Harder Hall

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Harder Hall
(U.S. National Register of Historic Places)

Location:	Sebring, Florida
Added to NRHP:	June 20, 1990

Harder Hall is a historic site in Sebring, Florida. It is located on Little Lake Jackson, at 3300 Golfview Drive. On June 20, 1990, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

1 Original capacity
2 History
- 2.1 Early
- 2.2 Recent
3 External links

[edit] Original capacity

The hotel was designed in the Spanish Revival style of the period and contained 134 rooms. It had approximately 50,000 square feet (4,650 m²) square feet of rooms and halls, 35,000 square feet (3,250 m²) square feet of public areas including a mezzanine lobby. The 4,200 square foot (390 m²) Great Room and Banquet Room both had 22 foot (7 m) ceilings with large french doors that overlook the lake.

[edit] History

[edit] Early

Prior to the Wall Street Crash of 1929, Florida experienced a boom in real estate and tourism. It was during this period that many Spanish style hotels, such as Harder Hall, were built.

The hotel was originally designed by William Manley King, a prominent West Palm Beach architect of the time. Construction began in 1925 and the hotel opened for business in 1927. In subsequent years, guests included President Herbert Hoover, Al Capone, Paul Newman, Steve McQueen, Ali McGraw and Mario Andretti.

In 1928 Harder Hall, a classic Spanish Style hotel and golf resort, was built on the shore of Little Lake Jackson. It was built in Sebring because the city was a stop on the railroad. In 1953 it was bought by Victor and David Jacobson and partners Larry Tennenbaum and Sam Levy. In 1954 Victor commissioned golf course architect Dick Wilson to transform the golf course into a championship layout. Among the major tournaments held at Harder Hall Hotel were the Haig & Haig, a PGA event played by both Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicholas. Other famous guests of the hotel were Paul Newman, Steve Mcqueen, Ali Mcgraw and Mario Andretti. With head pro Ben Roman Victor started the first golf school in the world. Victor and Eva Jacobson also operated Harder Hall Golf and Tennis Camp at the hotel between 1967 and 1980. This was the first and last co-ed, teenage golf and tennis camp in a resort hotel ever and drew campers from all over the world. Victor operated this hotel until the 1981 when he sold it to a bunch of clueless loser shysters who went bankrupt with a half baked plan to build overpriced timeshares. The building has been abandoned ever since. Several renovation projects were started but halted. Several times Harder Hall barely escaped demolition. In fact, a portion housing servant quarters was torn down in 2003.

The building is currently undergoing another renovation. This one has witnessed more work done than all other previous projects combined. Harder Hall is scheduled to reopen in February 2006, with many guest rooms and at least two restaurants. Space is to be rented to other businesses in the building. The golf course is still open and in great condition.

[edit] Recent

Harder Hall closed for business in 1986. Years later, new owners purchased the hotel and began extensive renovations. The revamped Harder Hall is planned for reopening in the fall of 2006 as a resort, with a 102 room capacity.