Riverside Historic District (Jacksonville, Florida)

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Confederate veteran Miles Price sold 500 acres (2.0 km2) of his property, known as Dell's Bluff, to a Yankee, Edward M. Cheney, and financial backer John M. Forbes of Boston for $10,000 in gold. Forbes and Cheney built grand riverfront homes in 1868 and waited for the influx of residents. For more than 30 years, they remained the only homeowners in the very rural area. It wasn't until the period following the Great Fire of 1901 that residents left the downtown area. Architects and construction companies from all over the country had flocked to Jacksonville for a unique opportunity, and Riverside benefited greatly. Innovative home designs were commissioned by lumber magnate Wellington W. Cummer and his two sons, Waldo and Arthur, Jacksonville's Mayor J.E.T. Bowden, Col. Raymond Cay and Episcopal Bishop Edwin G. Weed. Homes were designed by Mark & Sheftall, Henry John Klutho and Addison Mizner. By 1911, the riverfront on Riverside Avenue was lined with elegant mansions and was called one of the most beautiful streets in America. Riverside lies on the St Johns River just south of Downtown Jacksonville and is home to the historic "Five Points (Jacksonville) " and "King Street" business districts, with apartment towers along the river and hundreds of large, spacious, turn-of-the-century homes, and even some brick streets. Since the 1970s, the "Riverside/Avondale Preservation District" has guided the rebirth of this late-1900s era neighborhood. Along with Avondale and Ortega, Riverside was originally the home to the wealthiest of Jacksonville families. In the late 1950s & '60s, the area went into decay, with many of those grand old homes being converted into rooming houses. However, after being designated a "National Historic Neighborhood", by the late 1990s, Riverside had recovered, with many homes restored to their original form. The Avondale, Riverside, and Ortega area is popular with those families who prefer to own large old Southern Style homes, with easy access to the river, just next to downtown.

Neighborhood designated as a U.S. Historic District on March 22, 1985. www.nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/Florida/Duval/...

Riverside Avondale Preservation, Inc.
2653 Herschel Street
Jacksonville, Florida 32204
Phone: (904) 389-2449
Fax: (904) 389-0431
Email: RAPreservation@aol.com
Website:
www.riverside-avondale.com