Local

Part of Fla. history to step back into spotlight

TALLAHASSE, Fla. — The public will soon get a look inside an historic house hidden in trees near the Florida Governor's Mansion.

The state will open the Grove, once the residence of former Gov. LeRoy Collins, later this year as a museum and architectural classroom.

Florida has spent nearly $6 million to rehabilitate the 10-acre estate. Transforming the mansion to meet modern building codes has been a time-consuming undertaking. There also have been legal battles about property next to the site that the state wants to buy for parking.

The Greek Revival style mansion, built with slave labor, is thought to have been finished by 1831. Even today the front windows have some of the same glass used when the home was built.