Ellinor Village, Florida facts for kids

Ellinor Village was a very popular family resort in Ormond Beach, Florida, during the 1940s and 1950s. It was the biggest family resort in Florida at that time! Two brothers, Byron and Merrill Ellinor, built it. The resort opened on May 1, 1949, and had 660 places to stay, including small houses called "cottages," apartments, and units with two or three homes connected.

A Fun Place for Families

Ellinor Village was designed to be a fantastic place for families. It had lots of fun activities for both kids and adults. Imagine having your own shopping center and even an amusement park right at your resort! Plus, it was super close to the beach, so you could easily go swimming or build sandcastles.

However, it's important to know that not everyone was welcome at Ellinor Village. The resort had rules that meant some groups of people, like Jewish families, were not allowed to stay there. This was a common problem in many places during that time, but it's a part of history we should remember.

Golf and Famous Neighbors

In 1951, Merrill Ellinor bought a golf course that is still used today by the Oceanside Country Club. This golf course used to belong to the Ormond Hotel. Right next to it was the winter home of a very famous person, John D. Rockefeller, called "The Casements". So, guests at Ellinor Village were staying near a piece of history!

Special Events and Changes

Ellinor Village was famous enough to host big events. In 1954, the Mrs. America contest was held there, which brought a lot of attention to the resort from all over the country. Also in 1954, a new bridge called the Rockefeller Memorial Bridge opened nearby. This bridge was later replaced in 1983 by the Granada Bridge, which you can still see today.

What Happened to Ellinor Village?

The Ormond Hotel, which was a neighbor to Ellinor Village, is no longer there. Today, modern buildings called the Ormond Heritage condominiums stand where the old hotel used to be. You can still see a part of the old hotel, its original cupola (a small dome-shaped tower), in a park by the river.

Ellinor Village itself changed hands over the years. In the late 1950s, a local builder named Milton Pepper bought it. He also bought the Ormond Hotel later. In the late 1970s, Pepper sold Ellinor Village, and it became a regular neighborhood with homes. Many of the original duplexes and triplexes that the Ellinor brothers built have been updated and are now beautiful modern homes and rental units. The history of Ellinor Village is a rich one, showing how places can change over time while still keeping parts of their past.