Self-Guided Walking Tour of Dunnellon
Explore the architectural treasures of our historic town on this self-guided tour. The homes represented on this page are just some of the many that you will see during the walk, which is less than one mile and can be completed at your own pace.
*Please respect the privacy of the residential properties on the tour and visit those that now house shops.
1. Dunnellon Railroad Depot
12061 S. Williams St.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1908
Atlantic Coast Line railraod built the Depot. First, trains carried produce, timber, passengers and phosphate. Later, trains moved WWII troops, military equipment and the circus, In 1991 the historical society purchased the Depot from the second owner, CSX Transportation Inc. In 2002 the Historical Society obtained a grant to restore tge facility and upgrade to current standards. Colorful murals depicting Dunnellon's history line the walls.
Get Directions
2. Renfro Boarding House
20601 W. Pennsylvania Ave.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1887
The oldest structure in Dunnellon, Renfro Boarding House was available for railroad workers and phosphate miners. It's stood at what is now the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Williams Street, and was moved to its present location in 1903. It is now an apartment house. Upstairs sleeping porches have been enclosed. The main downstairs hall retains several original doors and an 18th-century staircase.
Get Directions
3. Leitner House
S.W. corner of S.Ohio
& W. Pennsyvania Ave.
Date: 1899
The Leitner house is the oldest house in Dunnellon still standing in it's original location. The Victorian frame vernacular residence displays bay elements on the eastern elevation. C.J. Leitner served as mayor, postmaster and operated a general store.
Get Directions
4. C.W. Hood House
20691 W. Pennsylvania Ave.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1905
This Victorian frame, vernacular style building was influenced by colonial styles. It was built for Charles W. Hood, a mayor of Dunnellon and Marion County Commissioner. The home was later divided into apartments. It remains in scale and character with it's surroundings - buildings typical of a phosphate boomtown of the 1890s and early 1900s.
Get Directions
5. Sammons House of Flowers
20815 W. Pennsylvania Ave.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1918
This frame style bungalow is one of three built on the same plan and has a bay element on the east side. During the boomtown era, turpentine was distilled at the site. Turpentine cups are on display at the Train Depot.
Get Directions
6. Grumbles House
20799 Walnut St.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1910
John A. Grumbles, a phosphate mine engineer, had his house built in the Victorian vernacular style with Classical Revival Influences. Doric columns grace both floors, and shiplap wood siding was used. Grumbles selected all the wood used to construct the house. When the house was owned by the Meredith's, brides descended the interior stairway, making a grand entrance to the Baptist Church across the street.
Get Directions
7. Gingerbread House
20781 Chestnut St.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1910
The original Gingerbread House, was a Victorian frame vernacular with twin gable ends a central gable. It was on the Historic Register, but later burned. The residential part of the current Gingerbread House, boasts a keeping room.
Get Directions
8. Dunnellon Presbyterian Church
20657 Chestnut St.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1895
Organized with 10 charter members in 1893, this was the first church organized in the newly incorporated town of Dunnellon. The original sanctuary was also used by the Methodist and Baptists on alternate Sundays. In 1994 the sanctuary was expanded and the old manse became the Gainer Education Building. The church is an example of a Victorian vernacular architecture with Gothic touches.
Get Directions
9. Metcalf-Porter House
11868 N. Ohio St.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1898
This lovely home was built in 1898 and was one of the first of several residential homes built in the area.
Get Directions
10. Meredith-Fleet House
20575 Walnut St.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1899
This framed vernacular bungalow, in scale with Dunnellon's boomtown days at the turn of the century, was constructed of southern heart pine and cypress beveling siding. The front porch, build on brick piers, exhibits six classical columns, added by the original owner, Ben and Lucille Meredith, around 1925. Dunnellon's early newspapers were printed at this site.
Get Directions
11. Dinkins Service Store
11907 N. Williams St.
Dunnellon, FL 34432
Date: 1946
C.A Dinkins Sr. came to Dunnellon in 1919 from Steen, FL. His son, C.A. Dinkins Jr. (Ambrose Dinkins) and his wife, Virgina, had four children, C.A. Dinkins III (Chaplin), Lester, LaRue, and Mary Virginia. The family established several local businesses. In 1946 the independently owned and family operated Farm and Garden Retail Center was established on the site. The building and real estate have been enlarged several times since 1967.
Get Directions
