13 Things In Jacksonville You Didn’t Know Existed

8. Peek Behind The Bookshelf In The Grape & Grain Exchange For A Speakeasy Surprise


Source: Grape & Grain Exchange via Facebook

Grape & Grain Exchange is like a mullet: all business up front, a party in the back. Up front, it’s a wine, beer, and liquor shop that lets you open up your bottles, order cheese plates and drink on site. But hidden behind a bookshelf, you’ll find the Exchange’s speakeasy, known as The Parlour, with jazz, craft cocktails, and 1930s ambiance.


9. One Of America’s Greatest Writers Wintered Here


Source: Wikimedia Commons user Moni3

Anti-slavery activist and author Harriet Beecher Stowe, best known for her influential anti-slavery novel “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” was a native of Connecticut, but wintered on the St. John’s River near Jacksonville, in what was once known as Mandarin. Though her house no longer stands, it’s still a history buff’s paradise.