Ramon Theater
1926 movie house on the National Register, restored as a community performance venue.
27 S Scenic Hwy, Frostproof, FL 33843
Polk County · 13 mi S of Lake Wales
Frostproof, Florida
A citrus town that kept its main street.
- Drive time
- 20 min
- Distance
- 13 mi S
- Population
- ~3,000
- Founded
- 1892
Frostproof got its name from a cattleman's boast about the ridge between two lakes never freezing. Twenty minutes south of Lake Wales, it is the clearest surviving picture of what a Florida citrus town looked like before the interstates — a two-block business district, a grove-worker neighborhood, and water at both ends.
Come for the Ramon Theater, the lake access, and a main street that has not been redeveloped into anything.
Worth the drive
See & do
Frostproof Historical Museum
Small volunteer-run museum covering the citrus era, the railroad, and local families.
Downtown murals and Scenic Highway
Old Scenic Highway (CR-17) runs the length of the Ridge through town — the slower, prettier alternative to US-27.
On the ground
Eat & drink
Main street diners
Breakfast-and-lunch counters serving grove crews and fishermen; most close mid-afternoon.
Lakeside bait-and-grill stops
Casual food near the Lake Reedy ramps.
Parks, lakes & trails
Outdoors
Lake Reedy
3,500-acre bass lake with a public ramp and pier on the town's east side.
Lake Clinch
Deep, clear lake on the west edge of town with a small park and swimming area.
Allen David Broussard Catfish Creek Preserve State Park
Sand pine scrub, ancient dunes, and the tallest point on the Lake Wales Ridge — hiking-only, no facilities.
Every year
Annual events
- Frostproof Founder's Day / Ramon Theater season events
- Fourth of July on the lakefront
- Bass tournaments on Lake Reedy (winter and spring)
Events calendar
What’s coming up in Frostproof.
No Frostproof dates are on our calendar yet — annual events are listed above. Browse the full regional calendar →
Getting there
The drive
South on US-27 or the slower, prettier Scenic Highway (CR-17) from Lake Wales — 13 miles either way, about 20 minutes.
ZIP 33843 · Verified 2026-07-29
Before you go
Good to know
- Most downtown businesses close by 3 p.m. and all day Sunday.
- Catfish Creek Preserve has no water, no shade, and no cell coverage in places — carry your own.
Keep exploring
Other towns near Lake Wales
25 min away
Bartow
The county seat, and the best porch-and-oak street grid in Polk.
40 min away
Lakeland
The big city on the Ridge — swans, Frank Lloyd Wright, and a real dinner scene.
25 min away
Haines City
The US-27 gateway — ballfields, Lake Eva, and the road to I-4.
12 min away
Babson Park
A college hamlet on Crooked Lake, twelve minutes from downtown.