4. Oriental Gardens

Source: Oriental Gardens marketing brochures. (Jacksonville Public Library’s Special Collections Department)

What became known as Oriental Gardens dates back to 1925 when real estate developer George W. Clark began planting overflow from his Riverside property’s botanical collection on a vacant bluff overlooking the St. Johns River near the present day intersection of Hendricks Avenue and San Jose Boulevard. A former mortician, Clark was the president of the Clark Real Estate Company and Panama Investment Company and the developer of North Springfield and Panama Park, financially benefiting from the rebuilding of the city after the Great Fire of 1901.

After 13 years of maintaining the grounds as a private estate, Clark opened his botanical gardens to the public in 1937. Described as a sunken garden surrounded by groves of stately southern pines, the 18-acre Oriental Gardens featured specimens of live oak trees ranging in age from five hundred to one thousand years, along with one hundred varieties of tropical and subtropical plants, shrubs and trees. Other features included hourly concerts, citrus groves with orange, grapefruit, limes and kumquats, and Asian-themed gates, bridges, bird houses, and lighting.

At its height, Oriental Gardens was viewed as a major Jacksonville attraction and a rival of major Central Florida tourism hot spots like Cypress Gardens, Silver Springs and Bok Tower Gardens. Oriental Gardens closed in 1954 when the property was sold to the State Investment Company during the rapid suburbanization of Jacksonville and Duval County. Owned by real estate firm Stockton, Whatley and Davin, State carved the estate into 33 single family residential home sites. 70 years after its demise, pines, palms and remnants of the former attraction can still be found in and around the residential subdivision that replaced it.

5. Riverview Amusement Park

Between 1910 and 1920, Dr. E. H. Armstrong created the Riverview Tropical Gardens along the Trout River, just north of Lem Turner Road in the Riverview neighborhood. Formerly the location of Armstrong’s riverfront residence, the Riverview Tropical Gardens became a 25-acre fishing, boating and bathing destination known for its garden trails, native and imported trees surrounded by blooming lilies, azaleas, and roses. A local showplace after the Great Depression, the park attracted over 15,000 visitors in 1936.

By the 1950s, it had become Sid Walker’s Riverview Amusement Park, featuring a roller rink called Stake-O-Rama, ten rides, restaurants, a swimming pool, beach, ballroom, and picnic areas. In 1959, a large portion of the site was carved out for the construction of a shopping center that was anchored by K-Mart for a number of years. After 51 years in operation, K-Mart closed its Riverview location in May 2010. In September 2011, the former store was replaced by Roses discount store. While the amusement park’s rides, restaurants, pool and other amenities are long gone, the wooded area along the Trout River remains one of the most secluded and pristine public green spaces in Jacksonville’s urban core.