Bagdad Mill Site Park

Bagdad Mill Site Park turns the ruins of the old Bagdad lumber mill into a 22-acre riverside park in the historic village of Bagdad, which grew up where Pond Creek meets the Blackwater River. Sawmilling here dates to the 1840s, and around 1900 Bagdad shipped more yellow pine lumber than any port in the world, according to the Blackwater Maritime Heritage Trails. Operators included E.E. Simpson and Company, Stearns & Culver Lumber Company and, finally, Bagdad Land & Lumber, and the last log was cut in April 1939.

The park is at 6953 Main St, Bagdad, with a second entrance and kayak launch at 7002 Cross St. It is part of the Santa Rosa County park system and a stop on the Blackwater Maritime Heritage Trails, a community project linking heritage sites in Milton and Bagdad. Historic markers around the grounds explain the lumber industry, early shipbuilding and the mill’s burning during the Civil War.

A paved, ADA-accessible loop trail passes three ponds and more than 160 native trees planted for wildlife, with a boardwalk and observation deck over the wetlands and a fishing pier on the river. Restrooms, potable water, picnic tables and grills make it an easy stop for a walk or a family picnic.

The park is open daily from sunrise to sunset, and the kayak launch is open around the clock. Since 2005 the Bagdad Waterfronts Partnership has led the site’s transformation from industrial ruins into a public park.