Florida Homestead
My grandparent's home, purchased in the early 1940s sported large porches cooled by the river breezes, two floors, high beamed ceilings, a basement, and a maze of attic cubby holes. The house it self was constructed mainly of wood and coquina rock.
The house, located at 104 S. Beach St., was built around the turn of the century and has quite an interesting past. It was once owned by a man who ran a school for boxing, and when we were children exploring the maze we found not only pairs of old boxing gloves but also a treasure of intricately carved bottles, which is another part of its history. Behind the main house stood a garage apartment guest house. In the basement were large vats for distilling whiskey which was then piped underground and up into large drums in the garage of the guest house.
My grandmother's house still stands thanks in large part to the work of Rev Dorsey Smith and his successful efforts to have it placed on the Register of Historic Places. Rev. Smith purchased the home after the death of my grandmother Edna Owsley Hill in 1970.
Copyright © Milancie Hill Adams 1998
