Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park
Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park is a Florida State Park and historic site located on the former homestead of Pulitzer Prize-winning Florida author Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings (1896-1953). A National Historic Landmark, it is located in Cross Creek, Florida, between Ocala and Gainesville at 18700 South County Road 325. Setting Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings Historic State Park is located on the eastern shore of Orange Lake, a short way south of the village of Cross Creek. The park is about in size, but is adjacent to public lands totalling about historically part of the Rawlings property. A public parking area and boat ramp are located south of the house, gardens, and outbuildings of the Rawlings home. The home is a rambling single-story wood-frame structure, whose central core is a dogtrot house dating to the 19th century. Other buildings include a pump house, barn, and a small tenant house. Of these, only the pump house is also of 19th-century origin. History Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, a native of Washington, DC, and her husband Charles purchased a orange grove in 1929, including the old dogtrot house. They set about enlarging and adapting the house to their use, and both developed their careers as writers.