Bonnet House facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Bonnet House
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Gate to Bonnet House grounds
Location in Florida Show map of Florida Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	Fort Lauderdale, Florida
NRHP reference No.	84000832
Added to NRHP	5 July 1984

The Bonnet House is a special historic home in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It is also known as the Bartlett Estate. This beautiful place was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on July 5, 1984. It gets its name from the pretty Bonnet Lily flower.

History of the Bonnet House

The land for the Bonnet House was first bought in 1895 by Hugh Taylor Birch. He was a lawyer from Chicago. In 1919, he gave the property to his daughter Helen and her husband, Frederic Clay Bartlett. It was a wedding gift!

Frederic Bartlett was an artist. He built a large, plantation-style home on the land. He and Helen used it as their winter home. Sadly, Helen passed away in 1925. Frederic then gave his large art collection to the Art Institute of Chicago. This was to honor his late wife.

Frederic designed the main house himself. He based it on Caribbean plantation homes. Later, Frederic married Evelyn Fortune Lilly. They continued to spend their winters at the Bonnet House. Frederic lived there until he passed away in 1953. Evelyn lived there until 1997.

In 1983, Evelyn gave the property to the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation. This group now takes care of the house. It is a historic house museum called the Bonnet House Museum & Gardens. The estate was worth about $35 million. This was the biggest private gift in Florida's history at the time. In 1988, a writer called it "a perfect time capsule." It showed how wealthy families lived in Florida long ago.

Exploring the Bonnet House Layout

The Bonnet House estate is quite large, covering about 35 acres. It even has 100 feet of beach! The main buildings include the big main house, an art studio, a music studio, and a guest house. Frederic Bartlett designed all these buildings himself. They are built in a simple, local style.

In 2015, the Bonnet House made a special agreement. They worked with the city of Fort Lauderdale. Now, a 700-foot part of the beach in front of the house is private. This means they can host weddings and other events there easily.

The property is also home to five different natural areas. These include sand dunes, mangrove wetlands, and a freshwater swamp. There is also a maritime forest.

The Art Studio

The very first building finished on the estate was the art studio. This is where Frederic Bartlett could create his art.

Inside the Main House

The main house has many interesting features. The ceiling in the drawing room is made of mahogany wood. This wood came from a huge log that washed ashore during a storm. Frederic and Evelyn Bartlett liked to use pairs of things in their designs. You can see this idea of "pairs" throughout the house.

Bonnet House in Modern Times

The Bonnet House is a popular place to visit. In 1987, about 6,000 people took tours of the site.

Evelyn Bartlett loved animals. She had a pet monkey! She also bought many monkeys to live in the trees on the estate. Later, a local bar with monkeys closed. Those monkeys also came to live at the Bonnet House. In 2014, at least three monkeys still lived there!

Frederic Bartlett's sister, Maie Bartlett Heard, was also important. She started the Heard Museum in Phoenix with her husband.

Since 2003, the Bonnet House has been used for filming movies and TV shows. It was the finish line for the seventh season of The Amazing Race. It was also a filming spot for the movie Hoot.

In 2008, the National Trust for Historic Preservation listed the Bonnet House as an "Endangered Place." This meant it needed protection. The same year, the Bonnet House settled a lawsuit. A developer wanted to build a tall hotel nearby. The settlement helped them get money for landscaping. This would help hide the view of the new building.

In 2012, the Bonnet House joined the Riverwalk Arts and Entertainment District. This group helps promote arts and culture. In 2017, Patrick Shavloske became the chief executive officer.