THE PALMS
WILLIAM KIMBROUGH PENDLETON HOUSE:  EUSTIS, FLORIDA

By  Mike Miller January 10, 2026

When I first saw the William Kimbrough Pendleton House in a modern Eustis subdivision, I assumed it was a modern home made to look vintage.

The house is on a quiet street that leads south from East Lakeview Avenue in Eustis.  You can catch a glimpse of it if you look down Chesterfield Court as you drive by.

The house is a graceful reminder of Central Florida’s early post-Civil War era.  Known originally and locally as The Palms, this vintage residence was built around 1876 and later became the retirement home of one of the region’s most intriguing early settlers.

Today it holds a place on the National Register of Historic Places to honor its place as the home of an early pioneer and Florida’s slow transformation from frontier to flourishing community.

When you wander past the broad porch and tall windows of the Pendleton House, you’re glimpsing a piece of Gilded Age charm that grew up alongside the lakes and groves of Lake County.

The home was originally constructed in the late 1870s in what was then a sparsely populated part of Florida, long before the citrus industry boom brought busier roads and rail lines to the region.

William Kimbrough Pendleton was no ordinary retiree. Born in Virginia in 1817, Pendleton made his mark as an educator and scholar, serving as the second president of Bethany College in West Virginia before ill health led him south.

When he settled into The Palms in 1886, he expanded the original structure with Victorian-era details that reflected both his refined tastes and the architectural trends of the day.

The resulting home was considered one of Central Florida’s showplaces in its time.

After Pendleton’s death in 1899, the house passed through several hands but retained its historic character.

It was finally recognized on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983, a testament to both its architectural charm and the story of a learned man.

The William Kimbrough Pendleton House is located at 1208 Chesterfield Court in Eustis, a short drive from the old downtown district where historic homes and moss-draped oaks recall the city’s roots.

Unlike some historic sites that operate as museums, The Palms remains a private residence, so visitors should appreciate its beauty from the sidewalk or the window of their car and respect the privacy of current occupants.

If you’re charting Florida backroads and chasing the stories behind old timber and shuttered porches, the Pendleton House is a subtle but rewarding waypoint on your journey through the Sunshine State’s past.

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