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Today this structure is called the Thomson Tabby house, for Charles Thomson, who began building it in 1854-5 but never finished it. Tabby is a concrete-like substance made from sand, oyster shells, and lime, a technology transplanted from Africa. The use of tabby was prevalent in Florida and coastal Georgia in the 1700s and early 1800s.

Kingsley Plantation later became a state park from the 1950s until 1989. Tours of the house, furnished with antiques purchased in the 1950s and 1960s, were offered by park staff. In 1989, U.S. Representative Charles Bennett negotiated the creation of the Timucuan Ecological and Historical Preserve, which would include national, state, and city properties and parks. As part of the negotiation, the State of Florida purchased Fort George Island to be used as a state park, but transferred Kingsley Plantation to the National Park Service.