Mount Dora — Lakefront Districts

Mount Dora's origin story begins with a government survey in 1846 that recorded the Lake Dora area, followed by David Simpson and his family settling what would become the town site in 1874. The community grew around a ridge — remarkable in flat Florida — that sits approximately 184 feet above sea level, giving the town its 'mount' prefix. The lake was named for Dora Ann Drawdy, an early settler of the area in the mid-1880s, and the town was formally renamed after the lake in 1883, replacing the informal name Royellou (a combination of early postmaster Ross C. Tremain's children's names: Roy, Ella, and Louis).

The Alexander House hotel opened in 1883 to serve winter visitors drawn by the climate and the boating on Lake Dora. The arrival of the railroad in 1887 expanded that tourism base and brought freight commerce, and in 1910 Mount Dora was formally chartered with 371 residents and John Philip Donnelly as its first mayor. The early 1920s land boom brought residential expansion and the construction of many of the Victorian, Queen Anne, and Craftsman homes that survive in the Historic District today. The Lakeside Inn, opened in 1883 and continuously operating since 1883, is one of the oldest operating hotels in Florida and remains a centerpiece of Mount Dora's identity.

Mount Dora consciously developed its antique and arts character in the latter decades of the 20th century as the retail and cultural economy shifted toward specialty markets. The Mount Dora Art Festival — drawing an estimated 150,000 to 200,000 people annually — and the Mount Dora Craft Fair are among Florida's most-attended arts events. The lakefront districts, particularly Sylvan Shores and the properties on Lake Dora and Lake Gertrude, have attracted buyers seeking a combination of genuine small-town character and lakefront access that is nearly impossible to find elsewhere in Florida at comparable price points.