The Riverside House - Jacksonville, FL
N 30° 18.569 W 081° 40.926
17R E 434417 N 3353276
The Riverside House, now an apartment complex, was originally a resort hotel called the Rochester House. In 1911, it was barged a little over a mile up the St. Johns River to its current location.
Waymark Code: WMRN0R
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 07/11/2016
Views: 3
"This structure was originally constructed as an 1860's resort hotel in Brooklyn known as the Rochester House. Located near the current intersection of Leila Street and Riverside Avenue, rooms were rented for $2 to $3 per day. Shaded by wild orange, oak, and magnolia trees, and known for its boating facilities and fishing, guests came from New York, Rhode Island, Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and other states. Mary Todd Lincoln may have been its most famous guest. Mrs. Lincoln came to Jacksonville in late 1874 overpowered with grief and depression, following the death of three sons and President Lincoln.
While at the Rochester House, Lincoln became unshakably convinced that surviving Robert was deathly ill. Hurrying to Chicago in March 1875, she found him healthy. During her visit with him, she told him that someone attempted to poison her on the train and that a "wandering Jew" had taken her pocketbook. After nearly jumping out of a window to escape a non-existent fire, she was institutionalized in an Illinois asylum.
We'll never know what impact the Rochester House had on Mrs. Lincoln but many believe the building is haunted. Barged up river to its present location in 1911, it is said that ghost of a long departed guest remains in the building. The guest is said to be the bride of a confederate blockade runner. Claims have been made that the young blonde long black dress wearing ghost's footsteps can occasionally be heard on the third floor."
--Source (
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"Because of the tremendous growth in tourism during the 1870s, Jacksonville had thirty-five boarding houses listed in the city directories during the period, as well as several large hotels. One of these small lodging facilities was the Rochester House located near the current intersection of Leila Street and Riverside Avenue. The date of construction and if originally built as a boarding house has not been determined, but was probably built in the late 1860s by one of the early owners of the lot, Edward W. Denny or Samuel Ellis. The property came under the ownership of Isaac H. Jameson for $1,500 in February of 1868. Isaac Jameson opened the Rochester House, also called the River House, which was named in honor of his hometown, Rochester, New York. Accommodating up to forty guests, the Rochester House was shaded by wild orange, oak, and magnolia trees, and provided facilities for boating and fishing. Guests at the Rochester House came from New York, Rhode Island, Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and other states. One noted guest was Mary Todd Lincoln, the widow of President Abraham Lincoln, who visited the house in late 1873 or early 1874. With the changing face of
Riverside Avenue in Brooklyn going from residential to commercial, the house was placed on a barge in 1911 and relocated to its current site at 2107 River Boulevard."
--Source (
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To view a photo of the house at its original location (
visit link) .