Dudley Farm Historic State Park — Attraction in Newberry

I want to give this place more than 5 stars! We went with 5 kids ( age 8 to 14), who we honestly thought would not be in for this rainy day adventure... We started in the visitor center and a few got their interest peaked at the free flower bulbs. My sister and I read the stuff and the kids stuck around for a moment then went outside to explore. They got more interested wandering the paths and found the house and gardens cool and rocked in the chairs on the porch... but the we found the turkeys . Possibly the worlds most interactive Turkeys. From there there were horses and chickens and a cool barn and general store , well, cistern and functioning hand pump ( which was a weird huge hit).. but then we ran into an employee. She was super nice and said we could eat the oranges and everglades tomatoes ... so that set a new level the kids had oranges from the tree and the Everglades tomatoes where amazing. She let me take a small root piece so I could grow them at home! Then we ran down into an old sink hole to investigate a strange machine down there. She came by again and said it was a harvester from the 40s the family has sunk in the pond that use to be there. The kids raved about the experience and the 14 yr old males (hard group to satisfy) said it was totally cool! I think what made it so special is it was more like visiting a friends farm than a cold museum where you can't touch or experience. And the people...

If you like the history of North Florida and the Gainesville area this is a great place to go, much more than a museum. It’s a working Farmstead with live animals, and a great deal of effort has gone into preserve the buildings and tell the story of the Dudley’s. The small visitor center is air-conditioned handicap accessible, and has a short video that provides a great deal of understanding about the place. There’s a small gift shop that does sell drinks and regionally made preserves and strawberries and other items kind of like an old-time General Store. The volunteers dress up in . attire and are happy to tell you anything about the Dudley’s and the farm. From the visitor area it’s a very short walk to the actual farm. There are number of public events and if you go on the website and check, you will find out when they are scheduled. One of the most popular is the sugarcane event in the fall. There was nothing special happening when we went, but there were volunteers, taking care of the farm because chores have to be done year-round and unlike many museums most of the items you see in the buildings are all from the original Dudley family and The Farm operation. It’s easy to spend one to two hours. They also have a nice walking trail away from the farm. That’s easy...

We checked to see what we could do that was interesting, and Dudley Farm Historic State Park came to mind. The fee to get in was $5.00 per car, and it was the honor system - you put the ticket on your rear view mirror. There's plenty of parking. There were restrooms right by the parking lot, but nowhere else. There were lots of different buildings with different purposes and old fashioned equipment and machinery. There was a short video about the history of the place.  A gentleman named Pete played his fiddle. There were lots of artifacts on display.  The whole place took about 2+ hours to walk around and look at everything.   There were plants for sale.   There was also a store that listed food/drinks for sale, but it wasn't open when we went by. There were some people working there who were informative. It was pretty amazing to see how they used to live and the structures they lived in.   Lots of trails and open grassy areas. But be mindful of your kids as there are thorny vines growing around the ground.  There are 2 turkeys and about 7 chickens. This is a pretty cool place to check out. I'd go again and I'd recommend you go, it is worth the cost to see a...