Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park is a Florida state park located in the north-westernmost part of

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...

, off County Road 232, also known as NW 53rd Avenue and Millhopper Road, northwest of the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

. The park is maintained by the Florida Park Service, a division of the

Florida Department of Environmental Protection The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) is the Florida government Government agency, agency responsible for environmental protection. History By the mid-1960s, when the Federal government of the United States, federal governm ...

. The park is adjacent to San Felasco County Park and is near the San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park.

Geology

The most prominent feature of the state park is the large

sinkhole A sinkhole is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. The term is sometimes used to refer to doline, enclosed depressions that are also known as shakeholes, and to openings where surface water ...

formed by the dissolution of

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

by acidic groundwater over long periods of time. Devil's Millhopper is unique in Florida in terms of its scale; over of rock layers are exposed. The cutaway, limestone sides of the sinkhole provide an easily visible geological record of the area. Twelve springs, some more visible than others, feed the pond at the bottom of the sinkhole. In the summer, the bottom of the sinkhole is dramatically cooler than the air at the surface due to the depth and shade from the canopy above. Significant fossil deposits include shark teeth, marine shells, and the fossilized remains of extinct land animals.

Ecology

Even though the park is only , three distinct ecological environments exist in the park, based on exposure to sun, fire, and water. In the

sandhill A sandhill is a type of ecological community or xeric wildfire-maintained ecosystem. It is not the same as a sand dune. It features very short fire return intervals, one to five years. Without fire, sandhills undergo ecological succession and b ...

environment, the sandy soil and regular fires result in

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. ''World Flora Online'' accepts 134 species-rank taxa (119 species and 15 nothospecies) of pines as cu ...

trees being the predominant vegetation. The moist soils of the hammocks support broadleaf trees and more low vegetation, while the

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

areas only support flora and fauna adapted to year-around wet conditions.

History

The 120 foot (40 m) deep, 500 foot (150 m) wide

got its name from its similar appearance to the hopper of a

mill Mill may refer to: Science and technology * Factory * Mill (grinding) * Milling (machining) * Millwork * Paper mill * Steel mill, a factory for the manufacture of steel * Sugarcane mill * Textile mill * List of types of mill * Mill, the arithmetic ...

, along with the bones found at the bottom, suggesting animals entered it on the way to meeting the

devil A devil is the mythical personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conce ...

. The Millhopper was owned for a time by the science department at the University of Florida and used as a research site for the students. Its unique ecosystem made it an invaluable resource for study. However, the Millhopper was often used by students as a place to socialize and have parties, which led to problems with litter and erosion from foot traffic. The site was purchased by the state in 1974, and a set of 236 wooden steps, along with boardwalks and an observation deck at the bottom were completed in 1976 to allow access to the sink for visitors without further soil erosion. The boardwalk was damaged by

Hurricane Irma Hurricane Irma was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that was the first Category 5 hurricane to strike the Leeward Islands on record, followed by Hurricane Maria, Maria two weeks later. At the time, it was considered ...

in September 2017, and closed to the public. The damaged boardwalk was replaced with a 132-step structure that ends higher in the sinkhole than the old one did. The path into the sinkhole reopened to the public on June 5, 2019. The formation was designated a

National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best e ...

in 1974, and was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

(in part for its surviving

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...

infrastructure) in 2017. File:Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park, Sign.jpg, Park entrance sign File:Devil's Millhopper - 18.jpg, A nature trail in the park File:Gainesville FL Devil's Millhopper down01.jpg, Vegetation File:Devil's Millhopper - 3.jpg, Boardwalk by the sinkhole File:Florida Longleaf Pine Sandhill at Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park.jpg, Florida Longleaf Pine Sandhill near the entrance Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park, Registered Natural Landmark plaque.jpg, Registered Natural Landmark plaque

References

External links

Devil's Millhopper State Geological Site
a
Florida State Parks
a
Absolutely FloridaDevil's Millhopper State Geological Site
a
Wildernet
{{authority control 1974 establishments in Florida Geography of Gainesville, Florida Landforms of Alachua County, Florida National Natural Landmarks in Florida National Register of Historic Places in Alachua County, Florida Parks in Alachua County, Florida Protected areas established in 1974 Sinkholes of Florida State parks of Florida Tourist attractions in Gainesville, Florida

Geology

Ecology

History

See also

References

External links