Naval Live Oaks Reservation

The Naval Live Oaks Reservation, sometimes called Deer Point Plantation or Deer Point Live Oaks Reservation, is located near Gulf Breeze, Florida. It is part of the Gulf Islands National Seashore and was added to the United States National Register of Historic Places in 1998. The land that makes up the reservation was purchased by the federal government in 1828 under the authorization of President John Quincy Adams and was used for cultivating live oak trees from acorns. Prior to the Civil War, oak wood was the main material used for shipbuilding. When the shipbuilding industry switched to iron, the need for the oak reserve ended as well.The reserve includes more than 1,300 acres worth of land in the Gulf Islands National Seashore area. It is owned by the National Park Serve and the Department of the Interior. There is a picnic area located on the north side of the land with a bluff that overlooks Pensacola Bay and there are trails throughout the entire park. Highway 98 passes through the park. The reserve is open daily and offers an interpretive trail, a visitor center and a winding nature trail that travels along the Santa Rosa Sound and Pensacola Bay.