Mount Dora, sitting on a plateau overlooking Lakes Dora, Gertrude and Beauclair, has a fascinating heritage. Its early history is approximate. The town site was settled on the two hundred homestead acres of William and Annie Stone when they came about 1873. The town itself was born when David M. Simpson, his wife and 2 children came here in 1874. At first the settlement had no name but in 1880 it became Royellou, for Roy, Ella, and Tremain, the children of Ross Tremain, the first postmaster, in 1883.
In that same year, the town was renamed Mount Dora after the large, beautiful lake beside which the City rests. It also reflected the fact that the settlement sits atop one of the highest spots in Florida, a plateau 184 feet above sea level. The lake itself was given the name Dora in 1846 by federal surveyors to honor Ms. Dora Ann Drawdy (1819-1885) who homesteaded in the mid-1800s and befriended the surveyors with her warm hospitality. She lived with her husband 2 miles south of town. Mrs. Dawdy is buried in Umatilla, with a headstone that tells her name but doesn't mention her place in history.
In 1883, with the renaming of the town, the first hotel opened, The Alexander House, a 2 story hotel with 10 rooms. The first real estate sales office came in 1882, and the Mount Dora Hotel opened a year or so later. In 1884 Alexander and Rhodes opened the first store. In 1886 came C. M. Stowe grocery.
On March 25, 1910, the town was granted a charter with Captain J.P. Donnelly its first Mayor. At that time Mount Dora had a population of 371, with two general stores, a hardware store, drug store, livery stable, two churches and a town hall. Its first newspaper, the Mount Dora Voice, appeared in 1886. In 1891 R.C. Tremain and son built the first orange packing house, but the surrounding groves were all but destroyed by the 1894-1895 freeze.
More settlers came to the area after Ms. Drawdy, including Mr. Ross C. Tremain, the first postmaster, and Capt. John Philip Donnelly, and each proved crucial to the growing settlement's vitality.
A popular winter retreat for hunters, fishermen and boaters, The Alexander House opened in 1883 -- a two-story hotel with 10 rooms. The Alexander House was renamed The Lake House in 1893, and in 1903, The Lake House was renamed Lakeside Inn and remains in operation today. Visitors included Presidents Coolidge and Eisenhower, Thomas Edison, and Henry Ford. In 1887, the arrival of the railroad stimulated the local economy and carried tourists and freight.
Tremain opened the first orange packing house in 1891, although surrounding groves were destroyed by the great freezes of 1894 and '95. Also during the 1890s, fertilizer factories were established as well as a cannery.
The arrival of the railroad in 1887 stimulated the economy, carrying tourists and freight. A popular winter retreat for hunting, fishing and boating, The Alexander House would be renamed The Lake House in 1893. Mount Dora was incorporated in 1910, with a railway depot built in 1915.
R.C. Tremain & Son built the first orange packing house in 1891, although surrounding groves would be destroyed by the great freezes of 1894 and 1895. Box and fertilizer factories were established, as well as a cannery. In 1903, The Lake House was renamed Lakeside Inn, and remains in operation. Visitors included President Calvin Coolidge, Thomas Edison, Henry Ford and President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The John P. Donnelly House, a Queen Anne style landmark built in 1893 by the first mayor, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. The town today is noted for its crafts and antique shops. The 1981 movie Honky Tonk Freeway was filmed here.
In 1910, the town was granted a charter with Capt. John Philip Donnelly as its first Mayor. With 371 residents, Mount Dora boasted two general stores, a hardware store, a drugstore, two churches and a town hall. The Mount Dora Voice became the town's first newspaper.
Donnelly's home, a Queen Anne style structure, was originally built in 1893 and is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The early 1920s marked a significant boom in residential growth and business development, and Mount Dora began the transformation from a country town into a city.
During this time, Mount Dora began investing in its public infrastructure. Streetlights, a water system, curbs and paved roads were installed. The town's first two public parks, Gilbert Park and Donnelly Park, were created after landowners Earl Gilbert and J. P. Donnelly donated prime pieces of land downtown and along Lake Dora's shore.
The Mount Dora Community Building was built largely from funds raised by Mount Dora residents, despite economic hard times during the late '20s. A determined group of residents pulled together to raise the necessary funds, and in 1929, the impressive Mediterranean-style structure opened with one seat for every Mount Dora resident -- approximately 800. Since then, the building has served as the City's primary performance and meeting venue, and today, the building is slated for a comprehensive restoration.
The town of Mount Dora was eventually incorporated into a city in 1953 and has experienced growth since that time. Today, Mount Dora is home to more than 10,000. The City retains the flavor of a small town with many historic buildings, its large canopy oak trees and is known for its variety of antique and specialty shops and numerous special events throughout the year.
Eight major annual events including the Mount Dora Arts Festival, an antique boat show, antique car show, sailing regatta, golf tournament, bicycle festival, crafts fair and the annual Christmas lighting festival draw thousands of visitors. An interesting trivia fact: The 1981 film Honky Tonk Freeway was filmed in Mount Dora, and many Mount Dora buildings were temporarily painted pink for the film's set.
Then, in March 1993 the "Storm of the Century" ripped into Mount Dora, killed two people, injured dozens, felled trees and damaged buildings. However a full recovery was made and few scars remain. Today, Mount Dora is a still-growing City with a flair for the arts, and the City remains a popular tourist destination.
The charming, heirloom town of Mount Dora owes its genteel development to Lakeside Inn. They grew up together and remain inseparable in the minds of the townspeople. Throughout the Lakeside estate, the names of Mount Dora pioneers echo through the decades -- a postmaster named Tremain, a homesteader named Dora, an inventor named Edgerton, a president named Coolidge.
In the early 1880s, the wee town of Royellou consisted of little more than a post office. Its postmaster, Ross Tremain, named the lakeside outpost after his three children, Roy, Ella and Louis. The sixteen families who lived along Lake Dora, named for the area's first homesteader, decided Royallou needed a hotel. When the town's name changed to Mount Dora -- the "mount" part for its dizzying height (for Florida) of 184 feet above sea level - town father John Alexander entered into a partnership with Annie MacDonald Stone Donnelly, her husband John P. Donnelly, and Colonel John A. McDonald. They opened Alexander House in 1883, which still stands as Lakeside Inn's most historic building.
The first guests of the two-story, 10-room Alexander House were intrepid sports enthusiasts who arrived by a series of long boat trips from the cold north. For the most adventurous of the guests, snake hunts were organized, but most guests were content with the superb lake fishing. The ladies, attired in the long dresses of the day's fashion, enjoyed picnics with fresh orange juice, considered a delicacy at the time.
In 1893, the Inn was sold to Miss Emma Boone who changed its name to Lake House. Charles Edgerton, who would soon have a major influence on the Inn's growth, visited Mount Dora with his family from Philadelphia every year. They fell in love with Lake House and its new wrap-around verandah, everyone's favorite meeting spot, where guests relaxed "on tilted chairs and puffed their cigars." Eventually the railroad brought the Edgertons and other visitors right to the Inn's back door. The Inn's trusty porter, Old Jim, met the trains with a handcart and pulled their trunks up the hill to the hotel. In 1903, Lake House was renamed Lakeside Inn by Emma Boone and her new husband George D. Thayer
During the 1920s, the Gatsby Era was in full swing and Lakeside Inn enjoyed its heyday despite Prohibition. Rumor has it that Lakeside served as a speak-easy. A trap door at the base of the lobby's reception desk stirs speculation of the Inn's clandestine past. Lake Dora's reputation as a boating mecca was no secret, however, to anyone who knew Mount Dora back then, and drew many anglers and boaters from points north. The annual sailing regatta and antique boat show are testament to the town's boating tradition.
In 1924, Charles Edgerton bought Lakeside Inn and remained its owner for the next 55 years. He and his partners built an Olympic-sized swimming pool and two new guest house buildings named The Gables and The Terrace. In 1930, President Calvin Coolidge dedicated the new buildings during his month of post-retirement relaxation at Lakeside Inn with his wife.
The Edgertons entertained governors, senators, and such illuminati as Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, and Dwight D. Eisenhower. Charles' son Richard eventually took over ownership and the family continued to contribute both to the growth of the city and its anchor, Lakeside Inn.
In 1979, during Edgerton's last year as owner, the Inn closed down for the winter season for the filming of Honky Tonk Freeway, a John Schlesinger picture (Midnight Cowboy, Marathon Man). The Inn was painted pink for the occasion and an Indian elephant was shipped in and taught to water-ski on Lake Dora.
After Richard Edgerton's retirement, rumors swirled that Lakeside Inn would be demolished. He came to its defense, saying, "Mount Dora desperately needs the Inn to be open. It performed a vital function in bringing families of substance to live here and help form Mount Dora's present quality of life."
Lakeside Inn dodged the wrecking ball to survive as one of Florida's few historic wooden hotels and as the heart of its community. With such a glamorous backdrop and relaxed atmosphere, guests wouldn't be out of place here in spats ... or flip-flops. Here is Florida at its roots, a place where play and relaxation never went out of style.
Leesburg was first settled in 1857 by Evander McIver Lee. Several of Evander Lee's brothers followed him to the area. One of these brothers, Calvin Lee, was credited with giving the town its name. The city of Leesburg was first incorporated in 1875, and was the county seat of Sumter County for a time until Lake County was formed in 1887.
In the early 20th century, Leesburg was an important center for watermelon production. In 1930, Leesburg held its first Watermelon Festival, an annual tradition that would last until watermelon production in the area dwindled to the point that watermelons for the last festival had to be brought in from outside the area.
In 1938, the WPA began work on the Venetian Gardens waterside park, on the shores of Lake Harris. The canals and gardens of this park have been a centerpiece of the community ever since.
The citrus industry was the principal business in Leesburg for many years, until devastating freezes in December 1983 and January 1985 persuaded growers to move their groves further down the Florida peninsula.
Today, most of Leesburg's growth and economic development is the result of the increasing popularity of the area as a retirement destination and the rapid growth of nearby Orlando.
Leesburg is Lake County’s oldest city and at one time was the county seat while a part of Sumter County. The city claimed 1857 as its birthday when Leesburg celebrated its centennial in 1957, recognizing the year that the city’s namesake, Evander Lee, and his family came to the area.
While Lee became the area’s first permanent settler, Thomas Robertson and his 21-year-old son, John Marmaduke Robertson came to what would become Leesburg in 1843, or likely a year sooner. They lived in what would become the heart of Leesburg for 11 years before Thomas sold out and moved back to Moss Bluff. John later sold his property and founded the nearby community of Whitney.
Evander Lee moved to the area in 1857, a year after his father died. They had moved to Adamsville from Alabama in 1849. Evander McIver Lee brought with him his wife Susan and eight children. He purchased the old Thomas Robertson homestead from James Fussell for $3,300. Several Lee brothers also joined Evander, and his brother, Calvin Lee, is credited with giving Leesburg its name. Calvin and Evander had built a log store on Main Street where the public restroom is now located. When Calvin went on a buying trip to New York City and was asked where to ship the merchandise, he reportedly told his suppliers to bill his goods to "Leesburg."
Here are a few important dates in Leesburg history:
· July 12, 1875 - The city was incorporated about a dozen years before Lake County was formed from portions of Sumter and Orange counties.
· 1922 - The city changed its form of government when the new City Charter established a City Commission.
· 1926 - The present City Hall was built.
· 1930 - The first Watermelon Festival was held.
· 1938 - Work on Venetian Gardens was started as a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project.