Located within Indian Riverside Park in Jensen Beach, this historic mansion once belonged to a Coca Cola heiress sits on top of a 4,000 year-old Indian midden named Mt. Elizabeth. The midden which is a ancient garbage dump was created by the Ais Indians. It was originally 60-feet high but now is only 40 feet high. Inside it archaeologists have found broken pottery, tools, fish bones, shell ornaments, and other refuse from their every day lives. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on September 14, 2002. The midden and surrounding property were purchased by explorer William Henry Racey in the late 1850's. His son, Charles Racey built a three story wood frame family home on the mound in 1891. He farmed a pineapple and citrus plantation on the land. The home burned to the ground in 1921 and the Racey family sold the property to judge Edward Seann.
In 1936 Atlanta businessman Willaford Leach and his wife Anne Bates Leach, a Coca Cola heiress, purchased Mt. Elizabeth and the surrounding property. They built the Mediterranean Revival mansion that sits on top of the mound and named it Tuckahoe, a Native American word that means welcome. The estate was completed in 1939 and added to the National Register of Historic Places on November 30, 2005. The Leach's property was 54 acres of riverfront woodland and lawns. The couple entertained in the mansion and hosted the society in Martin County. Their parties were attended by socialites and WWII soldiers from Camp Murphy. Mrs. Leach founded the Garden Club and was a benefactor for the original building for the Bascomb Palmer Eye Institute in Miami.
The University of Miami named a hospital after her.
After the Leach family moved out of the mansion in 1950 it was sold to the Catholic Church who gave it to the Sisters of St. Joseph. They added a dormitory and used it as a 2 year degree religious college until 1972. The Florida Institute of Technology then purchased the property and offered 4 year degrees in marine science. The mansion was used by the college administrators.
The college closed the campus in 1986 leaving the building and surrounding land vacant for the next 10 years. Martin County purchased the property in 1997 and created Indian RiverSide Park which opened to the public in 2001. Renovations on the mansion were completed in 2009 by the Friends of Mount Elizabeth. Bert Bender from Key West was chosen as the architect of the renovation. The created an Art Deco design for inside the mansion. A wedding suite and grooms room were added as well as a catering kitchen and banquet room.
Today the mansion is operated by the Martin County Parks and Recreation Department. It is rented for weddings and private events. Historical tours of the mansion take place every first and third Wednesday through May at 10 and 11 a.m. On the day I visited the mansion was being used for a prom while a wedding was taking place in another part of the park. I love how Martin County preserved 4,000 years of history in a way that is still benefiting the community of Martin County today. read more