Crowley Museum property in east Sarasota County is now permanently conserved

Anne Snabes, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read
Schoolchildren meet chickens at the Crowley Museum and Nature Center. The museum's property recently became protected under a conservation easement.
Schoolchildren meet chickens at the Crowley Museum and Nature Center. The museum's property recently became protected under a conservation easement.

The historic Crowley Museum and Nature Center’s 191-acre property is now permanently protected, thanks to a new conservation agreement.

Located in the Old Miakka community, Crowley is a hub for Florida's natural and cultural history, said the museum's president, Dixie Resnick. Each year, thousands of schoolchildren visit the property, which is home to historic buildings and several Florida habitats.

Sarasota County and Crowley have entered into a conservation easement, which means that the land can't be developed. The agreement allows for agriculture on the land, but it is limited and must be sustainable.

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“The preservation of this unique natural and cultural history resource is critical in a rapidly developing Florida,” Resnick said in a news release.

Crowley still owns the property, but the county governs and controls the easement. The agreement was finalized Aug. 31.

Crowley features a "Florida cracker" cabin, a blacksmith shop and other historic buildings that teach visitors about the lives of the white settlers in Florida.

"You get to see how they eked out a living in a largely inhospitable environment," Resnick told the Herald Tribune.

The property also has a replica of a Florida native village, which was built by the Miccosukee people.

The Crowley Museum and Nature Center has a half-mile boardwalk as well, which takes visitors through five Florida habitats and ends with an observation tower overlooking the Myakka River and Tatum Sawgrass Marsh. The property connects to over 120,000 acres of protected land known as the Myakka Island Conservation Corridor.

The Conservation Foundation of the Gulf Coast facilitated the creation of the conservation easement by advising the museum's leadership and submitting the easement application to Sarasota County.

“We are very grateful to both Crowley Museum and Sarasota County for protecting our pioneer history and these 191 acres that are so important to the health of the Myakka River and this wildlife corridor,” foundation president Christine P. Johnson said in the news release.

Anne Snabes covers city and county government for the Herald-Tribune. You can contact her at asnabes@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter at @a_snabes.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Crowley Museum property is now permanently conserved