Local Highlight | Hawthorne, Florida

Hawthorne is a quaint town offering residents a rural lifestyle just outside the big city hustle and bustle of Gainesville. Hawthorne started as a railroad town and grew around the 1879 junction of the Florida Southern and Peninsula lines. The Hawthorne Historical Museum and Cultural Center stands near the site of the original train depot and is a good spot to begin any tour of the town. 

Hawthorne also marks the end of the Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail, a paved walkway stretching 16 miles from Boulware Springs Park in Gainesville through beautiful woodlands, past deep lakes and prairie vistas, finally coming to head just two blocks from the aforementioned museum. Mostly though, Hawthorne is a place to visit where you can experience original Florida circa 1900. 

Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail

This 16-mile recreational greenway connects modern Gainesville to historic Hawthorne. The Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail is a Rails-to-Trails project; an old railbed now paved for bikes, pedestrians, and wheelchairs. The trail also accommodates horseback riding. 

Hawthorne Historical Museum 

The Hawthorne Historical Museum and Cultural Center holds artifacts and paintings from Hawthorne’s past. Included are a series of paintings by Francis Moore, an artist known locally as “Hawthorne’s Grandpa Moses”, and a large quilt that incorporates images of 20 historic homes in Hawthorne. 

Little Orange Creek Nature Park and Event Center

Little Orange Creek Preserve & Nature Park covers nearly 2900 acres of the upper Little Orange Creek watershed and protects a patchwork of diverse wetlands that feed into and form Fowlers Prairie including the pinelands and hammock that surround it. The park features public trails for hiking and bicycling and is pet friendly. 

Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park  

A National Historic Landmark, the Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings house and grounds is nestled between a quiet country road and Lake Orange. The homestead is completely restored and preserved as it was in the 1930s including a barn, tenant house, orange grove, seasonal garden and nature trail. 

Places to eat:

Island Grove Wine Company 

Island Grove Wine Company specializes in fine blueberry wines using the freshest blueberries from our own Florida plantations. 

While browsing in the store, make sure to sample the local honey, amazing oils & vinegars, as well as salad dressings and salsas.

Island Grove Wine Company specializes in fine blueberry wines using the freshest blueberries from our own Florida plantations. 

The Wrap Shack  

Located in Hawthorne, FL near the Gainesville- Hawthorne Trail. The Wrap Shack offers a selection of wraps, wings, salads, fried catfish and shrimp, burgers and more. 

Outdoor Adventures 

Within a ten-mile radius of the city of Hawthorne, there are approximately 380 bodies of water.

Lochloosa Lake is designated as a Fish Management Area and located 5 miles south of Hawthorne near the town of Lochloosa. Most of the shoreline is bordered by old-growth cypress trees, and knotgrass and spatterdock (bonnets) are the predominant aquatic plants in the lake. A public boat ramp provides access to the lake from U.S. Highway 301 in the town of Lochloosa, and at Lochloosa Harbor Fish Camp just north of the town of Lochloosa, also accessed from U.S. 301. In addition, a public pier is located south of the town of Lochloosa on Burnt Island and is a popular fishing site for those without a boat.

Ashley  Cook                                                                                                                    Assistant Property Manager

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