Marjorie Keenan Rawlings State Park

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This state park is located in the tiny town of Cross Creek. The estate was originally owned by Marjorie Keenan Rawlings who moved here with her husband right before the Great Depression. They had intended to be citrus farmers but when her husband found out that citrus farming was not as profitable as he had thought and then the depression hit it was too much for him and he decided to leave. Marjorie loved the area however and wished to stay on. After the divorce she ran the citrus farm on her own and started to write books about the area and its people to make ends meet. Her most famous books were The Yearling about a boy that raises a baby fawn and Cross Creek which is based on her actual life.The property was very primative as were most in those days. While there was electricity it took a while before there was indoor plumbing apart from the kitchen. She stayed because she loved the land and she loved the people. She once saw the neighborhood kids running around and asked why they weren't at school. When she found that they had no school clothes to wear she bought a sewing machine and made clothes for all the children. Her two big investments when she sold the movie rights to the yearling for $30,000 were a new car and two indoor bathrooms which stumped the neighborhood as they couldn't understand why she would want a bathroom inside her house. She entertained many people after writing The Yearling including several movie stars and authors such as Robert Frost. Even after her indoor bathrooms she left her outhouse in place and as it was visible from the dining room she insisted when hosting dinner in sitting in the seat that faced the window as she didn't want the outhouse being the topic of conversation. It amazed Chris that even as little as 60 years ago, many of the modern conveniences that we take for granted today were missing from many homes.

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Comments

[Rose]

I enjoyed your story of the home and pictures which entice me want to visit. Thank you..Later Gator