ORIF Historic House Tour, Key West, March 13-14
Old Island Restoration Foundation closes its house tour season on Friday March 13th and Saturday March 14th with a tour that ask: “Real or Reproduction? IMPOSTORS AMONG US.”
The homes you see while strolling through the streets of the Historic District are not always what they seem. Not every structure has withstood the toll of time, nature, fire and neglect. See if you can distinguish the faux from the genuine…and those that are somewhere in-between!
Featured addresses:
208 Southard Street #9 – This one’s a “gimme” – located on a block occupied since 1870’s but now part of Truman Annex, a condo styled in a “Tiki Hut” motif is an obvious 1991 impersonator. Attached homes were rare during the historic era and a variety of conch cottages were long-ago demolished to make way for the Navy.
510 Frances Street – The plaque says c.1880, but grouped windows and an enclosed porch say 20th Century. Was it always two stories? When was it a two-unit building? This house’s many lives and multiple renovations put the “story” in history.
822 Georgia Street – This Gothic cottage boasts a Ceramic Star awarded by the Historic Florida Keys Foundation. Its wrap-around porch was partially enclosed in 2011 to make the home wheelchair-accessible. But does the house date from 1893 or 1983?
916 Eisenhower Drive – Is this the house built in the 1890’s at the far, bayfront corner of town? Did it actually survive the 1909 hurricane when it faced the fury of open water? Did fan dancer Sally Rand tread these floors? Is that a Ceramic Star at the door?
1213 Margaret Street – A massive building on a nearby corner confirms this was a cigar-making neighborhood. Newly-reconstructed to meet the demands of current-day Key West life, how much of a c. 1910 cigar-roller cottage remained after years of abuse and neglect?
The tour is scheduled for Friday & Saturday, March 13 & 14, from 10am to 4pm. Tickets are $30 and are available in advance. For credit card purchase, buy tickets online at www.oirf.org or call 305-294-9501. Tickets are also available for purchase by check or cash at: Capital Bank, (Old Town & North Roosevelt Branches in Key West; MM30.4, Big Pine; 2348 Overseas Highway, Marathon); Royal Furniture (3326 N. Roosevelt Blvd.), and the Oldest House (322 Duval Street). During tour hours, tickets will be sold at the featured houses – cash or check, please.