Santa Rosa Beach is one of the oldest beach town along 30-A and extends northward past U.S. Highway 98. The name was borrowed from the Santa Rosa Plantation, which was a thriving plantation north of Hwy. 98 on Hogtown Bayou in the late 1800?s. Santa Rosa Beach was a large center for turpentine production. The abundance of slash pine trees made it a perfect place for such an industry. There was also plenty of room for the workers to live. Turpentine at that time was used to caulk the seams of wooden ships and was therefore referred to as a "naval stores industry." The industry died out in the 1940?s due to shipbuilding shifting from wood to steel and damage from storms. There was also less land with trees available for lease. Papermaking became a bigger industry and the pine trees began being used for that purpose.
Running both north and south of Emerald Coast Parkway, Santa Rosa Beach, Florida encompasses the largest tract of land of all the beach communities. The Santa Rosa area includes the historic town of Point Washington where Eden State Gardens incorporates the old Wesley mansion on Tucker Bayou, once a thriving sawmill. Topsail Hill State Preserve could be the state's most pristine piece of property; its beach, dunes, coastal lake and cypress swamp remain nearly untouched since the time the first Europeans landed here five centuries ago. Several entrances to Point Washington State Forest take you into the 15,000-acre preserve with more than ten miles of trails. Travel north on Hwy. 393 for a little local history and lore plus a shopping stop for antique treasures and garden statuary.

Real Estate
There are two areas in Santa Rosa Beach
when talking about real estate - North Santa Rosa Beach
(all communities located north of Highway 98) and South
Santa Rosa Beach (communities located south of Highway 98).