Florida’s historic mansions tell a story of rapid growth, bold architectural experiments, and the fortunes that shaped the state. These homes, built by industrialists, citrus magnates, and railroad barons, reflect their eras and the people who shaped them. Each mansion, from Mediterranean Revival to Neoclassical, carries its own distinctive character.
Whitehall in Palm Beach, designed by Henry Flagler, is a Gilded Age icon blending Beaux-Arts formality with Floridian flair. Miami’s Vizcaya offers a different take, with its Mediterranean Revival style and lush gardens that mirror the Italian coast. Florida’s architectural diversity is key. Moorish influences pop up alongside Spanish Revival courtyards, while Art Deco mansions in Miami Beach showcase 20th-century innovation.
Unlike the symmetrical estates of the North, Florida’s mansions reflect a looser, more eclectic approach, often tailored to their tropical surroundings. These estates serve as reminders of Florida’s transformation from swamps and frontier towns into a playground for the wealthy.
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15. Wardlaw-Smith House – Madison
The Wardlaw-Smith House, built in 1860, is a straightforward yet striking example of Greek Revival architecture. Its design is all about balance and symmetry, with Doric columns supporting a no-nonsense portico that stretches across the front. The clapboard exterior is unadorned but effective. Inside, the layout follows a central hall plan, a practical choice for Florida’s heat, allowing for better airflow. High ceilings and tall, multi-paned windows amplify the sense of space while letting in natural light. The details are understated but refined: carved wood mantels on the fireplaces, subtle crown moldings, and sturdy pine floors. Constructed by Benjamin F. Wardlaw, a cotton planter, the house took on new roles during the Civil War, serving as a Confederate hospital.
14. El Retiro – Lake Wales
El Retiro, also known as Pinewood Estate, sits elegantly amidst the lush Bok Tower Gardens in Lake Wales, Florida. Built in 1930 for Charles Austin Buck, a vice president at Bethlehem Steel, this Mediterranean Revival mansion reflects the era’s fascination with European styles. Designed by architect Charles R. Wait, the house boasts stucco walls, a red barrel-tile roof, and a series of intricate wrought iron details. Massive carved wooden doors lead to rooms lined with Cuban tiles, hand-stenciled ceilings, and decorative plasterwork. Surrounding the home, the gardens, designed by landscape architect William Lyman Phillips, create a connection between the built and natural environment. The grounds feature terraces, fountains, and a meandering path shaded by native plants. In 1970, the mansion became part of Bok Tower Gardens, preserving its architectural splendor for future generations.
13. Howey Mansion – Howey-in-the-Hills
The Howey Mansion, located in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida, is a great example of the Mediterranean Revival architecture that appeared during the state’s land boom era. Built in 1925 for citrus magnate William J. Howey, the residence was designed by architect Katherine Cotheal Budd, one of the few prominent women architects at the time. The mansion’s 20 rooms are framed by stucco walls, red tile roofing, and elegant wrought iron detailing. The symmetrical façade is punctuated by arched windows and doorways, giving it a refined yet approachable appearance. Inside, high ceilings, original hand-painted tiles, and a sweeping grand staircase showcase a commitment to craftsmanship and detail. The estate’s grounds once hosted lush citrus groves and were designed to complement the grandeur of the house. Fountains, stone pathways, and expansive lawns remain integral to its aesthetic appeal. In its heyday, the mansion was the site of glamorous parties attended by Florida’s elite. After falling into disrepair, the Howey Mansion has been meticulously restored, reaffirming its place as a cornerstone of Florida’s architectural and cultural heritage.
12. William Kimbrough Pendleton House – Eustis
The William Kimbrough Pendleton House, located in Eustis, Florida, combines elements of Classical Revival and vernacular design. Built in 1876, the two-story home is defined by its symmetrical façade and commanding front porch, supported by robust Doric columns. A hipped roof crowns the building, punctuated by dormer windows that provide both light and a touch of visual interest. The clapboard siding, painted in soft tones, harmonizes with the surroundings, while large, double-hung sash windows allow for cross-ventilation — an essential feature in the pre-air-conditioning South. Pendleton, a leader in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and president of Bethany College in West Virginia, retired to Florida and built the house as a personal retreat.
11. Stetson Mansion – DeLand
The Stetson Mansion in DeLand, Florida, is a striking blend of Gilded Age elegance and frontier ambition. Built in 1886 for hat magnate John B. Stetson, the mansion is one of the earliest examples of luxury homes in Florida, combining elements of High Victorian, Moorish, and Gothic Revival styles. Architects George T. Pearson and John H. Pearson designed the estate with an eye for detail that borders on the obsessive. The exterior features elaborate woodwork and polychromatic brick patterns. The interior features hand-carved staircase balustrades, intricate parquet floors in 16 different patterns, and custom windows crafted by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The mansion also boasts advanced technology for its time, including electric lighting courtesy of Thomas Edison, a close friend of Stetson. Set on ten acres, the estate was once surrounded by orange groves.
10. Bonnet House – Fort Lauderdale
The Bonnet House in Fort Lauderdale is a vibrant fusion of Caribbean plantation architecture and whimsical artistic touches, designed as a tropical retreat for Frederic Clay Bartlett and his wife, Helen Louise Birch. Constructed in 1920, the estate stands on 35 acres of lush coastal land, blending its breezy, open-plan layout with the surrounding landscape. The house was named for the bonnet lily, which thrives in the lagoon at the heart of the property. Architecturally, the Bonnet House prioritizes ventilation and light, with wide porches, open loggias, and a central courtyard brimming with tropical foliage. Painted in sunny yellows and blues, the structure has a casual yet sophisticated charm, further enhanced by coral stone accents and decorative ironwork. The interior is equally eclectic, showcasing Bartlett’s artistic talents in hand-painted murals, quirky furnishings, and an assortment of collected artifacts. The grounds include orchid-filled gardens, a bamboo forest, and a lagoon.
9. Mar-a-Lago – Palm Beach
Mar-a-Lago, built in 1927 by cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post, is a sprawling 126-room estate designed by Marion Sims Wyeth with interiors by Joseph Urban. Perched between the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Worth Lagoon, its name aptly means “Sea-to-Lake.” The estate is an unapologetic mix of Mediterranean Revival and Spanish influences, with coquina stone facades, coral accents, and a 75-foot tower that nods to Moorish architecture. The dining room’s 36-foot-high ceilings are adorned with frescoes, while Venetian chandeliers and imported European furniture fill the spaces with grandeur. Post envisioned Mar-a-Lago as a seasonal retreat for the elite, complete with formal gardens, intricately tiled courtyards, and spaces designed for large social gatherings. Donald Trump purchased the property in 1985 and converted it into a private club in 1994. While its function has evolved, much of its original design remains intact. The estate’s lavish ballrooms, sprawling grounds, and historic elements have ensured its continued role as a cultural and political landmark.
8. The Casements – Ormond Beach
The Casements, a Mediterranean Revival gem in Ormond Beach, Florida, became John D. Rockefeller Sr.’s winter refuge. Built in 1913, the mansion’s cream stucco walls, red tile roof, and arched windows give it a relaxed elegance. Purchased by Rockefeller in 1918, the house features soaring ceilings, exposed wood beams, and wide, airy rooms. The gardens around The Casements were meticulously planned, with palms and magnolias forming a lush canopy.
7. Anderson-Frank House – Tampa
The Anderson-Frank House in Tampa, Florida, is a textbook example of Colonial Revival architecture, built in 1898. Its red brick exterior is paired with white accents and symmetrical proportions. The façade is dominated by a two-story portico supported by Ionic columns, which frame the central entryway. Large, evenly spaced windows are crowned with lintels, allowing natural light to flood the interior while maintaining the home’s symmetry. A steeply pitched, hipped roof, punctuated by dormers, adds a vertical dimension without overwhelming the overall design. Originally built for Josiah and Sarah Anderson, prominent figures in Tampa’s early development, the house was later acquired by Judge Frank and his family, cementing its place as a landmark of local history. Inside, wood-paneled walls and intricate moldings showcase craftsmanship typical of the era, while the layout emphasizes both grand entertaining spaces and private family quarters.
6. Gilmer-Heitman House – Fort Myers
The Gilmer-Heitman House in Fort Myers, Florida, is a charming example of early 20th-century architectural trends blending Queen Anne and Craftsman influences. Built in 1908, its design balances ornate detail with a more grounded, functional aesthetic, making it a standout in the historic downtown area. The house’s asymmetrical façade features a wide wraparound porch supported by tapered wooden columns on brick piers. A hipped roof with gabled projections adds depth, while decorative wood shingles in the upper story nod to the Queen Anne style’s flair for intricate detailing. The double-hung sash windows, paired with multi-paned transoms, provide both ventilation and elegance, practical for Florida’s climate. Commissioned by local businessman Harvie Gilmer, the house later became associated with the Heitman family, prominent figures in Fort Myers’ development during its early boom years. The home’s interior boasts original hardwood floors and high ceilings, with an open floor plan designed for entertaining.
5. Gamble Mansion – Ellenton
The Gamble Mansion in Ellenton, Florida, is an exercise in contradictions. Built between 1845 and 1850, it stands as a hulking reminder of the pre-Civil War South, a time of vast plantations and architectural excess cloaking darker truths. The mansion’s Greek Revival style feels oddly out of place against the subtropical Florida landscape, its stucco-covered brick walls and Doric columns exuding a kind of stubborn permanence in an environment that thrives on impermanence. The house was designed as the headquarters of a sugar plantation, its wide verandas providing relief from the oppressive heat while the thick walls worked overtime to keep the interior cool. There’s no mistaking its role in history: this was a working plantation house, its grandeur directly tied to the labor of enslaved people. It later became a refuge for Confederate Secretary of State Judah P. Benjamin during his flight from Union forces — a footnote that only adds to its complicated legacy.
4. Deering Estate – Miami
The Deering Estate in Miami is a textbook case of architecture playing dress-up. Built between 1913 and 1922 for Charles Deering, a wealthy industrialist with an eye for the grandiose, the estate fuses Mediterranean Revival and Florida vernacular styles with a kind of shameless theatricality. It’s a monument to wealth’s ability to transport European architectural ideals across the Atlantic, plopping them into the subtropics with little regard for context beyond aesthetics. The estate’s crown jewel is the Stone House, a limestone monolith that looks like it could have been airlifted from a Spanish coastal village. Its heavy, fortress-like appearance belies its role as a high-society retreat, a place where Deering entertained Miami’s elite in the shade of its loggias. Not to be overlooked is the Richmond Cottage, an earlier wooden structure on the site, which brings a dash of local flavor to the estate’s otherwise imported personality. What sets the Deering Estate apart is its deliberate interplay with the environment. The grounds include sprawling mangroves and a glimpse of Biscayne Bay, but even this nod to nature feels curated, like a museum exhibit. It’s a reminder that architecture, especially at this scale, often seeks to control its surroundings, rather than exist within them. The result? A stunning but slightly absurd mashup of European romanticism and Floridian pragmatism.
3. Whitehall (Henry Flagler Museum) – Palm Beach
Whitehall, built in 1902 by railroad tycoon Henry Flagler, is Palm Beach’s Beaux-Arts heavyweight. Designed by Carrère and Hastings, the mansion has 75 rooms spread across a sprawling layout. With its massive columns, symmetrical wings, and monumental portico, the exterior could easily be mistaken for a European palace that took a detour to Florida. Step inside, and you’re greeted by polished marble, carved woodwork, and ceilings painted to impress. The Grand Hall is pure theater — an open space designed for high society to see and be seen. Flagler spared no expense, importing materials and artisans to ensure his winter retreat was as ornate as it was functional.
2. Villa Vizcaya – Miami
Villa Vizcaya, built between 1914 and 1922, is Miami’s Mediterranean Revival masterpiece. Commissioned by industrialist James Deering, the villa was designed by architect F. Burrall Hoffman, with gardens by Diego Suarez, and interiors overseen by Paul Chalfin. The main house features a blend of Italianate and Baroque influences, with loggias, courtyards, and sweeping terraces that feel as theatrical as they are grand. Its façade, made of pale stucco and adorned with classical detailing, opens onto Biscayne Bay, providing postcard-worthy views that double as a cooling breeze for Miami’s heat. The interiors are no less ambitious with intricately carved ceilings, 15th-century fireplaces, and antique furnishings. But it’s the gardens that steal the show. With geometrically arranged parterres, fountains, and whimsical grottoes, they are an homage to European formal landscapes, adapted with tropical flora. The overall effect is less stuffy manor house and more artful fantasy. Villa Vizcaya is a rare example of how architecture can blend the old world with the new, offering a Miami address to European grandeur.
1. Ca’ d’Zan – Sarasota
Ca’ d’Zan is a surreal homage to Venetian Gothic architecture planted firmly on Florida’s Sarasota Bay. Built in 1926 for circus magnate John Ringling and his wife Mable, the mansion was inspired by the couple’s love for Venice — a city they frequented and admired for its artistic and architectural legacy. Architect Dwight James Baum translated their vision into a five-story confection of arches, terraces, and towers that recalls the Doge’s Palace but with a Floridian twist. Its exterior, clad in terra-cotta and stucco, is banded with vibrant pinks and golds, mirroring Sarasota’s sunsets. The intricate windows and tile mosaics are steeped in Venetian charm, while the 82-foot tower offers panoramic views of the bay. The interior features a 30-foot-tall living room with a ceiling painted to resemble an Italian Renaissance palazzo. Murano glass chandeliers, antique furnishings, and marble floors complete the picture of Ca’ d’Zan, an eccentric and theatrical dream house.
