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Leu
House Museum At the heart of Leu Gardens is Harry Leu’s home,
which has been meticulously restored. The Leu House is on the National Register of Historic Places (Mizell-Leu
Historic District). Guided tours of the Leu House, illustrating turn-of-the-20th century Florida living, are available on the hour and the half hour daily from 10 am to 3:30 pm. Tours last about 20 minutes. The house is closed the month of July and on Christmas Day. Early
History
The property on which Leu Gardens is located was
originally deeded to David W. and Angeline Mizell, under the State Internal
Improvement Act of 1855. Their son, John Thomas
Mizell, erected the farm house in 1888—a two story frame structure with
five rooms. Duncan Clarkson Pell of New York purchased several
parcels in 1902, eventually putting together most of the current acreage.
Pell also made additions to the farmhouse and planted an orange
grove on the property. Joseph Woodward became the third owner in 1906, completing the house as it stands today. After his wife’s death in 1928, the estate went into trust and was rented out until 1936, when it was purchased by its final owner, Harry P. Leu. Harry
P. Leu Harry
P. Leu was born on June 11, 1884 in Orlando, FL, in an old frame house at
342 N. Orange Avenue.
His parents had moved to Orlando by horse and wagon from Maitland,
on the very day he was born.
It was a settlement called Eight Oaks, about two blocks south from
ORMC. Harry
attended grammar school in South Orlando with his four brothers and
sister. He
then entered Saint Joseph’s Academy in 1897 and graduated in 1901. Early
on, Harry’s father knew that he had an acute business sense. At age 10,
on a hot summer day while attending a funeral with his parents, he
purchased fans for 5 cents a piece and then sold them for 10 cents to the
people who were sweltering in the heat.
He started delivering newspapers for the Reporter Star (now the
Orlando Sentinel), at age 12.
Then, at 16, worked at a livery stable, picking up mail at 3 a.m.
He was never idle and was always working and learning.
After
high school, he took a job unloading and setting up machinery at Cain
& O’Berry Boiler Co., 100 W. Livingston St.
This was the beginning of a career that was to make him a leader in
industry in Florida.
After several years at Cain & O’Berry, Mr. Leu decided to go
to NY and learn more about business.
He attended business schools and was receiving some good job
offers, but his mother, who was now alone asked him to return to Orlando,
because she needed him. Also Mr. Cain was in poor health and wanted him to
rejoin Cain & O’Berry since Mr. O’Berry was no longer active in
the company.
In 1904, Mr. Leu came back to Orlando and worked as bookkeeper,
timekeeper, shipping clerk and many other things at Cain & O’Berry,
including “trouble shooter”, a title that later became sales engineer.
Mr. Leu became more and more respected for his work as “Mr.
Trouble Shooter.”
Mr. Cain encouraged Mr. Leu to buy stock in the company.
In 1926, Harry Leu bought the final stock and gained control of the
company.
He changed the name to Harry P. Leu, Inc. and changed it from a
boiler repair company to an industrial supply company.
He carried 30,000 different industrial items and had a company in
Miami and one in Tampa. In
1932, the most eligible bachelor in Orlando married Mary Jane Schmidli.
The people called it a May-December romance.
She was his secretary and even though she was 20 years younger, he
fell in love with her and pursued her to her hometown of Bethlehem, PA
until she said yes.
Mary Jane was a sweet and docile lady, a perfect compliment to Mr.
Leu’s dynamic personality.
She was also a very kind and appreciative person, constantly
writing notes of thanks, praise and condolence. The Leus purchased Leu
House and 40 acres for $40,000, in 1936.
They completely renovated the house, putting in central electricity
and plumbing and making it the lovely home we see today. Life
with Harry was exciting.
They traveled all over the world and brought back many exotic
plants and many varieties (240) of camellias for their gardens.
The Leus traveled by plane, boat, auto, bus, carriage, ox cart,
camel and even elephant.
They met some very interesting people, but were always happy to
come back to Orlando, to their beautiful home and gardens.
Because the grounds were so beautiful, they invited the public to
drive through and see the camellias and azaleas.
Mr. Leu had a great interest in flowers and trees and beautifying
Orlando.
He was known as the “Johnny Appleseed” of Central Florida,
because he gave so many beautiful plants away to neighbors and friends.
During their many travels, the Leus discovered the Sasanqua
camellia, which was not suppose to grow well in Florida.
However, after 10 years of cultivation and development, Mr. Leu
achieved a consisted pattern of success with his Snow on the Mountain,
Cleopatra The Rosa Sasanqua and others.
Those camellias are Mr. Leu’s legacy to everyone who comes to the
Gardens to enjoy their beauty. In
1934, Paul Stine joined Mr. Leu’s company as a city salesman.
In 1939, Mr. Stine was made sales manager and then in 1940, Mr. Leu
asked him to buy the business. Paul Stine purchased it July 1, 1940.
Mr. Leu remained president and board chairman until the mid 50’s
when he retired and was succeeded by Mr. Stine. Harry
P. Leu never wanted to hold any political office, but was very active
behind the scenes and contributed greatly to the growth of Orlando.
He fought very hard for Rt. 50, our east-west highway.
He was also responsible for re-routing 17-92 down Mills St. over to
Orange Blossom Trail to Kissimmee. The Leus donated more than $100,000 to
Orlando Junior College, which is now Lake Highland Preparatory School.
Mr. Leu was also a prime mover in getting what is now Loch Haven
Park into the hands of the city.
He helped finance and organize the Greater Orlando Chamber of
Commerce.
It was also through the efforts of Mr. Leu that the Atlantic
Coastline first started overnight train service from Jacksonville to
Orlando.
THE HISTORY OF THE LEU HOUSE MUSEUM FOURTH GRADE EDUCATION PROGRAM Welcome ! Come discover the past at Harry P. Leu Gardens, featuring
the Leu House and its history, mystery and glamour. The four different owners were fascinating people who
represented the life and times of a growing Orlando. It is our intent to
provide an interactive experience for students so that they can get a
sense of what it was like to live in the past. Each period includes hands-on activities, demonstrations and
story-telling. A costumed
person representing one of the owners of Leu House will take the children
on a tour of the house, explaining what it was like when they lived there. Teachers will select one of the time periods and schedule
the fieldtrip. Lesson plans
written by Orange County teachers, reflecting FCAT and Grade
Level Expectations, will be sent to the teachers for pre and post
activities. Our goal is to offer an educational and enjoyable program that gives children a deeper understanding and appreciation of local history.
Field Trip Fees and Registration
The history program is available
on Tuesday and Thursdays from 9:45AM to 12:30PM To schedule, please call the
Education Department at (407)
246-3621. Tours must be
booked 3 weeks in advance.
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