5. A neighborhood with an American Revolutionary War theme

Located at the mouth of the Ribault River, the single-family residential neighborhood of Lake Forest is a Florida land boom development that went bust prior to the Great Depression. Initially platted in 1926, development in the neighborhood did not take off until 1944. Home to streets and parks featuring an American Revolutionary War theme, Lake Forest is recognized as one of Jacksonville’s early automobile oriented suburbs. Also a peninsula, Lake Forest is surrounded by three navigable bodies of water, the Ribault River, Trout River and Moncrief Creek.

6. Ribault Scenic Drive: A new, sweeter Sugar Hill

Ribault Scenic Drive parallels the south edge of the Ribault River between Howell Drive and Lem Turner Road. Around 1950, the Charles E. Commander & Company began development of the Lake Forest Hills subdivision along the winding picturesque roadway. Soon, the former pecan grove plantation became a hot spot for World War II veterans attracted to home prices starting at $7,500, with $50 being the cash requirement for purchasing a house.

Rapid growth led to the 1957 opening of Jean Ribault High School. During the 1960s, Lake Forest Hills experienced white flight as Ribault Scenic Drive transitioned into a desired Black middle class residential destination following the urban renewal and destruction of the Sugar Hill community closer to downtown. Once called a new, sweeter Sugar Hill, new Ribault Scenic Drive residents included the then president of Edward Waters University, the mayor’s assistant, Offshore Power Systems’ administrator, post office workers, teachers, principals and doctors.

While home to a large collection of impressive ranch-style and split level homes, many of the residences built along Ribault Scenic Drive were constructed on former Ribault River marshland. As a result, the low-lying neighborhood was among the areas of the city most impacted by Hurricane Irma in 2017.

Historic aerials illustrating the mid-century development of Lake Forest Hills. (The University of Florida Map & Imagery Library)

7. A source for “Jacksonville-style garlic crabs”

Crab traps dot the surface of the Ribault River.

Many classic Southern and traditional dishes served and sold at local restaurants and seafood markets are actually derived from the region’s waterways. One-pot dishes and other recipes featuring shellfish and locally cultivated rice and fresh vegetables, forming a hodgepodge of flavors, are a cultural foundation of Gullah Geechee cuisine. Many of these one-pot dishes involve the deep frying, boiling, steaming and baking of seafood and food types consistent with those received in weekly plantation rations prior to the Civil War.

Featuring blue crabs, the crab pot is an example of a popular one-pot dish that took advantage of ingredients that were readily available locally and could be quickly prepared, cooked and served in large communal and social gatherings. According to Dr. Dan McCarthy, Assistant Professor of Biology and Marine Science at Jacksonville University, blue crabs accounted for 83% of commercial fisheries with 1,274,657 lbs. harvested in the lower St. Johns River basin in 2022.

Garlic crabs are a popular local variation of the crab pot that involves serving blue crab in a garlicky butter sauce. While garlic crabs can be found across the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor, waterways like the Ribault River are the epicenter of the dish, with dozens of restaurants and crab shacks serving them across town.

8. The parks of Ribault River

Lonnie C. Miller Sr. Regional Park is located at 7689 Price Road.

There are six public parks and boat ramps along the banks of the Ribault River, with the oldest dating back to the mid-1950s. Located near the intersection of Soutel Drive and Moncrief Road, Lonnie C. Miller Sr. Regional Park is the largest. One of the most popular City of Jacksonville public parks in Northwest Jacksonville, the 126-acre park opened in December 1995 and is named for Detective Lonnie Miller (1933-1995). A highly regarded 26-year veteran of the Sheriff’s Office, Miller was killed during a robbery attempt.

However, Ribault River Preserve may be the most scenic public recreational space with water access along the river. Established with funds from the City of Jacksonville’s Better Jacksonville Plan in 2002, the 39-acre park located at 1320 Ribault Scenic Drive, includes property on both sides of the river. Funded through a Florida Communities Trust grant to be a park intended to protect natural resources, recreational amenities at the Preserve include water access for fishing, canoeing and kayaking, picnic tables, a nature trail and horseshoe pits. Other parks along the river include the Harborview Boat Ramp, Charles Reese Memorial Park, Ribault Scenic Drive Park and T.K. Stokes Boat Ramp.

The Ribault River Preserve at 2617 Ribault Scenic Drive.

The Charles Reese Memorial Park at 1200 Ken Knight Drive.

Editorial by Ennis Davis, AICP. Contact Ennis at edavis@moderncities.com