Royal Palm State Park, Florida’s first state park, was created to protect Paradise Key in the Everglades, a rare subtropical hammock known for the state’s largest stand of royal palms and other unusual tropical plants. As drainage and development threatened south Florida, May Mann Jennings and the Florida Federation of Women’s Clubs led the successful campaign to secure and expand protected land, beginning in 1916. Despite scarce funding, the park developed trails, a lodge, and scientific value through important botanical study. After years of storms, fire, and financial strain, it became part of Everglades National Park in 1947, leaving a lasting conservation legacy in Florida.