- Governor Martin House Rehabilitation

• Original Photos 1934-1935 •
• Existing Photos 1996 •
• New Photos •
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Public/Private Client: Public
Completion Date: March, 1997
Location: Tallahassee, Florida
Construction Cost: $420,000.00
Role in Project: Principal

Architect: MLD Architects, Inc.
Randy G. Lewis AIA Principal
Consultant: Tomlinson Peterson and Assoc.
J. Terry Peterson Project Manager

The Governor Martin House, located off of Lafayette Street, was built between 1929 and 1935. In 1996, the 5,000 square foot house was rehabilitated to provide space for the Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs. MLD Architects designed the rehabilitation project and prepared the construction documents. The construction management firm was Bass Construction.

Summary Statement:

Florida’s 24^th governor, John W. Martin House built his private residence, "Apalachee," between 1929 and 1934. The 5,000 square foot residence is located one-half mile from the Capitol, overlooking Lafayette Street. The original architect is unknown, but is speculated to have been M. Leo Elliot of Tampa. The exterior architecture is Georgian Revival. In contrast to the exterior the interior has the architectural character of a grand hunting lodge with heavy exposed timber trusses supporting the high vaulted great room ceiling, massive fireplaces, and dark stained cypress paneling. The building has been listed with the National Register of Historic Places since 1986.

The goals of this project were:

1. To stabilize and rehabilitate the building, which was rapidly deteriorating
2. To create office space for the Division of Cultural Affairs complying with Florida Accessibility Code
3. To create a facility to exhibit and honor Governor Martin and the work he completed while governor
4. To ensure the site, building and its history are accessible to the public.

All of these goals were met.

The exterior of the building was in good repair and had recently been reroofed. Exterior renovations were minimal, but included window repairs and weatherstripping, exterior door repair and replacement, protective awnings at both patios, and handicapped parking ramp with accessible route and entry to the building. It was obvious the interior was in severe disrepair, but the full extent of framing deterioration was not apparent until construction began.

Extensive termite damage was discovered during construction, which required replacement of much wood flooring and wall paneling. Other areas of flooring and paneling had been damaged in previous renovations. The original plank flooring and clear heart cypress wall paneling were put back where possible, although due to limited funds and the lack of matching material availability much of the damaged paneling and flooring could not be replicated. Clear pine was stained as closely as possible to the cypress paneling and used in inconspicuous locations. Much of the building has carpet stretched over padding to preserve the original flooring, which will be restored at a later date.

Installation of completely new heating, air conditioning, plumbing and electrical systems was carefully planned to be concealed and to avoid conflict with the historic aspects of the building.

The building site itself has great historical significance. According to the late Calvin Jones, archeologist for the Department of State, this site is the oldest permanent Spanish settlement in Florida, predating St. Augustine, and has become known as the deSoto Encampment Site. Hernando deSoto maintained a campsite at this location for four or five years. Exterior handicapped parking and ramp to the main building entry were carefully designed and constructed to cause the least impact on the archeologically significant site. During rehabilitation of the Governor Martin House Mr. Jones oversaw the archeological survey of all earth that was disturbed. Many small pieces of Spanish and Native American artifacts were recovered.