Off the Beaten Path – Bagdad Mill Site Park

Bagdad Mill Site Park is a county park which is part of the Historic Village of Bagdad. Joseph Forsyth, a lumber entrepreneur, is largely credited with the development and naming of the town along with his business partners. Its name is derived from Baghdad, Iraq due to the confluence of two rivers which mirror Iraq’s capital. The sawmill was established in 1840 but was burned down during the Civil War. It recovered after the war, but due to the failure to replant the trees they cut, the mill closed in 1939 once all the yellow pines were cut. The mill site’s land was owned by a cement and asphalt plant in the 80s, becoming an environmental nuisance. The town sued and eventually the land was given to the state of Florida, who subleased the land to Santa Rosa County, leading to the establishment of the Bagdad Mill Site Park.