Discover 6 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Mount Dora (United States). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Royellou Museum, Mount Dora Center for the Arts, and Mount Dora Museum of Speed. Also, be sure to include Donnelly Park in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Mount Dora (Florida).
Table of Contents
Royellou Museum
Museum in Mount Dora, Florida. The Mount Dora History Museum is located at 450 Royellou Lane, Mount Dora, Florida. It contains exhibits depicting the history of Mount Dora. The building itself, constructed in the 1920s, was originally the firehouse and jail for the city.[1]
Address: 450 Royellou Ln, 32757-5554 Mount Dora
Mount Dora Center for the Arts
Art gallery in Mount Dora, Florida. The Mount Dora Center for the Arts is located at 138 East Fifth Avenue, Mount Dora, Florida. The Center brings art to lives through classes and workshops, gallery exhibits, children's outreach programs, and partnerships with the Art Community. Their annual Art Festival held in February draws more than 200,000 visitors to the City of Mount Dora each year.
History: In 1975, a group of art-loving citizens held the first Mount Dora Arts Festival. It was a small event, but it was a big success. It was decided to have an Arts Festival every year.
In 1984, many of these same citizens of Mount Dora banded together to form the Mount Dora Cultural Council. It was their goal to celebrate the arts in Mount Dora, as well as further promote and improve the quality of the Arts Festival. Staffed by volunteers and funded through membership dues and private contributions, the Cultural Council began to grow. The following year, the Cultural Council moved into 138 East 5th Avenue. As time went by, more and more people joined the Cultural Council, and in 1986, the Board of Trustees resolved to change the name to Mount Dora Center for the Arts. The Mount Dora Center for the Arts has provided quality art experiences in the Lake County region of Central Florida ever since.
In 1995, with a 30% down payment and owner-financed mortgage, the MDCA Board of Trustees purchased the building where the Arts Center is currently located.
In 2021 MDCA sold the building and will move into a brand new facility on Royellou Lane in 2022–23.
Art of the Deal is Mount Dora Center for the Arts signature fundraising gala. It is held on New Year's Eve in Donnelly Park under the stars and with the backdrop of a million holiday lights put up by the City of Mount Dora each year. The event features a gourmet meal, premium open bar, silent and live auctions that include fine art as well as international trips. Entertainment is always themed and exciting for guests. At the conclusion guests can walk downtown to watch the city sponsored fireworks.
Art Stroll/Art in the Alley is sponsored by Mount Dora Center for the Arts and is a collaboration with local art studios and galleries. Every 3rd Thursday from 6-8pm, visitors can pick up the monthly map at the MDCA Gallery located at 136 E. 5th Ave Mount Dora, FL 32757. The map shows participating locations and guests walk on a self-guided art tour of local galleries and artist studios. Royellou Lane alley next to the gallery often has hand craft vendors set up to show and sell their work during the monthly event.
Mount Dora Arts Festival The first Mount Dora Arts Festival was held in 1975. It is a juried event of fine artists and nationally places in the Top 200 consistently by Sunshine Artists Magazine in their annual ranking of Arts and Crafts festivals in the United States. More than 250 fine artists line the downtown streets under white tents to compete for more than $20,000 in prize money. It is held in the first week of February each year and is free to attend.
The Mount Dora Center for the Arts is an IRS Approved 501C-3 Not for Profit.[2]
Address: 138 E 5th Ave, 32757-5573 Mount Dora
Mount Dora Museum of Speed
Museum in Mount Dora, Florida. The Mount Dora Museum of Speed was located in Mount Dora, Florida in Lake County, Florida. Exhibits in the replica art deco museum included American muscle cars, automobile memorabilia and an Americana collection.
Opened in 2001, the 7,000-square-foot showroom was both a dealer showroom for classic cars and a museum with changing exhibits. Bogard opened the museum to house his collection when he and his wife retired to the area from Jupiter, Florida. In addition to rare cars, displays included quarter midget race cars, pedal cars, a 1940s Texaco gas station, vintage road signs, juke boxes, Coca-Cola machines, gas pumps, neon signs, electric guitars autographed by rock musicians including Aerosmith, Jon Bon Jovi and Stevie Ray Vaughan, autographed television memorabilia and more.
The museum closed in November 2019, selling all exhibits, due to the retirement of founder Kerry M. Bogard.[3]
Address: 206 N Highland St, 32757-5728 Mount Dora
Donnelly Park
The Donnelly House is a historic home in Mount Dora, Florida. It is located on Donnelly Avenue. On April 4, 1975, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
John P. Donnelly, a native of Pittsburg, came to Mount Dora in 1879. In 1881, he married Annie McDonald Stone, a prominent landholder in the community. Successful in a number of real estate and business ventures, Donnelly built this imposing Queen Anne style house in 1893. He was among the founders of the local yacht club, and served as the city's first mayor in 1910. In 1924, he sold the land for the park named for his wife, who had died in 1908. He died in 1930. The Donnelly House, now owned by Mount Dora Lodge #238, F.&A.M. was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on April 4, 1975.[4]
Address: Donnelly Street, Mount Dora
The Mount Dora Library Association
Library
Address: 1995 North Donnelly St, Mount Dora
Witherspoon Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons
Witherspoon Lodge No. 111 Free and Accepted Masons is a historic building located is at 1410 North Clayton Street in Mount Dora, Florida. The building was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 2009.
The building is named for Witherspoon Lodge, a Prince Hall tradition Masonic lodge chartered by the Union Grand Lodge of Florida, who purchased the building in 1903. The building served as a meeting place for the lodge for many years, but as of 2013 the lodge is listed as inactive.
The building also served as a school for African-American children from 1922 to 1925.
It was built around 1921.[5]