The tropical utopia
where the rich and famous
built spectacular winter homes

 GREAT HOUSES OF FLORIDA (Rizzolli 2008)is a collaboration between Beth Dunlop and Joanna Lombard, two architectural experts with a passion for the historically significant homes of their beloved state.

The breathtaking photography of Steven Brooke accompanies the authors’ fascinating stories of the origins of these thirty-nine homes. This illustrated history includes photographs of the opulent interiors and lush gardens, as well as the fascinating back-stories about the architects, landscape artists, and powerful men who made their dream of living in paradise a reality.



THE GREAT HOUSES OF FLORIDA offers visitors to the state an insightful peek into the diverse history of the area, and offers a cultured alternative to the thrills of Disneyworld, and excitement of Miami Beach.

In the manner of Rizzoli’s acclaimed Historic Houses of the Hudson Valley, Great Houses of Florida presents the greatest and most intriguing houses of the state. Including John and Mabel Ringling’s fabulous Venetian Palazzo Ca d’Zan, James Deering’s spectacular Italianate Villa Vizcaya in Miami, and the Audubon and Hemingway houses in Key West. With all new color photography, this lavish book provides a rare look into the very finest houses from the one-time premier winter playground of America’s rich and famous


Rizzoli is proud to announce that GREAT HOUSES OF FLORIDA has been recognized by the Board of Trustees of the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation's Awards Jury, who has selected the book for outstanding achievement in the field of preservation education/media. The awards ceremony and reception will be held on Friday, May 20, during the Florida Trust's 2011 Annual Conference in Central Florida.  The ceremony will be at the First Congregational Church of Winter Park, and the reception will be held at the Cornell Fine Arts Museum at Rollins College and will immediately follow the ceremony.