Press

KEY WEST, Fla. – The 144-year old Tortugas Harbor Lighthouse on historic Fort Jefferson is about to get a facelift. On October 19, Dry Tortugas National Park kicked off the $4.5 million project to restore and preserve the deteriorating lighthouse for the next 100-plus years.

The front doors of the state capitol have been shut for two years now as repair crews waterproof and reset limestone panels on the building’s exterior. The 86-year-old structure is the tallest building in Baton Rouge and the work being done is more than routine maintenance.

Seventy miles west of Key West, a group of islands forms the Dry Tortugas. Those islands, and the waters surrounding them, are at the center of a national park with spectacular coral reefs. But the park is best known for its biggest structure. Fort Jefferson was part of a system of coastal fortifications built in the 19th century — and after 30 years of work, it was never finished. The fort had more than 400 guns and a standing garrison of soldiers. But it never engaged in battle.

We’ve all heard about it: Florida Southern College is the largest single site of Frank Lloyd Wright buildings in the world. To some, that may mean nothing. But, to the thousands of tourists and architectural aficionados who visit Florida Southern’s campus each year, this place holds special meaning. Frank Lloyd Wright was among the world’s most famous and successful architects working in the 20th century. Some of his influential works include the Guggenheim Museum in New York, Fallingwater (a private residence in rural Pennsylvania), Taliesin (his private residence and place of work), and of course, Lakeland’s very own campus collection at Florida Southern College. Amazingly prolific, his professional life spanned more than 70 years.