Anderson House

Originally intended for Robert Coffey, the Anderson House was built in 1961 and donated by Martin Anderson, a publisher of the Orlando Daily Newspapers Inc. Located by Lake Ivanhoe in downtown Orlando, the house was “built like a vault” in similar architectural style as those on the Rollins campus. At the time of donation, the large property with 3,500square feet of building space and a pool in the back was valued at between $150,000 and $175,000.

Interior of Anderson House

In early 1962, President Hugh McKean (’30 ’72H) announced his grand plan for Anderson House. In concordance with the space program proposed by President John F. Kennedy, McKean wanted the property to be used as a space school attached to the Rollins’ Physics Department. His idea was to have Rollins College be the very center for learning about space, “Man stares at the heavens with less frustration and awe… Endless research must be done and young people must learn. It would be exciting beyond the imagination.” Though wholeheartedly supported by faculty and staff, the plan was not viewed favorably by the local residents surrounding the house. With beliefs that zoning change would make the property values go down, the neighbors lead a strong campaign against it being incorporated as classrooms for a large and important program such as space studies. After some struggles, the idea was dropped; hence President McKean proposal for a space travel study never came into fruition. Anderson House was used as storage by Rollins until 1968, when it was sold to Mrs. Frank W. Murphy, a daughter of Martin Anderson. In 1999, the property was again sold, and the structure was torn down to build three new houses.

Sideview of Anderson House