History walks and talks at the Knott House Museum on Park Avenue in downtown Tallahassee.
Knott House Museum has ties to the Civil War
Built in 1843 by a free black builder named George Proctor the house in 1865 served as a temporary Union headquarters.
On May 20, 1865 Brigadier General Edward McCook stood on the front steps and read the Emancipation Proclamation.
Emancipation Day is celebrated every year in May with a reading of the Proclamation from the Knott House steps, live music and a free picnic at Lewis Park.
A roll call of famous people lived in the house over the years including three Supreme Court judges, an attorney, and a physician and finally, in 1928, the state treasurer William Knott and his wife Luella bought the house.
Naturally there were parties, lots of parties. Luella hosted the social functions and got a chance to show off her flair for writing poetry.
Remember this is the age before e books, Twitter and Facebook, yet Luella came up with a creative way to share her thoughts with others.
All throughout the house she attached poems about the home to its various furnishings – chairs, table legs, lamps and mantles. She is long gone but still the gracious hostess, her sweet creativity reaching out to house visitors.
When the Knott’s son died in 1985 the Historic Tallahassee Preservation Board received the home and in 1997 the Knott House was transferred to the Museum of Florida History.
Guided tours are given on Wednesday through Friday and also Saturday. Do check times the museum is open. Admission is free. Trip Advisor rates the Knott House No. 7 out of 32 Tallahassee attractions.
If you like your history up close and personal then visiting historic houses is a good fit, it lets you step back in time and feel connected. Here are more possibilities:
At Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings house in Cross Creek where she lived, worked and wrote prize-winning novels, a small manual typewriter similar to the one she used, sits atop a round table on the front porch. It is easy to imagine Marjorie sipping her morning coffee; putting in a piece of paper and writing about this place she loved. Marjorie said: “I do not understand how anyone can live without some small place of enchantment to turn to.”
Admission is $3 per group in one vehicle to this state park. You can walk around the house and grounds anytime but the house itself is only open for guided tours and special events. See Web site (above) for times. Tour cost: $3 per adult, $2 for children ages 6 to 12, children 5 and under admitted free.
In Fort Myers, the Edison & Ford Winter Estates have historic buildings, gardens and the Edison Botanic Research Lab and Estates Museum
Inside the homes the rooms are roped off but you can see inside at the slice of life these winter visitors enjoyed.
Guided and self-guided tours with audio wands given. Check times. Admission prices vary by the type of tour chosen. The complete estates tour, for example, includes orientation, audio tour, lab and museum for $20 for adults, $11 for children ages 6-12 and children age 5 and under admitted free.
The Ernest Hemingway Home & Museum in Key West reflects Hemingway’s life as he lived here for more than ten years. Six-toed cats, some of them descendents of the ones he kept, still live here.
Admission (which includes a 30-minute guided tour) is $12.50 for adults, $6 for children and children under the age of 5 admitted free.
The Orman House Historic State Park in Apalachicola has plenty of stories to tell and park rangers do a vibrant history presentation of the home built in 1838. Admission is $2 per person, museum admission free.
UPCOMING
Lucy’s new eco gardening book “Florida Gardens Gone Wild” is a Kindle and Nook e book and now the book has blossomed into print. This is not your typical gardening “how to” but rather a green primer on discovering the connections between you, me, butterflies and milkweed for starters.
Two upcoming book signing events in Ocala:
Friday, Oct. 7 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Primary Oven bakery and handmade café, 128 SW Broadway, downtown Ocala. There will be complimentary wine and tapas by Kelley.
Lucy will sign books and everyone who buys a book receives a decorated terra cotta pot of their choice while supplies last.
Sunday, Oct. 23 from noon to 4 p.m., a book signing at Chelsea Coffee Company, 3217 Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala. Complimentary coffee and cookies will be served. Demonstration of e book on Nook and Kindle, print books for sale, author signing plus free terra cotta pots for all who buy books.
Questions? Contact Lucy at her e-mail: mailto:[email protected]
MORE TO EXPLORE
Florida’s outdoor coolest spots for summer