Florida Historical Markers Programs - Marker Detail

Description: Originally from Indiana, Dr. Joseph W. Applegate moved to Florida after the Civil War to work with the Freedmen's Bureau at Magnolia Springs. He later partnered with John H. Harris to operate the Clarendon Hotel (c. 1871) in Green Cove Springs. By the late 1800s, the town had established itself as “a watering hole for the rich." While working as the hotel’s physician, Applegate lectured on the health benefits of the spring’s sulfurous waters, and teamed with Harris to form the Water Cure Company. Harris managed the business from New York, while Applegate handled the prescription, dispensing, and shipment of spring water from Florida to New York. This house was built for Applegate by 1887. It was designed in the Frame Vernacular style based on local needs, available construction materials, and local tradition. In 1900, The Clarendon was destroyed by fire, but Applegate and his wife, Jenny, resided in this house until his death in 1919. Afterwards, Navy personnel stationed at Lee Field lived here, and it later became an antiques shop. In 1991, the house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing building in the Green Cove Springs Historic District. In 1997, it opened as a bed & breakfast.