I relate to Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings much more at this point in my life and can understand the appeal of simple living, the blissful solitude of nature, and the charm of rural folk whose lives are so connected to the land.
Exploring Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park is both relaxing and inspiring and a perfect stop for slow travel enthusiasts. To complete your trip back in time, visit the nearby The Yearling Restaurant for Old Florida ambiance and southern cuisine. Hang out with the locals … listen to some live blues music … relax under sprawling live oaks. A visit to this less-traveled area of Florida is well worth the trip!
“It seems to me that the earth may be borrowed but not bought.
It may be used, but not owned. ...
We are tenants and not possessors, lovers and not masters.”
― Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings
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