Sacred Lands Preservation and Education

What Sacred Lands Preservation and Education does

Sacred Lands Preservation and Education is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 2001 by Erik and Doris Anderson in St. Petersburg, Florida. The organization stewards a 3-acre waterfront parcel on Boca Ciega Bay that contains a 1,000+ year old Tocobaga archaeological site, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Jungle Prada Site. The land has been held by the Anderson family since 1940, when Harold C. 'Happy' Anderson purchased the parcel to protect its two large shell mounds from development. The site is recognized as the largest American Indian mound on privately-maintained land in Florida and includes the 1528 landing site of Spanish conquistador Pánfilo de Narváez.

The organization operates three interconnected programs. The first is the Jungle Prada Site History Tour, a 75-minute guided walking tour offered exclusively through a partnership with Discover Florida Tours, with booking handled via the FareHarbor platform. The second is wedding and event venue rental of the 3-acre waterfront property, with five publicly disclosed pricing tiers ranging from $800 for a daytime ceremony to $2,000 for a weekend large wedding, accommodating up to 100 guests. The third is educational programming including speaker series, art and music performances, and permaculture workshops. Revenue is supplemented by tax-deductible donations accepted via PayPal.

The organization is TripAdvisor Best of the Best awardee in both 2023 and 2024, ranked among the top-20 historical and cultural tours in the United States. Its only disclosed external funding event is a $5,000 grant from the Community Foundation Tampa Bay in June 2025. Operations have been disrupted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, as noted on the organization's website. There is no disclosed headcount, no parent organization, and no proprietary technology platform.

Name

Sacred Lands Preservation and Education

Legal name

Sacred Lands Preservation and Education

Website

https://sacredlandspreservation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Heritage Preservation and Education

NAICS

Historical Sites (712120), Nature Parks and Other Similar Institutions (712190)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Cultural Heritage & Historic District Tours (THAJAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Land Trusts & Protected Areas (BPAGAGAC), Environmental Interpretation & Ranger-Led Education Programs (Visitor Education) (THAAAOAJ)

Keywords

• Archaeological land stewardship
• Guided heritage tours
• Florida history education
• Cultural event programming
• Waterfront venue rental

Headquarters

HQ city

St. Petersburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Guided History Tours: Revenue generated from guided history tours of the Jungle Prada archaeological site, operated in partnership with Discover Florida Tours. Tours last approximately 75 minutes and require advance registration with group sizes limited.
2. Wedding and Event Venue Rental: Revenue from renting the 3-acre waterfront property on Boca Ciega Bay for weddings, birthday parties, celebrations of life, and other personal events. Pricing varies by day of week, guest count, and rental duration. Optional rentals of chairs, tables, and canopy available for additional fees.
3. Donations: Charitable donations accepted via PayPal to support preservation and education programming. The organization is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, making donations tax-deductible.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Sacred Lands Preservation and Education stewards a 1,000+ year old Tocobaga archaeological site and its surrounding natural environment in St. Petersburg, Florida. It provides experiential education through guided history tours, speaker series, cultural events, and permaculture workshops, and rents its 3‑acre Boca Ciega Bay property for weddings and other events.

Product overview

Sacred Lands Preservation and Education is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that operates as a single unified offering centered on stewarding a 1,000+ year old Tocobaga archaeological site in St. Petersburg, Florida. The organization provides three interconnected services: (1) the Jungle Prada Site History Tour, a guided tour of the historic site offered through partnership with Discover Florida Tours; (2) Wedding & Event Venue Rental of the 3-acre waterfront property; and (3) Educational Programming including speaker series, workshops, and cultural events. The core value proposition is preservation of Florida's First People heritage combined with public access through experiential education.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Jungle Prada Site History Tour A 75‑minute guided walking tour of the Jungle Prada archaeological site in St. Petersburg, Florida, covering approximately 1,000+ years of Florida history, including Tocobaga habitation, preserved shell mounds, the central village plaza, and the 1528 landing of a Spanish conquistador. The tour is conducted by Discover Florida Tours, requires advance registration, and limits group sizes.
• Wedding & Event Venue Rental An outdoor waterfront venue rental on a 3‑acre Boca Ciega Bay property for weddings, birthday parties, celebrations of life, and other personal events. The property includes an outdoor stage, accommodates up to 100 guests, and offers optional chairs, tables, and a canopy; rates vary by day, guest count, and rental duration.
• Educational Programming Experiential cultural and educational programming comprising speaker series, art and music performances, permaculture workshops, and cultural events focused on Florida archaeology, American Indian cultures, and sustainable land practices.

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Discover Florida TourscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDiscover Florida Tours is the exclusive operator of guided history tours at the Jungle Prada archaeological site. David Anderson, associated with the Anderson family who own and steward the property, leads tours through this business partnership. Tours are booked via FareHarbor, and Discover Florida Tours handles all tour logistics, pricing, and customer relations for the visitor experience.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Indian Temple Mound Museum: Fort Walton Beach museum built around a prehistoric Native American temple mound, presenting artifacts from the Fort Walton Peninsula culture. Comparable as a Florida archaeological site with public access, exhibits, and educational programming tied to a specific indigenous heritage.
• Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Seminole Indian Museum: Florida-based museum operated by the Seminole Tribe that preserves Seminole history and culture through exhibits, a boardwalk nature trail, and educational programming. Directly comparable as a Florida-focused indigenous heritage institution combining site preservation with public education.
• Historic Spanish Point: Sarasota County heritage site managed by Empath Partners that combines prehistoric archaeological features, pioneer history, and gardens on a waterfront property. Closely comparable as a multi-period Florida heritage site offering guided tours, educational programs, and event venue use on a preserved natural setting.
• Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium: Fort Myers-based nonprofit nature and cultural center focused on Southwest Florida ecology and indigenous (Calusa) history with trails, exhibits, and educational programming. Comparable as a Florida nonprofit combining natural site stewardship with indigenous cultural education and public programming.
• Discover Florida Tours: Florida heritage tour operator that runs the Jungle Prada tour as its anchor product and additional Tampa Bay history and eco tours. Directly comparable as a Florida heritage tourism business whose tour experiences and channel economics most closely mirror Sacred Lands' tour offering.

Regional players

• Crystal River Archaeological State Park: Florida state park preserving pre-Columbian burial mounds, temple platform, and site museum on the Crystal River. Comparable as a publicly accessible Florida archaeological site with interpretive trails and educational programming, though operated by the state rather than a private nonprofit.
• De Soto National Memorial: National Park Service site in Bradenton, Florida commemorating the 1539 Hernando de Soto landing and indigenous cultures of the region. Comparable as a heritage site interpreting Florida's indigenous and Spanish exploration history, though federally operated rather than a private nonprofit.
• Conservation Florida: Florida land trust focused on preserving natural and cultural landscapes through acquisitions and conservation easements. Comparable as a Florida nonprofit in the land preservation space with overlapping donor, grant, and stewardship models, though without a public-facing visitor site.

Broad incumbents

• The Nature Conservancy (Florida): Global conservation organization with a major Florida program that acquires and manages ecologically and culturally significant lands. Comparable as a land preservation nonprofit model, though at vastly larger scale and without Sacred Lands' small-site visitor experience focus.
• Florida Museum of Natural History: University of Florida-operated natural history museum in Gainesville with extensive exhibits, research, and educational programs on Florida's ecosystems and indigenous peoples. Comparable as a Florida-focused natural and cultural heritage institution, though at much larger scale and university-affiliated.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sacred Lands Preservation and Education