The 1885 J.D. & N.J. Lewis House stands as one of the oldest surviving structures in Longwood. Now, a fresh public-private partnership model offers a clear, cost-effective path to restore this piece of local history and return it to active community life.
The project recently achieved two major milestones:
- Christ Episcopal Church Vestry Approval: The vestry voted in principle to welcome the relocated building onto an open grass lot on their Church Avenue campus.
- Unanimous Historic Society Support: At today’s Fall General Meeting, the Longwood Historic Society membership voted unanimously to endorse the plan and authorize the Board of Directors to begin forming community partnerships and a cross-organization steering committee.
Living Up to Our Founding Mission
This project gets to the heart of why the Longwood Historic Society exists. In 1969, our organization was founded with a single urgent goal: to save historic treasures from the wrecking ball.
In 1973, our founders took on an ambitious rescue mission—saving the Bradlee-McIntyre House and the Inside-Outside House from imminent destruction in Altamonte Springs. Both structures were severely dilapidated and facing demolition. The Society successfully relocated them to Longwood and painstakingly restored them from a ragged, worn state into the vibrant historic anchors they are today.
We did it then, and we can do it now. The 1885 Lewis House is our generation’s opportunity to live up to the great ambition and stewardship set forth by our founders over five decades ago.
Overcoming Budget Obstacles Through Non-Profit Agility
In September 2025, the City of Longwood voted to relocate the house to Reiter Park and allocated a dedicated budget to save the structure. However, when the city issued a formal request for proposals, only one bid came back, and it was substantially over budget, halting municipal plans.
Municipal procurement often faces rigid overhead and prevailing commercial rates. As a 501(c)(3) non-profit, the Longwood Historic Society can execute the project far more efficiently than the city could through standard municipal channels. By leveraging community outreach, volunteer labor, donated materials, trade partnerships, and educational alliances, the Society can significantly reduce the true cash cost.
The proposed collaborative framework outlines the path forward:
- Deed Transfer: The City of Longwood deeds the historic house to the Longwood Historic Society.
- Society-Led Campaign & Cost Savings: The Society will fully own project management, coordinating local trade partners, corporate sponsorships, private owners, relationships with colleges and school programs, and volunteer work. We will form a cross-organizational steering committee to guide the process and create a detailed plan. Existing Society funds remain strictly ring-fenced for the Bradlee-McIntyre House porch project and maintenance of its three existing properties, ensuring all Lewis House capital is raised independently.
- Seeding the Effort: The Society hopes the City Commission will agree to maintain its previous funding commitment—or a meaningful portion of it—to seed the initial phase, including relocation, structural stabilization, and exterior beautification at the proposed Church Avenue frontage. We don’t take this ask for granted and recognize financial constraints. However, it would uphold last year’s vote and resolve the city’s role in displacing the home when it built the Longwood Community Building on the same site in 2002.
- Final Campus Integration: Once fully restored, stabilized, and weather-proofed, the Society will gift ownership of the building to Christ Episcopal Church, which will assume ongoing maintenance and integrate it into its active campus. There, it can host Bible study, classrooms, bake sales, wedding-related activities, small community events, etc.
- The Location: This location is only one block from the home’s origin at Wilma and Warren. It will be in the heart of the historic district, beside the church, City Hall, the Clouser Cottage (Ruby Sun Gifts), and the historic society’s other properties. It will blend perfectly with its other 1880s neighboring buildings and fill a visual gap, connecting them all!
Target 2029: A 150th Anniversary Milestone
The vision aligns with a key historic milestone: Christ Episcopal Church’s 150th Anniversary in 2029.
The goal is to complete the physical relocation, structural stabilization, siding, paint, and core exterior repairs in time for the 2029 celebration. Meeting this deadline would provide a powerful, symbolic centerpiece for both the church’s sesquicentennial and Longwood’s broader historic corridor.
This would be a hugely symbolic achievement: a ribbon-cutting with the congregation at the city’s oldest congregation and the county’s oldest existing church building.
Building the Coalition
The project will function as a living laboratory, pairing trade instruction with hands-on preservation:
- Educational Collaborations: These conversations have not yet begun, but the Society hopes to build partnerships with regional programs—including Seminole State College, Lyman High School’s Building & Engineering Academy, Orange Technical College, and UCF’s Public History program—to offer students real-world learning opportunities.
- In-Kind Trade Support: Local trade leaders are stepping up early. AC Cowboys donated and installed a new HVAC system at the Historic Civic Center this week. They have already committed to donating another system to this project! We will look to build similar relationships with other companies. Relic Pine, a Georgia-based historic restoration specialist with deep Seminole County roots, has already been providing consulting. Advantage Installation recently donated the labor and supplies for the new entryway to the Inside-Outside House (Cottage Gift Shop). The Society will work to build more relationships with material suppliers, trade contractors (roofing, framing, electrical, plumbing), and business donors to drive down cash requirements.
- Corporate Sponsors & Private Donors: This ambitious project will still require additional support from corporate sponsors and generous private donors. We have unrelenting faith in this community. We know it will happen! Our vision is that we will all feel our fingerprints on this project and take pride in coming together to share ownership of this victory. One idea is to sell engraved bricks on the walkways, so that people can return and point to their names for generations.
Next Steps
With vestry approval secured and unanimous membership support, Society leadership will begin community outreach, build corporate and educational partnerships, and coordinate with City of Longwood staff to refine site plans and prepare the formal proposal. The initiative will ultimately come before the Longwood City Commission for a vote to execute the deed transfer and discuss potential funding sources.
Physical relocation to Church Avenue will proceed once the city finalizes approvals and secures initial relocation and stabilization funds. Realistically, we hope to use 2027 for planning, community outreach, fundraising, and building corporate and educational partnerships, with the goal of starting work in 2028.
If you would like to be involved in the process of returning this 1885 home its former glory and see it once again become an asset to the historic district, please reach out. Email us at info@historiclongwood.com.