Claim: Vince Trapper Nelson had a zoo on his property in an exurban area in Martin county Florida with a guarded beach and when he passed in 1968 his land was acquired by the state and became part of a state park.
Evidence: Vince "Trapper" Nelson (born Vincent Nostokovich or Natulkiewicz around 1909) was an American trapper, hunter and zoo founder. Though he was born in New Jersey, and lived in Mexico and Texas, Nelson is best known for establishing a homestead-turned-zoo on the shore of Florida's Loxahatchee River. Hobe Sound is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in Martin County, Florida, United States. The Trapper Nelson Zoo Historic District, also known as Trapper Nelson Hunting Camp and Trapper Nelson Interpretive Site, is an historic district located south of Hobe Sound, Florida, in the United States. He was found dead in his cabin by a friend in 1968, and his death was ruled a suicide. His land was acquired by the state of Florida, and is now part of Jonathan Dickinson State Park.