Silver Springs is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) in Marion County of northern Florida. It is the site of the Silver Springs, a group of artesian springs and an historic tourist attraction that is now part of Silver Springs State Park. The community is part of the Ocala metropolitan area. It was first listed as a CDP for the 2020 census, when it had a population of 2,844. One of Florida's first tourist attractions, the springs drew visitors even before the U.S. Civil War. Glass-bottom boats have been a popular way to see the complex. A small amusement park with various animals, a concert stage, a carousel, and exhibits also developed.

History

Steamboat approaching Silver Springs FL George Barker

Silver Springs was founded in 1852. Since the mid-19th century, the natural environment of Silver Springs has attracted visitors from throughout the United States. The glass-bottom boat was invented and tours of the springs began in the late 1870s. In the 1920s, W. Carl Ray and W.M. "Shorty" Davidson, after leasing the land from Ed Carmichael (upon whose death the springs were left to 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 ...

), developed the land around the headwaters of the Silver River into an attraction that eventually became known as Silver Springs Nature Theme Park. The attraction featured native animal exhibits, amusement rides, and 30 or 90-minute glass-bottom boat tours of the springs. The 1934 'Princess Donna' is the oldest and only remaining operational boat from this bygone era. The
Princess Donna
currently operates on the Rainbow River in Dunnellon, Florida. In 2013, the State of Florida took over operations of Silver Springs and combined it with the adjacent Silver River State Park to form the new Silver Springs State Park. The T. W. Randall House 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 ...

is located to the northeast. Several defunct tourist attractions were once located near Silver Springs. The Western-themed Six Gun Territory

theme park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...

, which included several attractions such as the Southern Railway and Six Gun narrow-gauge (3 ft or 914 mm) railroad, operated from 1963 to 1984. The Wild Waters

park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

, also in Silver Springs, operated from 1978 to 2016. Silver Springs was "whites only" until 1967. From 1949 to 1969, African Americans were served by nearby Paradise Park, Florida, which closed when Silver Springs integrated racially.

Cattle ranch development

Canadian billionaire Frank Stronach has been building the Adena Springs Ranch for cattle, an abattoir, residential property development, and a Thoroughbred horse farm in the area, stirring concern over plans for water use and how groundwater draw will affect the springs.

Geography

Silver Springs is in central Marion County and is bordered to the southwest by the city of Ocala, the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Silver Springs CDP has a total area of , of which , or 0.50%, are water. The springs, in the center of the community, flow out to form the Silver River, which runs east to the Ocklawaha River.

Transportation

The main road through Silver Springs is State Road 40, which runs east and west from Rainbow Lakes Estates to Ormond Beach in Volusia County. State Road 326 terminates at SR 40, as does State Road 35, which becomes County Road 35 north of SR 40 before terminating at SR 326. County Roads 314 and 314A are also important north-south county roads that run west and into the

Ocala National Forest The Ocala National Forest is the second largest nationally protected forest in the U.S. State of Florida. It covers of North Central Florida. It is located east of Ocala, Florida, Ocala and southeast of Gainesville, Florida, Gainesville. The ...

Notable people

* Ross Allen,

herpetologist Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...

* Bruce Mozert, photographer * Ted Potter Jr., PGA Tour professional golfer

Gallery

File:Silver Springs State Park - Silver River Museum Entrance Sign.jpg, Silver Springs State Park File:RandallHouseSilverSprings.JPG, T. W. Randall House File:princess%20donna.jpg, The ''Princess Donna'' File:1934 glass bottom boat.jpg, The oldest operational glass-bottom boat in Florida

References

External links

Silver Springs State Park
{{authority control Census-designated places in Florida Census-designated places in Marion County, Florida Unincorporated communities in Marion County, Florida Unincorporated communities in Florida 1852 establishments in Florida