Lynnette Shore Ricketson, owner and caretaker of the Suwannee Democrat, was remembered for loving deeply, living for those and the community she loved, giving freely of herself to those in need, and believing that a newspaper belongs to the people it serves and that its owners are only the caretakers. On this site once stood the Suwannee Democrat, which had kept the record of the lives and times of Suwannee County residents and events since 1884 until it burned to the ground in a criminal act on Oct. 20, 1995. True to tradition, no edition was missed, and publication continues. J. Thomas Ricketson donated the Suwannee Democrat property for development of the park, with financial assistance for acquisition and development provided by the City of Live Oak, Council for Progress of Suwannee County, Suwannee Democrat, and Florida Department of Environment Protection through the Florida Recreation Development Assistance Program.