[2] The park is made up of 425 acres[3] and is most famous for its formal gardens, but it also preserves the original habitat of a northeast Florida barrier island.

Wildlife include sea turtles, Florida gopher tortoises, West Indian manatees, white-tailed deer, raccoons, bobcats, foxes, Virginia opossums, eastern gray squirrels, pileated woodpeckers, northern cardinals, bald eagles, peregrine falcons, and Florida scrub jays.

In 1936, Louise Powis Clark, wife of the industrialist Owen D. Young purchased the property as a winter retirement home.

[4] She devised the name "Washington Oaks" for the property and is responsible for developing the park's formal gardens, citrus groves, and house.

[5] The park has such amenities as beaches (on both the Matanzas River and Atlantic Ocean),[5] bicycling, fishing, hiking, picnicking areas and wildlife viewing.