SPRING HOUSE AND FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT

Spring House is a gem of architecture in need of some good friends and TLC.  The Spring House Institute is a nonprofit started by the family that has owned the home since its debut in 1952.  They hope to raise sufficient funds to restore the house and turn it into a cultural center.  It was originally built on 10 acres of a former pecan grove, and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places way back in 1979.  It is considered one of Florida's Top 100 Buildings by the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation. 

Frank Lloyd Wright designed the home in what he called a "hemicycle".  It is 2300 square feet, and is a semi-circle shape.  When you first see it, you normally think it's a ship that ended up in a grove of trees.  Wright designed about 500 homes, but only 10 were in the hemicycle style.  The Spring House is the only house Wright designed in Florida.  He designed the campus of Florida Southern College in Lakeland.  His buildings there are still in use, and magnificent examples of his style of architecture.

Spring House is one of a kind, and members of the Institute hope that people in our state and community will help save the home.  They envision it as a tourism draw, and also kind of a conference center.  It is a work of art and history whose current taxable value is way below the estimate for rehabilitating the home.

For additional information contact  www.preservespringhouse.org