National Register of Historic Places

Spook Hill

Lake Wales, Polk County, Florida
Listed
April 5, 2019
Type
Site
Period
Listed
Ref No.
100003585

About this property

Spook Hill is a gravity hill, an optical illusion in Lake Wales, Florida, where cars appear to roll up the spooky hill. Spook Hill is located on the Lake Wales Ridge, a geologically significant range of sand and limestone hills, which were islands from two to three million years ago, when sea levels were much higher than at present. The attraction is adjacent to Spook Hill Elementary School, which adopted Casper the Friendly Ghost as their school mascot. The attraction is also close to the Bok Tower. Spook Hill received national media attention when an article about it appeared on the front page of the Wall Street Journal on October 25, 1990, and it was featured in a segment on CBS Morning News with Charles Osgood on November 5, 1990. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2019.

Location

Lake Wales, Polk County, Florida
27.91292, -81.58237

Categories

ENTERTAINMENT/RECREATION
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Everything a full report reveals about Spook Hill

This page lists Spook Hill. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with historic sites, battles and Native heritage plotted, and its full story era by era.
The Land
The historic sites and place names around the location, and how this land was settled and used.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back millions of years.
LiDAR Terrain
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks and old features hidden in the landscape.
Conflict & War
The battles, raids and skirmishes fought near here, across every era of American conflict.
The Civil War
The Civil War on this ground, 1861 to 1865: who held it, and the battles, camps and regiments nearby.
The Soldiers
The men who marched from here in the Civil War, named and traced where the record allows.
Native Heritage
The Native nations who held this land, mapped across time from before European contact to today.
Settlement
Who claimed and held this ground, from Indigenous homelands through the colonial powers to the United States.
The Community
How the town grew, who came, and what kind of place it became, traced through the census record.
Rivers & Rail
The rivers, canals and railroads that connected this place between 1830 and 1911.
Notable People
The people born, buried or genuinely tied to this exact place, with their stories.
Historical Maps
Historic maps of the location layered over how it looks today.
Finds & Access
Museum objects tied to the area, and the laws on searching, collecting and access here.
Literature
The old books, county histories and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Points of Interest
The most significant historic sites and landmarks near the location, and why they matter.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from first peoples to the present day.
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Nearby Historic Sites

Johnson, C. L., House
Industrial
0.5 mi
Tillman, G. V., House
Industrial
0.5 mi
North Avenue Historic District
Listed
0.6 mi
Lake Wales Historic Residental District
Listed
0.6 mi
Lake Wales Commercial Historic District
Listed
0.8 mi

Questions about this property

When was Spook Hill listed on the National Register?

Spook Hill was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 5, 2019.

What type of historic resource is Spook Hill?

Spook Hill is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Spook Hill?

The period of significance for Spook Hill is recorded as the listed era.

Can I research the history near Spook Hill?

Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Spook Hill will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.

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