PORT ORANGE, Fla. — Perry Sperber Jr. comes to the trails inside the Dunlawton Sugar Mill Gardens often. He's wandered this land since he was a young boy. 


What You Need To Know

  • Bongoland Ruins is an old Florida roadside attractions

  • It used to feature tram rides, animals and huge dinosaur sculptures

He brought along black-and-white photographs from his time spent here, back in the 1950s. However, this place wasn't always gardens. It was Bongoland Ruins, an old Florida roadside attraction with tram rides, animals, and massive dinosaur sculptures that his father helped design. 

Photo Courtesy of the State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, 1959
(Photo courtesy of State Archives of Florida)

“I have memories of it all, not only of the dinosaurs but the whole attraction that was out here," Sperber said. 

Perry's father, Perry Sperber M.D., helped to design the idea for Bongoland Ruins and played a large part in getting the massive sculptures to the area. Nearly six decades later, some of them still stand, even if the paint has almost worn off. 

Now that the park has closed, it is a peaceful oasis that the younger Sperber visits to reminisce and honor his late father's legacy. 

“Just the fact that it was his idea and the creation of them has been so fun for so many years to so many people that have come to the park, especially kids,” said Sperber.

The Bongoland Ruins are now a piece of old Florida history that may crumble but will live on through the pictures and memories of the Sperber family. 

The Bongoland Ruins are part of the Dunlawton Sugar Mill Gardens. The area is completely free and open to the public. They are open from 8 a.m. to 5  p.m. daily except for Christmas and New Year's Day.