The Withlacoochee State Forest is in the western central part in the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

state of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, near

Lecanto Lecanto is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Citrus County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 5,882, up from 5,161 in 2000. It is home to several county government facilities such ...

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Histori ...

, Floral City, Brooksville, Ridge Manor, and

Dade City Dade City is a city in and the county seat of Pasco County, Florida, United States. It is located in the Tampa Bay Area. The population was 6,437 at the 2010 census. Dade City is popular with tourists for its antique stores, restaurants, and h ...

. The forest was named for the Withlacoochee River, which passes through some of the major tracts within.

History

Withlacoochee State Forest was acquired by the federal government from private landowners between 1936 and 1939 under the provisions of the

U.S. Land Resettlement Administration The Resettlement Administration (RA) was a New Deal U.S. federal agency created May 1, 1935. It relocated struggling urban and rural families to communities planned by the federal government. On September 1, 1937, it was succeeded by the Farm Sec ...

. The land acquired by the government would be named the Withlacoochee Development Service. The

U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...

managed the property until a lease-purchase agreement transferred the property to the Florida Board of Forestry in 1958. Ghost towns within the community include Mannfield, Orleans, Oak Grove, Stage Pond,

Croom Croom () is a village in County Limerick, Ireland. It is located just off the N20 (which has bypassed the town since 2001) on the River Maigue. It is 8 km southeast of Adare on the N20. History Cromadh (now Croom) was a village in th ...

, Rital, Richloam, Clay Sink, and others. Historic sites within the forest include the

Etna Turpentine Camp Archeological Site The Etna Turpentine Camp Archeological Site is an abandoned turpentine camp near Inverness, Florida. Records indicate it was built in the early 1900s. It was discovered by accident when the Florida Gas Transmission Company was exploring a route fo ...

and Richloam General Store and Post Office.

Recreation

The World Wildlife Fund listed the Withlacoochee State Forest as one of the "10 Coolest Places You've Never Been in North America" by the World Wildlife Fund. Activities include miles of trails for hiking, bicycling, horseback riding and canoeing. It includes several separate land tracts with many natural communities and habitats for wildlife. These tracts consist of the Two Mile Prairie Tract, the Homosassa Tract, the Citrus Tract, the Juniper Creek Tract, the Croom Tract, and the Richloam Tract.Withlacoochee State Forest Trailhead Map (Florida Division of Forestry)
/ref> There are recreation activities for the use of visitors. Many hiking trails run through the forest including, but not limited to the

Florida Trail The Florida Trail is one of eleven National Scenic Trails in the United States. It currently runs , from Big Cypress National Preserve (between Miami and Naples, Florida along the Tamiami Trail) to Fort Pickens at Gulf Islands National Seashore, ...

, the

Withlacoochee State Trail Withlacoochee State Trail is a long paved, multi-use, non-motorized rail trail in Florida located in Citrus County, Florida, Citrus, Hernando County, Florida, Hernando and Pasco County, Florida, Pasco counties. It follows along the Withlacooch ...

, the

Good Neighbor Trail The Good Neighbor Trail is a multi-use recreational trail in Brooksville, Florida, that connects with the Withlacoochee State Trail. The trail is about long. The trail was originally the Brooksville Branch of the Florida Southern Railway which ...

, and the

General James A. Van Fleet State Trail General James A. Van Fleet State Trail is a rail trail in Florida, named after General James A. Van Fleet, who was a distinguished combat commander in both World Wars and the Korean War. It is protected as a Florida State Park and occupies a a ...

. The many tree species in dense forests include

slash pine ''Pinus elliottii'', commonly known as slash pine,Family, P. P. (1990). Pinus elliottii Engelm. slash pine. ''Silvics of North America: Conifers'', (654), 338. is a conifer tree native to the Southeastern United States. Slash pine is named after ...

longleaf pine The longleaf pine (''Pinus palustris'') is a pine species native to the Southeastern United States, found along the coastal plain from East Texas to southern Virginia, extending into northern and central Florida. In this area it is also known as ...

pond cypress ''Taxodium ascendens'', also known as pond cypress, is a deciduous conifer of the genus ''Taxodium'', native to North America. Many botanists treat it as a variety of bald cypress, ''Taxodium distichum'' (as ''T. distichum'' var. ''imbricatum'' ...

bald cypress ''Taxodium distichum'' (bald cypress, swamp cypress; french: cyprès chauve; ''cipre'' in Louisiana) is a deciduous conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. Hardy and tough, this tree adapts to a wide r ...

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since http ...

, and others, providing dense canopy trails for visitors.

References

External links

Withlacoochee State Forest: Florida Division of Forestry - FDACS
Florida state forests Protected areas of Citrus County, Florida Protected areas of Pasco County, Florida Protected areas of Hernando County, Florida Protected areas of Sumter County, Florida {{Florida-protected-area-stub

History

Recreation

See also

References

External links