Natural history in Ellenton, Florida

Gamble Plantation Historic State Park in Ellenton, Florida, is a museum, park, and popular tourist attraction. The antebellum mansion was once home to Major Robert Gamble and served as the headquarters of a thriving sugar plantation. It is the only surviving plantation house in South Florida and is steeped in history. One of the notable features of the park is the Judah P. Benjamin Confederate Memorial, which commemorates the time when Confederate Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin sought refuge at the plantation after the fall of the Confederacy. The mansion has been preserved and furnished in the style of a successful mid-19th century plantation.