Survey Report: A Section of Historic Mount Dora, Florida

The 20 buildings which were researched and surveyed for this project are located within the downtown, historic district of Mount Dora, Florida. The majority of these buildings have a very interesting history, dating back to the early 20th century when the town was just beginning settlement. Some of these buildings have retained their historical integrity inside and out, while others have been changed and adapted for their various uses through the years; so much so that they no longer can provide a physical trace to their past. It is through their unified history that the history of the town of Mount Dora can better be understood.

This project was a very time consuming process. The investigation began around mid-October, with a simple windshield survey. This aided in the decision-making of the scope of buildings which would be surveyed. The focus was given to the oldest buildings in the area, 20 buildings to be exact, which were situated along the main, cross streets of Fifth Avenue and Donnelly Street. Once the area of significance was decided, a walk about was carried out, taking note of significant features of the buildings, such as the addresses and key architectural features. Also photographs of each building were documented.

Research commenced through the utilization of the building addresses and the local resources of the following: Mount Dora Historical Society, W.T. Bland Library Archives, Lake County Archives Department, Lake County Clerk of the Circuit Court Online Records Database, interviews with community members, and communication with building owners. I began this process by visiting the Historic Society first, thinking they would be able to best direct my search. I found some information, although limited. Next I visited the library’s archive department, where I was able to discover an older, unfinished survey project of a few of the buildings downtown. It had been completed in the late 1980s through a grant program, unfortunately after several interviews I learned a lot of the information proved inaccurate.

The Online Records Database was a great assistance to locating information about the buildings’ ownerships, parcel numbers, tax identification numbers, maps, etc. This helped to at least start a paper trail for some of the buildings, but this took days, up to weeks to locate and filter through the database. It was a very laborious process to find those parcel numbers and tax identification numbers to then research present owners, to check previous owners all the way to the first owner. It was difficult to locate every building’s record of history, as most of the town’s historical documents were destroyed in the great fire of 1922. Many of the important, historical documents were lost and there were no additional, back-up copies at that point in time. To learn more about undocumented buildings, interviews with community members were carried out, as well, calls were made to listed building owners.

The history of Mount Dora begins in the late 1800s with the first settlements of the Simpson family, particularly David Simpson and his father, M.V. Simpson in 1874, and other significant figures such as J.P. Donnelly, who became the first mayor of Mount Dora. The town was officially established around 1884. The first railroad came through town in 1887 and it provided a major boost for the town’s lagging economy. The town automatically became a favorite winter destination for northern state residents looking for some warmth and recreational activities such as boating, fishing and hunting. Another attraction for tourists was the introduction of Chautauqua in the area. A movement which formed in New York, Chautauqua was a temporary traveling entertainment that came to Mount Dora offering music and education. Around the early 1900s the railroad depot was built, which introduced a greater influx of goods and visitors. President Calvin Coolidge and his family even spent the entire month of February 1930 vacationing in Mount Dora, at one of the local hotels, Lakeside Inn (Lake Inn at that time).

The Simpson family, a rather influential family involved in Mount Dora’s growth and development, had their settlements around the majority of present-day, downtown, historic Mount Dora. They were responsible for a significant amount of the infrastructure and development of the area, including the first bank, theatre, paving of the roads, etc. Before downtown became what it is today, it was once covered with the family’s citrus groves. The Simpson family heirs continue to own many of the buildings downtown, as well they still maintain several businesses.

Development continued and Mount Dora was eventually parceled out, becoming the town it continues to remain to this day. The Historic Society of Mount Dora has worked rather hard to preserve these buildings downtown as much as possible. They are becoming more rigid in the aspects of local preservation, so as to avoid the decay or loss of the historic and cultural fabric which distinguish Mount Dora from other towns.

Out of these 20 buildings surveyed, the majority, about 85%, were of a Masonry Vernacular style. Two were in a Spanish style and another was in a Mediterranean Revival style. There is a very high level of historical integrity within the area, due to the fact that the bulk of these buildings surveyed were almost all contributing buildings. Only a couple of these buildings were non-contributing, due to the fact they were built later in time or that they had been changed drastically from their original distinguishing form.

On average the surveyed buildings were in good condition. There were a few which have either been vacant for too long or just neglected with regards to proper maintenance. For the most part, these buildings are most likely attended to properly about once a year, or so it appears. There is a need for these owners or shopkeepers to provide more attention to the upkeep of these buildings, to avoid unnecessary damage or the loss of integrity because of disregard.

I believe downtown, Historic Mount Dora would be a great candidate for the National Register of Historic Places. There is enough history within the area, if regarded as a total entity of buildings. Considering some of these building’s necessary documents were unattainable, it could pose some complications. There were a few buildings which on their own seem likely candidates for individual listings on the Register, including the Old First National Bank of Mount Dora, Simpson Hotel and Rehbaum’s Hardware (Piglet’s Pantry). The other buildings have either changed too drastically from their original state or are lacking firm, historical significance.

Buildings:

#1 Mount Dora Center for the Arts, 138 E. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#2 116 E. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#3 112 E. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#4 M.V. Simpson Building, 450 E. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#5 448-432 N. Donnelly Street

#6 Donnelly Apartments, 428 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#7 Old Mt. Dora Topic Building, 418 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#8 404 N. Donnelly Street (Oliver Twist), Mount Dora, FL 32757

#9 Piglet’s Pantry (Rehbaum’s Hardware), 402 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#10 The Drawer (Crane’s Furniture Store), 403 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#11 The Mount Dora Hotel (Renaissance Building), 411-413 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#12 427 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#13 431 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#14 Simpson Bed & Breakfast, 441 N. Donnelly Street, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#15 Old First National Bank Building, 100 W. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#16 Simpson Hotel, 110 W. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#17 120 W. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#18 The Princess Theatre, 130 W. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#19 140 W. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

#20 Atkins Realty, 196 W. Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, FL 32757

References:

Barr, Melanie, Historic Resource Survey: Downtown Mount Dora, Florida, 1987.

Bland and Associates Inc., NHRP Documentation of Historic Resources in Mount Dora, 2009.

City of Mount Dora Historic Preservation Board, City of Mount Dora: Historic Design Guidelines Florida
Department of State: 2001).

Dworken, Steven (Realtor at Real Living Good Neighbor Realty), interview by author, 30 October 2013.

F.C. & P. Special Rates,” The Ocala Evening Star, 16 March 1900, Img. 3.

Glimpses of Mt. Dora: The Land of Sunshine and Flowers. (Mount Dora, FL: Lewis Printer).

Grantham, Shirley (Assistant VP, The First National Bank of Mount Dora), interview by author, Mount
Dora, Florida, 29 October 2013.

Green, Carolyn (Mount Dora Historical Society), interview by author, Mount Dora, Florida, 29 October
2013.

“History of Mount Dora,” Florida Back Roads Travel (Mike Miller), accessed 01 October 2013,
http://www.florida-backroads-travel.com/history-of-mount-dora.html.

Lake County Archives Department

Longstreet, Cornelius H., Cornelius Longstreet Diaries, 1886, 1894, 1897, 1898, 1899 (Mount Dora,
Florida: 1886, 1894, 1897, 1898, 1899).

“Mount Dora Historical Trail,” Steve Rajtar, accessed 28 September 2013,
http://www.reocities.com/krdvrg/hikeplans/mount_dora/planmountdora.html.

“Mount Dora Historical Buildings,” Bob Leonard, accessed 15 October 2013, http://www.bob-leonardflorida.
com/floridanabob/mount_dora_historical_buildings.htm.

Mt. Dora, Fla., Lakes and Hills. (Jacksonville, Fla.: Arnold Printing Company, 1919).

“Official Records Search,” Lake County Clerk of the Circuit Court, accessed 31 October 2013,
http://officialrecords.lakecountyclerk.org/acclaimweb/search?target=_blank.

Ormund Powers, “Mount Dora Owes Simpson Family Nod As Founders,” Orlando Sentinel, 28 September
2013, http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1999-04-14/news/9904130878_1_downtown-mount-doralongstreet-
james-simpson.

Simpson, Robert (grandson of James Simpson and great-grandson of M.V. Simpson), interview by
author, Mount Dora, Florida, 04 November 2013.

Sanborn Map Company, Mt. Dora, Lake County, Florida, 1920.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Aerial photographs of Lake County, 1941, 1947, 1953, 1958, 1966.

Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (W.T.C.U.), “Temperance Column,” The News-Herald, 09 October
1890, Pg. 2, Img. 2.

W.T. Bland Library Archives