Sheriff Deputy cottage was an early Boca Grande residence
Possible demolition for house, outside of official Historic District
A once-historic sheriff’s deputy house owned by Lee County is still unrepaired, four months after Hurricane Helene. Currently, a resident deputy and his wife are living in a recreational vehicle on the property. The county would like to build a new house there for the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.
“The plan is to build and harden a structure on the site and then the Sheriff’s Office would again occupy it,” said Tim Engstrom, Public Information Specialist at Lee County.
The building is at 300 Wheeler Road; it was donated to the county by the Hammond family specifically for housing for a resident sheriff deputy. It is located at the back of the Wheeler Road Community Park open space. The county records a “minimum year built” of 1900, though the exact date is uncertain. The cottage is one of two sheriffs’ houses on the island. The other, a newer raised house, is next to the Wheeler tennis courts.
The house is believed to have been moved from the block at 1st and Gilchrist, and was part of the Crowninshield estate. It was donated by the Hammond family, who still live on Gilchrist. There are two nearly identical houses at 121 and 125 1st Street West that are said to be similar to the house. The Boca Grande Historical Society was not able to find a record of the move; one date cited is 1978. Over the decades, a series of beloved sheriff deputies have lived at the house, including longtime deputy Richard Caccavale and his wife, Toni.
Currently there is a discussion about potential funding if the house were to be torn down.
Engstrom told the Beacon that there has not been an engineering report for the property. “A damage assessment was completed, which primarily addresses readily visible damage to tiles, baseboards, laminate flooring and sub-flooring, drywall and so on,” Engstrom wrote by email. He told the Beacon that the damage assessment does not include wall framing, electrical systems, plumbing and floor joists.
The house was originally part of the estate of Louise Evelina du Pont Crowninshield (1877-1958), who was a great American philanthropist and seasonal resident of Boca Grande. The National Trust for Historic Preservation’s highest award is named for her.
Longtime island resident Carolyn Nabers does recall some details about the house before it was moved. In an email thread about the house, she recalled that the duPonts’ chauffeur Bert Seaman lived there.
“Clyde being in the loop at the gas station, pretty much knew everyone and what was going on around down,” wrote Nabers. “He let it be known that the Sheriff’s Department needed living quarters. And the county had land.”
Davis Hammond, whose family gave the cottage to the county, is unsure of the exact original location of the house. His house has been called the “Corner Cottage,” which would indicate that the house may not have been on the corner, with the other two houses on 1st Street.
There are two main types of early frame railroad houses in the Boca Grande Historic District. There are the more substantial houses that would have been occupied by railroad officials, and smaller houses. The more substantial houses like the ones on Banyan and Park, were up off the ground, higher and had halls, with gables facing the street. They also had wood gable pediments between the roof, on the top corners of the rooflines. The smaller cottages, like the ones at 1st Street, had long porches along the front.
At the Boca Grande Historic Preservation Board meeting on Feb. 12, the Boca Beacon raised the issue of the house, and whether there had been an official historic resource survey taken before there was any possible evaluation for demolition. Houses that have been moved can typically lose official historic designation, but often the moving of a house can preserve it as a resource, and is understood by the National Park Service guidelines.
While the house as it is now is not within the official Historic District, the Lee County Land Development code directly relates to historic preservation in general. The charge to the board and Lee County staff is to “identify, evaluate, preserve and protect historical and archaeological sites and districts.” Section 22.1 of the code also encourages “promoting the sensitive use of historic and archaeological sites, resources and districts.”
Photos by Garland
