The Old Durrance Building on Florida Avenue

Turn west off of Omaha Street onto Florida Avenue and the eye is drawn to a sea green two story building that dominates the block in downtown historic Palm Harbor. 

The building is charming and does not lack warmth or street appeal.  It is rumored that the historic building at 1219 Florida Avenue was built somewhere around the turn of the prior century; some verbal accounts date the building back to the late 1800s. 

The building sits in what used to be Hillsborough County. Lesley Klein, one of the owners, has run across some difficulty in finding documentation of its original year of construction, possibly due to how records were archived a hundred years ago. 

There is knowledge that a man known simply as Mr. Hartman built the structure.  It is documented in written history as The Durrance Building because the Methodist Reverend and Mrs. Belle Durrance lived there during retirement.

The building served as the third post office location of Palm Harbor when died in 1920.  The Durrance’s son Gerald took over as postmaster and moved the post office to a room in the home.  It is rumored that the reverend chose the home in which to retire because of its view from the hill.

In 1925, when the reverend passed away, his wife moved to Largo and Gerald relocated to what is now known as the Spanish Trails subdivision off of Curlew Road.  Upon their departure, the Sutherland Development Company located its offices there.  The company went bankrupt during the Great Depression. 

During World War II, the building was used as a Works Projects Administration (WPA) location where it served as a sewing room for the soldiers.  WPA was dissolved in 1943. The property had many uses over the years as apartments, offices and a voting precinct. 

Familiar local people such as Pop Stansell and Charley Jackson also owned the building.  Lesley and Rick Klein purchased the property in 1999 where one of their small businesses was located (Oak Trail Books closed in 2011 after 16 years of operation). 

The Kleins finished a restoration of the building in 2002, the same year the White Chapel was rehabilitated.  In 2005, street reconstruction began on Florida Avenue. It was during the planning of this reconstruction that the mulberry tree the Reverend Durrance once enjoyed, was found to be expendable due to its internal decline.

Determined to preserve something of the historic mulberry tree, Lesley Klein grafted seedlings from the tree’s cuttings and planted one of them in the patio area.  Mrs. Klein tried valiantly to save the estimated 100 year old tree where local icons such as Charley and Winona Jones used to pick the fruit for jellies and hand staining. 

Mulberries were a staple in Palm Harbor and used for a variety of purposes, including a supplement for local livestock.  Mrs. Klein’s efforts paid off!  Today, the original tree’s “sapling” is 30 feet tall, bears fruit and shades the patrons of the , another Klein business located in the historic building.   

Located at 1219 Florida Avenue are The Witch’s Brew, Celestial Circle and Renew Life Clinic.  The Witch’s Brew is a popular gathering spot that serves light fare and features live music Fridays and Saturdays.

You can also find Celestial Circle at the same location. It is a new metaphysical store owned by Gina Lawrence.  Renew Life Clinic offers personal care services, including massage. 

Next time you're in the area, you'll know a lot more about the history behind this great building. It's something you can ponder while sitting underneath the second generation mulberry tree at the Witch's Brew, or strolling through the Celestial Circle and Renew Life Clinic.