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Tourism in Central Florida began during the 1880's when the South Florida Railroad connected Sanford with Orlando. By 1886, direct rail service from the North brought wealthy winter tourists to luxury hotels and private winter "cottages' throughout the area. In front of you and on your left are the only survivors of these wooden hotels and "cottages."
To attract attention to his new town, Mr. Henck, Longwood's founder, built the rambling three story Longwood Hotel in plain view of travelers on the railroad line. Over the years, various owners renamed it the Waltham, and the St. George. During the Roaring Twenties it was called the Orange and Black and was known throughout the area as "the place to be" on a Saturday night.
In 1972, local resident Mrs. Robert Bradford purchased the
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hotel and called it The Village Inn. In the 1980's, it was restored again and equipped as a modern office building. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Also on the National Register of Historic Places, the building to your right is the Bradley/McIntyre House. It was built in 1887 in the Boston winter enclave of Altamonte Springs five miles south of here and was a private winter "cottage" for the wealthy Boston architect Nathaniel bradley. It served as the residence of Mr. and Mrs. S.M. McIntyre for 40 years.
Expensive to maintain, it fell into disrepair in the 1960s. In 1973, the house became the property of the Central Florida Society for Historic Preservation and was moved to this current location. It was restored and furnished in the late Victorian Style.
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