Coral Castle

Homestead, Florida, United States

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Listed, not yet checked · Oct 2026

This Big Thing is recorded as still being here.

Coral Castle is a garden of carved oolitic limestone in Homestead, Florida, built by Latvian immigrant Edward Leedskalnin, who began it in Florida City in 1923 and later moved it about ten miles north. Listed on the National Register in 1984, it is now a paid attraction.

PRACTICAL

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WHAT TO EXPECT

The operator's visit page lists daily hours of 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. (last tour 7, gates close 7:30) and also a shorter 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. schedule (last tour 6, gates close 6:30), so confirm which applies on the day. The page (copyright 2026) lists $25 adults, $10 ages 5 to 12, under 5 free, bought on site with a 30-minute documentary and guided tour. Wheelchair accessible.

ACCESS

Coral Castle Museum, 28655 S. Dixie Highway, Homestead, a few miles from Florida's Turnpike. The operator gives driving directions from Turnpike exit 5 and Miami-Dade bus links; tickets are bought at the gift shop on arrival.

Private to your Passport.

PLAN YOUR VISIT

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Coral Castle

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Approximate location · 25.500° N, 80.445° W

FIELD GUIDE

The story

One man, homemade tools and more than 1,100 tons of limestone: Coral Castle in Homestead is the stone garden Edward Leedskalnin built, and rebuilt, mostly working alone at night.

According to the attraction, Leedskalnin was born in Latvia and emigrated in 1912 after his fiancée ended their engagement. In February 1923 he bought an acre at Florida City for $10 and began shaping oolitic limestone, a porous rock formed from coral fossils and shells, into furniture and sculpture. The State Archives of Florida record the first site as Rock Gate Park.

By 1936 he had bought ten acres to the north. The operator says he began clearing that land in May 1939 and moved the stones by trailer over several years, loading and unloading them himself; the State Archives date the move to around 1936. The operator gives the tallest piece as 23 feet and the heaviest as over 21 tons. Highlights include a carved rocking chair, a heart-shaped table, a moon fountain and an obelisk. A nine-ton gate turned at a touch until it stopped working in 1984; when it was dismantled, the operator says, a metal shaft through a hole bored in the slab, resting on a truck bearing, was revealed. He gave guided tours for 10 cents in the late 1930s and continued working until his death in 1951.

Details of the story vary. The operator gives Leedskalnin's birthday as 12 January 1887, NBC 6 as 10 August 1887, and accounts differ on how long the move took. Asked how he did it, NBC 6 reports, he said he understood weight and leverage. The site was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

The operator sells tickets on site; the price includes a 30-minute documentary and a guided tour.

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