Save the Tilghman House

Palatka Art League is proud to call the historic Tilghman House home.  Without the Tilghman House, the Palatka Art League would be homeless.  So we  are asking for help to keep this historic house.  The Tilghman House, a 3 story Georgian, Circa 1884,  belongs to the City of Palatka and we are their tenant.

There is damage from wet rot to exterior sidings, porch floors, rear exit door and extensive termite infestation. Lack of funds to stop the termites will result in continued infestation leading to massive deterioration of the house.  We have applied for a grant from the State of Florida however the funds will not be released until 2019 and at this time we don't know if we will even get the grant.  We need to have the termites stopped now! Not a year from now.

Maintaining this historic property is so important because it hosts our on going events and programs that bring people from our county, neighboring counties, snowbirds, and tourists from other states. One of the reasons people love to attend our events is because they enjoy looking at and learning about Florida history, architecture, the beautiful woodwork native to the area, and the way people lived in the past.

Participation in our events provides for scholarships that are given out annually to local art students at our local St. John's River State College. Some of our participating artists also depend on the money they receive through the sales of their arts and crafts thereby supplementing their modest incomes.
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Many of our patrons enjoy learning of this building and the historic Southside neighborhood through the Tilghman House pamphlet, which is posted and available for anyone who asks. This informative pamphlet gives detailed information specific to this property. We also have an informational bulletin board showing photos of the renovation and repairs done to the Tilghman House in 2007. This board is available to all of our visitors and patrons.

The Tilghman House is only 2 blocks from the City of Palatka's downtown business district which is painted with multiple historic murals depicting the local heritage and where we derive our nickname, "City of Murals". The House is directly across the street from a riverfront park, marina and boat launch. We are also located only a couple of miles from beautiful Ravine Gardens State Park. Many visitors attending these various venues, also tour The South Historic District of which the Tilghman House is an integral part! ******************************************************************************************************************
When these emergency repairs are completed we can once again proudly show off our wonderful Tilghman House without having people noticing the sad disrepair, the termite infestation .