El Retiro (Lake Wales, Florida)

This article is about the estate in Florida. For the park in Spain, see Parque del Buen Retiro.
El Retiro
El Retiro (Lake Wales, Florida) is located in Florida
El Retiro (Lake Wales, Florida)
El Retiro (Lake Wales, Florida) is located in the United States
El Retiro (Lake Wales, Florida)
LocationLake Wales, Florida
Coordinates27°56′16″N 81°34′45″W / 27.937741°N 81.579116°W / 27.937741; -81.579116
ArchitectCharles Wait
Architectural styleMediterranean Revival
NRHP reference No.85003331[1]
Added to NRHPDecember 12, 1985

El Retiro (also known as Encierro and as Pinewood Estate) is a historic site in Lake Wales, Florida. It is located at 1151 Tower Blvd, Lake Wales, FL 33853. The 12,900 square foot house was designed by architect Charles R. Wait for the original owner, Charles Austin Buck, a Bethlehem Steel executive.[2]

The design specified a "barrel-tile roof, thick walls, substantial carved doors and woodwork, and intricately detailed wrought iron ... and three large porches". The gardens were designed by William Lyman Phillips of the Olmsted Brothers firm. The work on the property was completed in 1929-1930. Buck owned the home until 1947. It was purchased by Nellie Lee Holt Bok in 1970 and renamed Pinewood Estate. A subsequent restoration of the gardens, to their original design, was completed by landscape architect Rudy Favretti.

Since 1970, the estate has been part of Bok Tower Gardens, and is again known as El Retiro. Visitors to the Bok Tower Gardens may tour the home for an additional fee.[2][3]

On December 12, 1985, the 20 room home was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.[4]

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ a b "El Retiro". Bok Tower Gardens. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  3. ^ "El Retiro". The Cultural Landscape Foundation. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  4. ^ "Bok Tower Gardens". NP Gallery. Retrieved February 16, 2023. Pinewood House and Garden was listed separately in the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 under its original name "El Retiro"