Historic designation sought for Palatka, Interlachen sites

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  • Historic preservationist Annie Delaroderie, third from left, stands with Palatka Water Works volunteers, from left to right, Danilo Sosa, Shann Purinton, David Clapp, Ken Carman and Bob Nelson after the Florida National Register Review Board gave unanimous approval of the nomination at the state level last week.
    Historic preservationist Annie Delaroderie, third from left, stands with Palatka Water Works volunteers, from left to right, Danilo Sosa, Shann Purinton, David Clapp, Ken Carman and Bob Nelson after the Florida National Register Review Board gave unanimous approval of the nomination at the state level last week.
  • Leo Granger, the board director of the Interlachen Historical Society, stands in front of the Lincoln Lane Schoolhouse in 2022.
    Leo Granger, the board director of the Interlachen Historical Society, stands in front of the Lincoln Lane Schoolhouse in 2022.
  • Vines and weeds grow at the Palatka Water Works.
    Vines and weeds grow at the Palatka Water Works.
  • Positively Putnam FL
    Positively Putnam FL
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It’s onto the next step for multiple historic buildings in Putnam County.

The National Register Review Board, through the state’s Division of Historical Resources, approved applications last week for Palatka’s Water Works Environmental Education Center, the Lincoln Lane School in Interlachen and Interlachen Academy, according to meeting attendees.

If the sites meet the board’s criteria, the board will forward the national register nominations to the Keeper of the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, D.C.

Water Works volunteer Shann Purinton traveled to Tallahassee to attend the review board meeting and advocate for the Palatka education center’s inclusion on the national register.

She said it was a wonderful experience and the review board said great things about Water Works.

“They just loved us,” Purinton said Tuesday. “They loved Water Works.”

Water Works, 1101 Whitewater Drive, has a community garden, trails and remnants of the buildings that date back to 1886. These buildings used to provide up to 1 million gallons of water per day for Palatka residents, according to the city of Palatka’s website.

Palatka attorney Jane West said she has three plots in the community garden and was excited to see her “fellow gardeners” in the state capitol.

“This is a really big deal because it means that the building will now be eligible for federal and state grants,” West said in an email about the possible designation.

The one-room Lincoln Lane Schoolhouse in Interlachen is a designated Florida Heritage Site, according to the site plaque. It was built in 1938 and served African-American children in first through third grades. In 1956, a local businessman obtained the property and segregation in Interlachen ended, according to the site’s history. The Historical Society of Interlachen purchased the building and land in 2013.

Interlachen Academy, according to West, was the old schoolhouse for White students before segregation ended.

While these places have not yet been approved to be added to the nation register, Putnam County is no stranger to the list.

The national register database shows 18 districts, historical sites or buildings countywide. These sites include the Bostwick School, the Crescent City Historic District, Crescent City’s Hubbard House, Tenney House and Groveland Hotel in Federal Point, Interlachen Hall, the Melrose Woman’s Club , Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Palatka, the Bronson-Mulholland House in Palatka, Central Academy in Palatka, the Cummings House in Palatka, the Hotel James in Palatka, Larimer Memorial Library in Palatka, the Old A.C.L. Union Depot in Palatka, the Palatka North Historic District, the Palatka Ravine Gardens Historic District, the Palatka South Historic District, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Palatka and Mount Royal in Welaka.