This is not your typical tourist trap. It's a unique home that attracts the curious. The owner/tour…read moreguide is a perky lady who is renovating the house back to its original splendor and adding her own personal creativity. She talks about the history of the house and her encounters with the spirits of the original owner. Lots of antiques throughout and a few quirky collections. A diamond in the rough with the mystique of an opal. There is an assistant tour guide, Joan of Bark, who is the sweetest, most laid-back pup. Take some time to enjoy this unicorn.

The best house tour I have ever been on! Super cool to hear so many details from the owner of the…read morehouse and hear about her personal experiences in the restoration process.

The tower used to be awesome. According to records, it opened in 1961 as a 240 foot tall…read moreobservation tower. It was possible to get to the top and have unparalleled 40 mile panoramic views of Highlands County and Central Florida. The dream of Earnest Oakley Hunt and Robert Gray, it is constructed of 100,000 concrete blocks which made it the tallest concrete block structure in the world at the time. In the late 1960s, the tower's name was changed to "The Happiness Tower" in order to lure people in, claiming visitors a state of bliss when looking out from the top of the tower. And at the same time, it was renamed the "Tower of Peace." The last owner to operate the tower as a tourist attraction owned it from 1992 until its closure in 2003. It is absolutely not open to the public. It's mostly abandoned though it functions as a cell phone tower. I'd have paid $10 or so for the view from the top. Bummer. [Review 455 of 2025 - 2098 in Florida - 24017 overall]

The Lake Placid Tower is a closed and abandoned gem of a bygone era. It completed in 1960 and…read moreopened in 1961. It closed in 2003 and continued life as a cell tower until 2019. It was abandoned in 2019. There are hopes that it might reopen but it's not likely it will. It retains a semblance of its original beauty but the structures at the base are in sad condition and are deteriorating. Since the tower is abandoned, I won't go into further detail but urge you to read Ariel W's review from 3 years ago for further information.

My husband and I just hosted the wedding of our daughter and now son-in-law at the Howey Mansion…read more The venue was just perfect. Fran was extremely helpful in accommodating special requests and answering questions we had right away. Very friendly and pleasant to work with. All of our guests for the wedding raved at how beautiful the home is.

William John Howey (January 19, 1876 - June 7, 1938) was an American real-estate developer, citrus…read moregrower, and Republican politician from Florida. He founded and served as mayor for the town of Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida where he developed and sold citrus groves, becoming one of Florida's greatest citrus developers. He was one of the first citrus growers to send fruit from Florida to England. In 1921 he opened Florida's first citrus juice plant. He ran for governor on the Republican ticket in 1928 and 1932. Mr. Howey's prominence led to many distinguished guests visiting the Howey mansion, These included Lord Bathhurst of England, H.B. McNeal, publisher of Golfer's Magazine, golf master Chick Evans, Kansas Governor Alfred Landon, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Phillip's of petroleum fame, and President Calvin Coolidge who was guest of honor at an all-male dinner party in February 1930. Mr. Howey's former home near Lake Wales, Florida became the site of Florida's Bok Tower at the Bok Tower Gardens. In 1925 Mr. Howey commissioned a 20 room mansion in the town he founded. The architect was Katherine Cotheal Budd. During WWI she designed temporary lodgings known as hostess homes for women who were visiting their husbands at military training camps. Budd is credited for creating 72 lodgings with a homelike atmosphere and the Howey House is one of a few existing examples of her work. The Howey Mansion was designed in the popular Mediterranean Revival style. The house is set back on a wide lawn with wrought iron gates and a long horseshoe drive. The entrance to the home features an elaborate, two story bas relief frontispiece .The massive front door and the woodwork on the first floor is made from peaky cypress. Leading to the second floor is a graceful curving stone stairway with a wrought iron banister. Other features of the home include three large fireplaces, a ballroom-size drawing room, enormous beamed ceilings, and a servant call-bell phone system. There is even a hidden passage behind a sliding bookshelf panel in the library. The original 15 acres grounds of the mansion were called The Park and included many botanical plants and shrubs. On March 6, 1927 The Park was the host site for an open air concert performed by the New York Civic Opera Company bringing the top opera singers of the day to the mansion for a concert for the community. The mansion was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Place on January 27, 1983. On April 12, 2017 it was listed for sale at $480,000. The new owners are Brad and Clay Cowherd, Orlando real estate investors who have made period-accurate restoration of the house. I visited the Howey Mansion for the Founders Day Festival. Admission for tours of the home was discounted to $10. The Howey Mansion is available for private rentals like weddings while historical tours are also available Monday through Friday at 11am. The Founder's Day event included a local market, food trucks, live music, and family activities. I enjoyed visiting the tents and touring the mansion including the hidden bar in the basement that was created during prohibition. Behind the mansion, is a trail through the woods that will take you to the Georgian marble mausoleum where the Howey family is interred including William J. Howey (1938), daughter, Lois Valerie Howey (1941), and Mary Hastings Howey (1981). This year Centennial Founder's Day Celebration, marked100 years since the town's founding in 1925.

On a small hill overlooking the Historical Society Depot Museum, I spotted this memorial plaque and…read moreI had to know more about it. Lastinger Memorial Park is dedicated to Joshua and Louisa Lastinger the first white settlers of Lake Placid who have left a lasting impact on the city to this day. This memorial was dedicated on August 29, 1987. Joshua was a Confederate veteran of the Civil War. He married Louisa Bowden Lastinger in 1870 in Lowndes County, Georgia. The couple had their first child two years later, and by 1880 they were living in Hernando County. While on a hunting trip, Joshua discovered the lake-covered south end of the Lake Wales Ridge. He became determined to make a home there. The family packed their belongings and traveled by ox cart over three days to their new home. The settled on the northeastern shore of Lake Sterns in 1890. Over the next several weeks Joshua, Louisa, and their five daughters began clearing and cultivating the land. This area was later renamed Lake June-in-Winter in the 1920's. The federal government officially grant the Lastinger's land patent, consisting of 131 acres, in 1897. Joshua Lastinger became the first carpenter and they were the first settlers to cultivate citrus. Daughter Laura was the first school teacher. When the train came to town in 1916, it passed right through the Lastinger property. Joshua donated the right of way to the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. By the 1920 Census, it was reported that 307 people lived in the town, just 10 years later the number grew to 819 people. Joshua and Louisa Lastinger passed away in 1931. They left behind nine children and there are many grandchildren still in the area today. In addition to the memorial there is a bench and landscaping in the small park.

Lavender house, also known as Hermann V. Von Holst House is a private residence on the U.S…read more National Register of Historic Places in the historic old Floresta neighborhood in Boca Raton. It is located on 875 Alamanda Street. The neighborhood the house is in was initially designed by Addison Mizner but he went broke in 1926. Chicago Prairie School architect Hermann V. Von Holst along with partners purchased the development and he finished building the houses. Lavender House was the residence Holst built for himself. He went on to serve on the Boca Raton City Council from 1934 to 1948 and the planning board from 1940 to 1953. Although you can't tour this house it's worth driving through this beautiful historic neighborhood. It looks like the current owners embrace the history of their home as it is beautifully kept. They occasionally post pictures of the interior on their Facebook page dedicated to the home.

The Buckeye Building is a historic building located on the circle in downtown Sebring. Sebring is…read moreknown as "The City on the Circle". It was founded in 1912 by Ohio by pottery manufacturer George Sebring. He designed a circular plan as a focal point for the entire community based on the design of Heliopolis, an ancient Egyptian city. George Sebring believed that all roads should radiate from the center of the community. The Buckeye Building stands on the site of the Buckeye Club. It was a wood frame building built by George Sebring in 1912 as a spot for religious and social gatherings and for settlers to the area to stay. It was named for the Buckeye, which is the state tree from George Sebrings hometown of Ohio. George Sebring repurchased the building and tore it down in 1921 to make way for his Sebring Real Estate Company to put up the Beaux Arts style Buckeye Building in 1922. When George finished building there was a 22 room inn upstairs and various offices and stores downstairs including a drug store, barber shop, insurance office, and meat market. Upon his death, Sebrings holdings in the building were transferred to his families Highlands Security Corporation who sold the building in 1938 at auction for $25,000. The building has recently been restored and is still used for various businesses today.

2100th Review The…read moreCircus Bridge is no ordinary bridge although one wouldn't know it's historic significance by merely looking at it or even driving over it, it's played a huge part in the celebration each and every year in Venice for more than three decades as the animals from Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey were unloaded from the circus train each winter and marched across this bridge, the crowds that gathered to watch cheered celebrating the end of a long season entertaining the masses with countless performances. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey wintered at the circus arena near the Venice airport which was finally demolished after years of attempts to preserve it in some way; the building's skeleton had remained in place long after the circus left the site behind in the early 1990s. But in its heyday, in the 1960s, '70s and '80s, the arena welcomed thousands of spectators as well as top circus performers, who rehearsed their new shows here. For residents and visitors, the arrival of the circus train was a memorable highlight of each winter season. On January 14, 2017, it was announced that the circus will be closed forever in May 2017 after 146 years of bringing smiles to millions and will lay off more than 462 employees between March and May 2017. Declining attendance combined with high operating costs and loss of the elephants are among the reasons for closing. On May 7, 2017, its "Circus Extreme" tour will be shown for the last time in Providence, Rhode Island. The circus's last performance will be its "Out of This World" tour at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on May 21, 2017 and that my friend will be the end to maybe the grandest entertainment icon ever, but this bridge will remain and continue to be ghostly reminder of the past for those that witnessed it's grandeur at the end of each circus season that's until it too will become obsolete and replaced with a concrete span named after some politician who's grand kids will only read about "The Greatest Show on Earth" but never witness it's magic...

In late 1837 during the Second Seminole War, Colonel Zachary Taylor left Tampa to capture the…read moreNative American Seminoles who the government hoped to send out of Florida and to Oklahoma on the Trail of Tears. In order to attain his goal Taylor established forts along a supply line to provide support for the campaign. One of these forts was located along the banks of the Kissimmee River. Fort Bassinger was named in honor of Lt. William Basinger 2nd U.S. Artillery who was killed at Dade's Massacre on December 28, 1835. The fort was an important supply depot due to it's location, but after the war it was abandoned in 1850. Drawn by the river, homesteaders moved into the area after the Civil War and the town of Basinger began to grow where the fort once stood. The area was populated by cattle farmers, trappers, and farmers. The river made it easy to ship crops out. In 1875, Captain John Mizell Pearce, who had served in the Third Seminole War and as a captain in the Civil War, was deeded 157 acres of land on the southwest side of the river, which included the old fort. The Pearce family were one of the first settlers in what would become Highland County. At one time the town had hotels, churches, blacksmith shops, a post office, school, and a general store. In the 1915 the railroad bypassed Bassinger in favor of Okeechobee 20 miles to the southwest. The bust of the Florida land boom years and the Great Depression dealt further blows to the town and Bassinger began to die out. While many families moved away, the Pearce family decided to stay. In 1908 Edna Mae Pearce was born on October 19, 1909 on her families homestead. In 1953 Edna married James Lockett and the couple lived in the home Edna Mae's grandmother built overlooking the Kissimmee River. The historic marker for Fort Basinger (F-54) was erected 1961 by the Florida Board of Parks and Historic Memorials on the couples homestead on the site where it is believed the fort stockade once existed. Edna Pearce Lockett became an important woman in Florida history. She took over the family's cattle business and served as an officer of the Highlands County Cattleman's Association and Florida Cattleman's Association. In 1948 he was only the third woman to be elected to the House of Representatives and she served three terms. She was also a founding board members of Highlands General Hospital and Youth Care Home in Highlands County. In 1980, she was named Honorary Chancellor of her alma mater Florida Southern College and she is a member of the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame. Eda Pearce Lockett passed away on May 17, 1991. Today Bassinger is a ghost town. Remains of the store and hotels are gone. The Lockett estate is abandoned and is the property of the South Florida Water Management District. The buildings are starting to fall apart but you can still see the Pearce family cemetery under the oak trees. Through the years attempts have been made to find someone to restore the homestead and open it to the public but there have been no takers and the site remains closed to the public.

There is not much out here in the middle of the middle of nowhere other than several "public use"…read moreareas and boat ramps and camping spots. But back in the day, when the US Army was busy fighting the Seminoles, there was a fort here. Today there is this marker as you cross the bridge over the Kissimmee River. The marker reads: "Col. Zachary Taylor had Fort Basinger built in 1837, during the Seminole Wars, on the Kissimmee River 17 miles above its mouth. It was a small stockade which served as a temporary fort and supply station on the line of forts extending from Tampa to Lake Okeechobee. Named for Lt. William E. Basinger of the 2nd Artillery, who was killed in Dade's Massacre, the fort was abandoned at the end of the Indian wars."

This is a historic house located in downtown Bartow at 590 East Stanford Street. Named the Benjamin…read moreFranklin Holland House,, it is also known as The Gables and the Roy Trent Gallemore House. The house was built in 1895 and was designed by architect E.R. Wharton. The two and a half story house is in the frame vernacular style with shingle elements and it is considered one of the best examples of a shingle style home in Florida. There is a one story wraparound screen entrance porch. Benjamin Franklin Holland was known in Bartow as a pioneer and a public servant. He was born in Carroll County, Ga., in 1846. When he was 17 he was a Confederate soldier in a battle at Kennesaw Mountain in Georgia that saw half of his company killed. During the battle he was wounded and by the time he recovered the Civil War was over. To heal from a shattered hand and tuberculosis he moved to Polk county where he married and had three children. He founded Polk's first abstract business and served in three county offices: school board member, county commissioner and county treasurer. One of his children became Florida governor Spessard Holland who grew up in the home. The house was listed on the US Register of Historic Places in 1975. It is a private residence so you can only view it from the street but it is a beautiful home and worth a drive by if you are in the area.

I love old houses and this yellow beauty is an architectural gem. The Murphy-Burroughs House is a…read moreGeorgian Revival style mansion built in 1901 for John T. Murphy, a cattle rancher from Montana. It is located in the River District of Fort Myers on two acres of land on the Caloosahatchee River. The house was built on First Avenue, the first house on what would become known as Millionaires Row. Materials to build the house were brought in by train and then carried the rest of the way to Fort Myers by barge. After construction was completed it drew other wealthy people to build their homes on the street. It is the only one of Millionaire Row's mansion that is still standing in its original position. Murphy was very involved in local civic and business affairs during his time in Fort Myers. He was a major shareholder of a bank and helped built a seawall that protected the downtown area. He passed away in 1914 and the house was sold to a businessman from New Jersey. In 1919 Nelson Burroughs purchased the house so his family could escape the frigid Chicago winters. Nelson made his fortune in land investments and banking. While in the home the family hosted lavish parties attended by famous winter Fort Myers residents Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and Harvey Firestone. In 1922 Burroughs transferred ownership of the house to his daughters, Mona & Jettie. Mona bequeathed the property to The City of Fort Myers prior to her death in 1978. After her husband died in 1983 it was no longer used as a residence. On August 1, 1984, the house was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Today you can tour the home that has been lovingly restored with a grand staircase, beautiful fireplaces, and antique furnishings. Features of the house include a veranda wrapping around three sides, a large dancing porch on the east side, bay and stained glass windows, a widow's walk on the roof, and decorative woodwork. The house is a popular wedding venue. Every December, the Fort Myers Community Women's Club decorates the historic mansion for the holidays. The Uncommon Friends Foundation manages the house as well as the Burroughs family records.

What a beautiful place to throw a party, host an event or have a wedding…read more The sunset here is absolutely magnificent and there are trees and flowers everywhere.