5 Places That Prove Florida Is Even Weirder Than You Think

My fourth and latest book, Secret Florida

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from living in, traveling around, and researching all things Florida, it’s that the Sunshine State is wonderfully, unapologetically weird.

Sure, Florida has beautiful beaches, natural springs, towering palms, and some of the country’s most popular theme parks. But venture beyond the places everyone already knows and things get a whole lot more interesting.

There’s a town where the police station once operated out of a phone booth. Another where circus performers spent their winters alongside Ferris wheels and elephants parked in front yards. There’s a community named Two Egg, a town that celebrates possums, and where mediums, psychics, and healers rule the roost.

And those are just a few of the wonderfully unusual stories my co-author and I uncovered while researching my fourth and latest book, Secret Florida.

So, in honor of the strange, quirky, fascinating side of my adopted home state, here are five places that prove Florida really is weirder than you think (and this is no easy feat!).

Carrabelle: No Desk, No Doughnuts.

Let's Call It What It Is, The World's Smallest Police Station

Carrabelle, Florida

Blink and you might miss Carrabelle, a small coastal town tucked along Florida’s Forgotten Coast. But one tiny landmark has earned this little community some pretty big bragging rights. Carrabelle is home to what became known as the world’s smallest police station. And yes, it was essentially a phone booth.

In the early 1960s, local police relied on a call box attached to a building. Unfortunately, passersby kept using the police phone to make unauthorized long-distance calls. To solve the problem, and give officers somewhere to escape Florida’s torrential rain, a local telephone company employee repurposed an old phone booth.

And just like that, Carrabelle had perhaps the tiniest police headquarters imaginable.

Today, a replica sits along U.S. Highway 98 near the Carrabelle Chamber of Commerce, making it one of those delightfully odd roadside stops that practically begs for a photo.

Discover more about Carrabelle’s wonderfully quirky police station on pages 4–5 of Secret Florida.

Cassadaga: Welcome to the Psychic Capital of the World

Where spirituality and mediumship cross paths

Cassadaga, Florida

Disney’s not the only place around here brimming with magic. About an hour from Orlando, you’ll find a very different kind of enchantment. Founded in 1875 by medium George Colby, Cassadaga is one of the oldest and most active spiritualist communities in the Southeast. Known as the “Psychic Capital of the World,” this tiny town attracts spiritually curious visitors with its mediums, psychics, healers, and decidedly mystical atmosphere. Think of it as Florida’s answer to Salem, only with palm trees.

Discover more about Cassadaga and its fascinating spiritualist history on pages 10-11 of Secret Florida.

Gibtown: Florida’s Greatest Show Under the Big Top

Al the Giant and Jeanie The Half-Girl

Gibsonton, Florida

Just south of Tampa sits a place with one of the most unusual histories in the state. Gibsonton, better known as Gibtown, became a winter home for circus and sideshow performers during the height of America's traveling-carnival era.

This wasn’t your typical Florida suburb. At one time, your neighbors here might have included contortionists, unusually tall or short performers, conjoined twins, carnival workers, and other members of the traveling-show community. Special zoning rules even allowed residents to keep carnival equipment and circus animals on their properties.

Imagine looking across the street and seeing a Ferris wheel in your neighbor’s front yard. For decades, Gibtown offered traveling performers something they didn’t always find elsewhere: a community where being different wasn’t unusual, and it was completely normal.

Today, visitors can explore this fascinating history at the International Independent Showmen’s Museum, filled with artifacts and memorabilia from America’s circus and carnival past.

Dive deeper into Gibton on pages 32-33 of Secret Florida.

Neptune Memorial Park: Florida’s Underwater Grave Site

Resting Among Reefs, Fish, and Passing Dolphins

Three Miles Off the Coast of Key Biscayne in the Atlantic Ocean

A few miles off the coast of Key Biscayne lies something you probably wouldn’t expect to find beneath Florida’s turquoise waters: an underwater cemetery.

Neptune Memorial Reef is the largest artificial reef in the world and the final resting place of more than 1,000 people. But it’s not only a memorial site. The sprawling underwater structure has also become a thriving habitat for marine life, combining remembrance, conservation, and one seriously unusual Florida destination.

Discover more about this remarkable underwater world on pages 12-13 of Secret Florida.

Two Egg: No Yolk

Welcome to Florida’s Most Deliciously Named Town

Two Egg, Florida

Blink while driving through Jackson County and you might miss Two Egg, a tiny community with a name almost as unusual as its history.

During the Great Depression, when money was scarce, locals reportedly used eggs to barter for everyday necessities at the general store. According to local lore, two boys regularly arrived with two eggs to trade, eventually helping give the community its unforgettable name.

But Two Egg’s oddities don’t stop there. The area has its share of ghost stories, strange legends, and even tales of a mysterious swamp-dwelling creature known as the Two Egg Stump Jumper.

Small town, seriously weird history. Exactly the kind of Florida story I love and you’ll find throughout my book.

Discover more about this tiny rural town on pages 70-71 of Secret Florida.

Florida gets a lot of flack for being weird, and yes, there’s certainly some merit to that reputation. But honestly, that’s part of what makes this state so fascinating (and my research so damn enjoyable!). Behind the quirky headlines and unusual places are incredible stories, fascinating history, and plenty of surprises.

So embrace the weird, Florida. It looks good on you.

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