The Forgotten History of St. Anne Shrine in Lake Wales, Florida

Hidden near the shores of a small lake in Lake Wales is one of Polk County’s more unusual pieces of local history. Today, visitors to the St. Anne Shrine will find old stonework, a grotto, monuments and other remnants scattered throughout a quiet lakeside property. Nearly a century ago, however, this was a significant religious pilgrimage destination.

The story of the St. Anne Shrine dates back to the early 20th century and a small community of French Canadian Catholics who settled in the area.

According to local tradition, one of the early settlers came to Florida with his seriously ill son. After spending time near the lake, the boy’s health reportedly improved, and the waters became associated with his recovery. The location eventually developed into a shrine dedicated to St. Anne, traditionally recognized as the mother of the Virgin Mary.

By 1928, organized pilgrimages were being made to the site. What began as a relatively isolated religious community grew into a destination that could attract thousands of visitors for the annual Feast of St. Anne.

At its height, the grounds included a church, religious statues, Stations of the Cross, a grotto, monuments and extensive decorative stonework. Pilgrims traveled to this otherwise rural portion of Polk County to attend religious services and visit the shrine.

World War II disrupted the pilgrimages, particularly travel from Canada, and the shrine never fully returned to what it had once been. By the 1960s, the shrine had been de-sanctified, and the church and many of the structures that once occupied the property were eventually removed.

What makes St. Anne Shrine particularly interesting today is how much evidence of its past can still be found.

The church itself is gone, but the stone grotto remains one of the most recognizable features of the property. Additional monuments and elaborate stone structures can be found closer to the lake, providing a glimpse of how extensive the original grounds once were.

Walking through the property today is a dramatically different experience from what visitors would have encountered during the shrine’s busiest years. It is quiet, heavily wooded and surrounded by the natural landscape of eastern Polk County. Without knowing its history, it would be difficult to imagine thousands of people once gathering here.

Places like St. Anne Shrine are part of what makes exploring Polk County interesting. Rapid growth has transformed communities such as Lake Wales, Haines City, Davenport and Winter Haven, but scattered throughout the county are reminders of a much earlier Central Florida.

The St. Anne Shrine is one of them.

Nearly 100 years after the first organized pilgrimages began, portions of this unique chapter of Lake Wales history are still standing along the water.

Want to see what remains of St. Anne Shrine today? Watch our video below for a closer look at the historic grounds.