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Fire Activity
Currently there is fire activity within the Preserve. More »
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2013 Zone 4 Closure
Beginning at 12:01 am Monday, April 8, 2013, the Zone 4 airboat access within Big Cypress National Preserve will be closed due to low water conditions. More »
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Interstate 75 Mile Marker 63 Closure
Beginning summer of 2013 the rest area and backcountry access at mile marker 63 will be closed due to construction. More »
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Campground Closures
Beginning Monday, May 13 through Friday, August 16 camping will be available at the Midway Campground and the “loop” in the Bear Island Campground within Big Cypress National Preserve. All other established campgrounds will be closed. More »
Meet Author Marya Repko and Learn about "the Amazing Deaconess of the Everglades"
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Deaconess Harriet Bedell with Seminole children at one of their camps.
Florida State Archives
Contact: Christopher Derman, 239-695-1165 On Saturday, March 16, from 1:00-3:00 pm local historian and author, Marya Repko, will give an illustrated presentation at the Big Cypress Swamp Welcome Center about Deaconess Harriet Bedell, missionary to the Seminoles in the Everglades, who was canonized by the Episcopal Church in 2009. She will talk about early settlers, the building of the Tamiami Trail, its impact on the native Seminoles and Deaconess Harriet Bedell, logging in the Fakahatchee, development in the Picayune, and the efforts of environmentalist Marjory Stoneman Douglas. After the lecture, she will sign her "brief history" books. Marya grew up in Hadlyme, CT, but lived most of her adult life in Europe as a software engineer. After retirement, she moved to Everglades City, Florida, where her first book "A Brief History of the Everglades City Area" has sold thousands of copies. Other brief histories of Deaconess Harriet Bedell, the Fakahatchee, Marjory Stoneman Douglas, and Sanibel have been well-received. She is President of the Everglades Society for Historic Preservation, membership secretary of the Friends of Fakahatchee, and co-editor of The MULLET RAPPER. This presentation is provided with cooperation from the Florida National Parks Association. The association is an official private, non-profit partner supporting educational, interpretive, and historical and scientific research responsibilities within the national park units of South Florida. www.evergladesassociation.org For additional information, please contact the Big Cypress Swamp Welcome center at 239-695-4758. |
Did You Know?
Feeding alligators creates nuisance alligators. Every year alligators that have been fed by visitors begin to lose their fear of humans. If these animals become aggresive they are killed to ensure visitor safety. To avoid this tragic end for these unique animals DO NOT FEED THEM.