The
Canaveral National Seashore (CANA) is a
National Seashore located between
New Smyrna Beach and
Titusville, Florida, in
Volusia County and
Brevard County,
United States. The park, located on a barrier island, was created on January 3, 1975, by an act of Congress. Canaveral National Seashore celebrated its 25th birthday on January 3, 2000; however, the concept for the park actually originated 44 years earlier. This 25 miles of pristine Atlantic Ocean beach, dunes and Mosquito Lagoon is the longest expanse of undeveloped land along the East Coast of Florida and as a federally protected area will remain primarily as it is today. Future generations from throughout the world will visit, enjoy and appreciate the efforts of many organizations and individuals who had the foresight and persistence during the 1960s and 70s to make the dream into a reality. During 1955, a National Park Service (NPS) survey team visited the Turtle Mound area and "found the seashore a priceless scenic and scientific resource for which there is no substitute". Ten years later T. C. Wilder, president of the New Smyrna Beach (NSB) Chamber of Commerce, organized a Seashore Park Sub-committee, acting on a recommendation by the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council (ECFRPC) to follow up on the NPS report. The committee included several former presidents of the NSB Chamber of Commerce. They were Dr. Cook (Committee Chairman), John Deal and Walter Mulbury. Other members were Ed Hughes, Mayor of NSB, Bill Owens of the ECFRPC, Volusia County Commissioner Harris Saxon, Chamber of Commerce Director William I. Smith, and Chamber of Commerce Manager Hanford Eckman.