Our Take Mayfair

Peace and quiet, where to find?

Mayfair

Are you living west of Sanford in a gated community? Can you hear the roar of Intrastate 4 late at night?

 Do you play golf on Sanford’s municipal course? Ever wonder how it got its name?

The answers are miles away at the eastern end of the seawall on Lake Monroe.

It is called the Mayfair section of Sanford.

Just before you get to it, you pass two large buildings, one housing the New Tribes Mission and  the other the Seminole County Government Administration Building.

The New Tribes building was formerly the Mayfair Hotel, later the Mayfair Inn.

When the New York Giants baseball team’s owner, Horace Stoneham, bought the hotel, he wanted access to a golf course. The City entered into a 99-year lease with the Giants and they named it the Mayfair Country Club. All were named after the 1920s real estate boom subdivision just to the East.

In the late 20s a mob marched down east 2nd Street into Mayfair with the intention of burning down the residence of the publisher of this newspaper. In some quarters that sentiment has not changed.

Mayfair has many examples of Florida Boom architecture plus more modern and larger homes directly on Seminole Boulevard at the lakefront.

Peace and quiet? There are no through streets. Mayfair is miles from Intrastate 4. It is miles from the Sanford Airport. It is outside any flight path. Golf carts are welcome.