Cult settlement survived storm

It looks like any other state park. There are picnic tables, hiking trails, campgrounds.

But this is not any other state park. A cult once called this place home.

Koreshan State Park, 135 acres along the Estero River near Fort Myers, preserves several of the cult’s buildings, and all of the history of a group of people who thought of the world in a different way.

The Koreshans, a late1800s religious cult, believed immortality could be achieved through celibacy, community and equality. They also believed the earth was hollow and that they lived on the inner surface.

The group — not related to David Koresh and the Branch Davidians of Waco, Texas — is no longer around. The last member died in

1981 and is buried on the grounds. But the Koreshan legacy survives at the Southwest Florida park, which survived Hurricane Ian’s path of destruction.

Like much of the surrounding area, the park took a hit from the hurricane. On Sept. 28, Ian mowed over trees and vegetation, and storm surge washed over the grounds, said Alexandra Kuchta, press secretary for Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection.

The park reopened to visitors on Oct. 19, Kuchta said, but some areas are still closed because of ongoing cleanup.

While the historic settlement has reopened, several of the structures have damaged roofs and floors, Kuchta said. She said the picnic area and trails are “expected to reopen soon.”

The Koreshan settlement has been hit by a hurricane before. In 2017, Hurricane Irma knocked down the monkey puzzle trees, flora native to parts of Chile and Argentina.