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Before St. Andrews State Park became the 1,200-acre beachside destination it is today, the park’s lands were originally occupied by a wayward Norwegian sailor named Theodore Tollofsen – more affectionately known as “Teddy the Hermit.”
Teddy washed ashore on the south bank of Grand Lagoon after his 26-foot boat wrecked during a September 1929 hurricane. Deciding to make the place his new homestead, he fashioned driftwood and boat debris to build himself a cabin, smokehouse and chicken pen.
Teddy lived there for 25 years and passed away at age 74, three years after the state park opened to the public in 1951.
– Margaret Willard, The 100 Companies