On Wednesday, the state of Florida closed on the purchase of almost 55 acres of land previously owned by the Rakestraw family including a large portion of the land in which the battle of Natural Bridge was fought upon. This battle was the second largest battle fought in the state of Florida and occurred within a few weeks of the close of the war. The battle was a Confederate victory that preserved Tallahassee’s status of the only Confederate Capital East of the Mississippi never to be captured by Union forces. Natural Bridge was listed last year as the 6th most endangered battlefield in the nation by the Civil War Preservation Trust.

    The purchase was funded through the Florida Forever program, which provides for the purchase of environmentally fragile land.  The battlefield features many unique karst features including sinkholes, a natural bridge, swallets, karst windows, and a submerged cave system.  Artifacts dating back to as early as 10,000 B.C. have been found on the property. These exceptional environmental features allowed the state to save the land despite a budget crisis.

     James Lighthizer, President of the Civil War Preservation Trust had the following to say “We are extremely pleased to be working with the state of Florida to protect a key part of the Natural Bridge Battlefield” “The Rakestraw property saw some of the most intense fighting of the battle, fought just five weeks before General Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox. Governor Crist and his administration should be applauded for stepping up to protect this unique part of Florida’s heritage.” The purchase of the land comes just before the 32nd annual reenactment of the Battle of Natural Bridge that is held at the state park adjacent to the newly acquired land. The Reenactment will be held on March 7th and 8th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

     “Originally established in 1999, the 10-year, $3 billion Florida Forever program is the largest land-buying initiative in the nation, conserving environmentally sensitive land, restoring water resources and preserving important cultural and historical sites. More than two million acres throughout the state have been placed in public ownership under Florida Forever and its predecessor program, Preservation 2000 (P2000).”