Just south of Sarasota in the community of North Port lies two deep sinkholes that drew the first Floridians at least 14,000 years ago. One of them is Warm Mineral Springs.
Heated by warm vents, Warm Mineral Springs is unique as the only hot spring in the state, with a temperature of 87 degrees. It is over 230 feet deep, shaped like an hourglass, and when people first arrived, the water level was 100 feet below today’s surface. These springs were oases in the dry and sandy environment at the time.
Minerals that are natural in the water provide unusually excellent preservation of organic remains from the deep past. The remains of humans, dated to 12,000 years ago, have been found in the springs on a ledge about 40 feet below the surface. Also, the ledge revealed the remains of giant extinct animals, such as a saber-toothed tiger, sloth, and camel.
You can see exhibits of the history and archaeology at Warm Mineral Springs Park in Northport.
Unearthing Florida is a project of WUWF Public Media, the Florida Public Archaeology Network(FPAN), and its founder, Dr. Judith Bense, since 1998. FPAN's Michael Thomin is a contributor to the program. WUWF's Sandra Averhart is the executive producer.
