Lavender house, also known as Hermann V. Von Holst House is a private residence on the U.S…read more National Register of Historic Places in the historic old Floresta neighborhood in Boca Raton. It is located on 875 Alamanda Street. The neighborhood the house is in was initially designed by Addison Mizner but he went broke in 1926. Chicago Prairie School architect Hermann V. Von Holst along with partners purchased the development and he finished building the houses. Lavender House was the residence Holst built for himself. He went on to serve on the Boca Raton City Council from 1934 to 1948 and the planning board from 1940 to 1953. Although you can't tour this house it's worth driving through this beautiful historic neighborhood. It looks like the current owners embrace the history of their home as it is beautifully kept. They occasionally post pictures of the interior on their Facebook page dedicated to the home.

I visited the Coral Springs Museum of History for a monthly 'Conversation with the City…read moreHistorian'. The topic March 2026 was Electra Lab homes. A partnership between Coral Ridge properties and Westinghouse Electric created three homes of the future to entice future residents to move to Coral Springs. The museum itself is a small building that was originally built in 1964 as a sales office. The building along with the covered bridge also in Coral Springs, are Florida Heritage sites. The small museum located in Mullins Park houses a collection of historic Coral Springs, papers and photos as well as original mailboxes. It was clear to me that the museum is curated and maintained with love. The Coral Springs Museum of History is truly a hidden jam

This is the structure where much of Coral Springs history, going back to Coral Ridge Properties,…read moreall began. This building now rests in Mullins park where it houses a small collection of Coral Springs artifacts. Original city hall post office boxes, Indian relics, newspaper clippings, high school uniforms and an interactive history challenge known as "Sunny" are here. The City celebrates its birthday each year on July 10th. On July 10, 2025 (today) the city turns 62-years-old so there are tours led by members of the Coral Springs Historic Advisory Committee. Located in Mullins Park next to the community pool.

Nice, interesting little park with a few descriptive signs. If you are riding the Water Taxi, it's…read morea great place to spend time while you are waiting for the next boat.

I've been here several times. I didn't realize it, but the last time was exactly 5 years ago in…read moreJuly 2014. This was shortly after it had been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. At the time it was only the 2nd place in Pompano listed. For some reason, my review wasn't listed in Yelp at the time. Since I was first here, the trees have grown and the lawns have become lush and green. One of the newer plaques lists the various trees planted here in memoriam. They were all donated. It is within view of the intracoastal waterway. This is what I wrote about it before -- all still true: This prehistoric Indian Mound Park honors the ancestors of the Tequesta Indians who used to bury the bones of their ancestors all together in large piles. It is now covered with grass and in the middle of the mound is a small pedestal with a plaque on it saying that it was created as a ceremonial burial place about 1300 AD. Surrounding the green grassy hill and central plaque is a small path and a couple benches. In front of the benches, there are pedestals with more information about the Mound. One embedded plaque (looks original) on the ground indicates it is also a bird sanctuary. The large leafy trees make it a shady spot for reflection and rest. There have never been any other people there when I've visited. Parking is limited nearby. There are a few spaces along the street parallel to the intracoastal.

Stuart and William L. Kester were originally from West Virginia. They came to Pompano to pursue…read morefishing in the 1920's and in 1937 built the wood frame bungalows that they called "pepper crates" in Pompano and Deerfield Beach. Since they were inexpensive to build soon everyone was constructing them for residents and visitors alike. They were constructed of Dade County pine and had indoor plumbing and running water. They measured 25 feet by 35 feet. Some had a beach view and ranged from one to three bedrooms. At their height of popularity there were 150 of them. All of the cottages were white with playing card suites cut of out their shutters. Houses cost under a thousand dollars to build and you could rent one for as little as $29 a month. I wish you could still get beach front property for that amount. The two Kester cottages owned by the Pompano Beach Historical Society were donated to them by Kester's nephew Stewart. They were moved from their original location to Founders Park behind the Historical Society building. Usually they are locked up but they open them for tours when they do the once a month historical trolley tour. The next time the cottages will be open is on January 12 from 9 to 10 AM. The cottages are filled with historical items from Pompano Beach's history. If you can't tour them they have a wonderful 3-D virtual tour on the website they have have set up for the cottages. One other Kester cottage remains on the grounds of the Butler House in Deerfield Beach.

Flamingo Gardens is one of our favorite places in South Florida. Honestly, I'd even call it a…read morepeacock garden because there are so many of them wandering freely throughout the property. I especially love visiting during the winter months when the weather is cooler. It's the perfect time to slow down, enjoy the beautiful scenery, and have a little picnic with the kids. There are plenty of peaceful spots to sit, relax, and watch the peacocks walking around. The grounds are always clean, and the staff is friendly and welcoming. When you buy your tickets, you can also purchase bird food. We fed both the flamingos and the peacocks, and while it was a fun experience, here's my little tip--don't feed the peacocks from your hand unless you're ready for a pretty strong peck! I learned that one the hard way. There is also a small café, guided tram tours, and on weekends they often have live music, especially in the evenings or during holiday events. Around Christmas, the gardens are beautifully decorated with lights, making the whole place feel even more magical. If you're looking for a relaxing day surrounded by nature, Flamingo Gardens is definitely worth a visit.

Got there around 10 and was able to secure a scooter for my mother who recently had knee surgery…read more They said it was their last working one. We couldn't have done this park without it. The tram runs every thirty mins, definitely suggest taking that- learned all about the park via tour guide. Upon checking in, there are bags of animal food for purchase. So fun for the kids to engage with the flamingos etc. The animals who are roaming free aren't actually part of the garden, they are wild. So get ready to see some amazing ducks, flamingos and peacocks roaming around. We loved seeing all the different birds, alligators etc.

I've lived here for most of my life and somehow I don't think I've ever been to the Stranahan…read moreHouse, despite passing right by it a million times. They recently started offering free tours for locals on Wednesdays, so I decided to take advantage. It's a free self-guided tour, and they give you an audio device that gives you all the information on each room. The volunteer who checked me in was super sweet. Stranahan House is the oldest structure in Broward County, and I really enjoyed learning more about the history of the area, and especially about Ivy Stranahan's activism. It really gave me a new appreciation for the area. My favorite part was the upstairs porch, with a beautiful, relaxing view of the New River. I took the volunteer's advice and sat up there for a minute enjoying it instead of rushing through, and I'm so glad I did. Be aware that upstairs isn't air conditioned, so half of the tour is really hot. Dress accordingly or bring a fan! Overall, I'd highly recommend stopping by! It's something fun to do that's a nice change of pace.

My husband and I finally took a self-guided tour here since we saw they recently made it free…read moreadmission on Wednesday's for locals and it's definitely worth the visit! The tour took about 45 minutes and was super interesting and informative. Just a heads up that the second floor isn't air conditioned so it was just a little warm up there!

Went here for a garden/flower themed event and paid the $5 to go inside the house. It was a…read moreself-guided tour, but they had about 4-5 staff throughout the house to answer any questions you may have. The inside was very nicely staged and I liked that each room had little papers that described what you were seeing and which of the furniture pieces were original. Randomly, my favorite part was probably the book of letters they had in the office room from "Jack" who lived in the house. They were so cute to read through!

We knew we were coming for a mom and me story time. But oh wow were we in for such a treat! It was…read morewith Cheryl McDougal who was born and grew up in this home with her family!. She put so much time and effort into preparing everything. And it was such a wonderful performative experience. All of the children and parents had a wonderful time! Miss Cheryl comes from a long family line of school teachers, and you can tell she loves working with children from her demeanor and the creativity, which came into planning this event. If you are ever able to visit one of the mommy and me sessions with her, I strongly recommend it! After story time, we were able to see Laura the Docents paper crafts which are available for sale and we were given a walk-through tour. It was incredible to see Cheryl's childhood bedroom and the phenomenal collaboratively family built dollhouse, which was her mothers and then hers. Thank you for such an amazing time and for making Halloween so special. McDougal Home is such a phenomenal piece of old Florida history and what once was of the farmland.

Vanderbilt Mansion offers some history. It is now part of the Fisher island club…read more The historic Mediterranean-style Vanderbilt Mansion was designed by renowned Palm Beach architect Maurice Fatio in 1935. It houses the Garwood Lounge and Piano Bar, the Snooker Club Billiards, the City View Café, the Library Drawing Room and Salon, Café Tangier, the Grand Ballroom, and a heated saltwater pool. While Fisher Island was bought by Carl Fisher in 1919, only a year later it was traded to William Vanderbilt II. The heir interestingly received the island in exchange for a large boat and only ten dollars. Over the next two decades, the Vanderbilts owned Fisher Island where they constructed an airplane landing dock, many large houses, and their ornate mansion that is still the island's centerpiece. Ownership has changed many times since Vanderbilt's death in 1944, with Fisher Island Club holding the reins since 1987.