Lightner Museum
Now this is a museum. Henry Flagler’s opulent Gilded Age-era Spanish Renaissance-style Alcazar Hotel, built in 1889, closed during the Depression and stayed vacant until Chicago publishing magnate Otto C. Lightner bought the building in 1948 to house his vast collection of Victoriana.
The building is an attraction in itself (the lobby looks exactly as it did back in the 1800s) and makes a gorgeous museum, centering on a palm-planted courtyard with an arched stone bridge spanning a fishpond. The first floor houses a Victorian village, with shop fronts representing emporiums selling period wares. The Victorian Science and Industry Room displays shells, rocks, and Native American artifacts in beautiful turn-of-the-20th-century cases. Other exhibits include stuffed birds, an Egyptian mummy, steam-engine models, hair art, Russian baths, and a lion that belonged to Winston Churchill. Yes, it’s a strange amalgamation for a museum, but there’s sure to be something you’re interested in here. Lightner aptly described it all as a “collection of collections.” Plan to spend about 90 minutes exploring, and be sure to be here at 11am or 2pm, when a room of automated musical instruments erupts into concerts of period music. Check out the cafe too, housed in what used to be the hotel’s pool (back in 1889 it was the world’s largest).
The imposing building across King Street was Henry Flagler’s rival resort, the Ponce de León Hotel. It now houses Flagler College, which runs superb hourlong tours daily (at 10am and 2pm) from the rotunda at 74 King St. Visitors take in the building’s magnificent Tiffany stained-glass windows, its ornate Spanish Renaissance architecture, and gold-leafed Maynard murals. Tours are $17 per person.
Across Cordova Street stands another beaut, the 1888 Casa Monica Hotel.
Now this is a museum. Henry Flagler’s opulent Gilded Age-era Spanish Renaissance-style Alcazar Hotel, built in 1889, closed during the Depression and stayed vacant until Chicago publishing magnate Otto C. Lightner bought the building in 1948 to house his vast collection of Victoriana.
The building is an attraction in itself (the lobby looks exactly as it did back in the 1800s) and makes a gorgeous museum, centering on a palm-planted courtyard with an arched stone bridge spanning a fishpond. The first floor houses a Victorian village, with shop fronts representing emporiums selling period wares. The Victorian Science and Industry Room displays shells, rocks, and Native American artifacts in beautiful turn-of-the-20th-century cases. Other exhibits include stuffed birds, an Egyptian mummy, steam-engine models, hair art, Russian baths, and a lion that belonged to Winston Churchill. Yes, it’s a strange amalgamation for a museum, but there’s sure to be something you’re interested in here. Lightner aptly described it all as a “collection of collections.” Plan to spend about 90 minutes exploring, and be sure to be here at 11am or 2pm, when a room of automated musical instruments erupts into concerts of period music. Check out the cafe too, housed in what used to be the hotel’s pool (back in 1889 it was the world’s largest).
The imposing building across King Street was Henry Flagler’s rival resort, the Ponce de León Hotel. It now houses Flagler College, which runs superb hourlong tours daily (at 10am and 2pm) from the rotunda at 74 King St. Visitors take in the building’s magnificent Tiffany stained-glass windows, its ornate Spanish Renaissance architecture, and gold-leafed Maynard murals. Tours are $17 per person.
Across Cordova Street stands another beaut, the 1888 Casa Monica Hotel.
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