The stately Orman House, centerpiece of the Orman House Historic State Park, recently re-opened after a massive $1.6 million renovation which returned the Federal and Greek Revival architectural gem to her 19^th century glory.

Almost no aspect of the 1838 structure remained untouched. After repairing exterior siding and stabilizing the building, lead based paint abatement was initiated and the exterior was repainted.  Chimneys were also stabilized.

Windows were replaced and new window shutters were custom-built to replace the original shutters which were beyond repair.  The first story porch lumber was replaced, the bow tie railings on the second story were rebuilt, and the second story porch was repaired and given a resinous coating to prevent water intrusion.

The house’s multiple roof levels suffered damage through the years, and they were repaired or replaced. Gutters and downspouts were also added.

The hardwood floors in the library, dining room, and hallway were refinished to their original luster. HVAC ducts were replaced, an ADA-compliant ramp was added to the south side of the house, and worn non-period wallpaper was replaced or removed in favor of painted walls.

The grounds were enhanced with new landscaping and brick walkways around the perimeter.

The house re-opened on November 1, 2025, and a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony  celebrated the extensive renovation on January 9, 2026.

Situated on a bluff overlooking the Apalachicola River, the Orman House was home to one of Apalachicola’s most important merchant families for 156 years. The house was built by Thomas Orman, a prominent commission merchant, and businessman when Apalachicola was a booming and prosperous cotton port. Orman’s mercantile business extended from Apalachicola to Eufaula, Alabama and Columbus, Georgia, with outposts at the many river landings along the Apalachicola River.

The Orman Family

This brief history of the Orman family is provided by Linda White, CSO board member and longtime Orman House volunteer.

The story of this house and the Orman family begins with the grandparents of Thomas Orman who came to this country from the Netherlands through the Dutch Reformed Church in the 1740s and settled in Pennsylvania. Thomas Orman was born on the Onondaga Indian Reservation in Salina, New York, in 1799. His father, also named Thomas Orman, was a salt boiler who brought the first cauldron kettle to the settlement to produce salt. He died when Thomas was 11 years old. Thomas worked for a merchant who was also his father's partner in salt production.

In 1817 at the age of 18, Thomas left his home to make his way in the world. By 1834, he was a wealthy merchant living in Marianna, Florida, with his wife Sarah and baby son William Thomas Orman. Two years later at the age of 37, he moved to the newly established port town of Apalachicola and set up business as a commission merchant.

He built this Federal – Greek revival house consisting of four rooms: two bedrooms upstairs with a parlor and dining room. The kitchen was a separate building attached to the house with a breezeway. In 1869, a newspaper article appeared stating that Orman had raised 1 ½ acres of orange trees on his property from seeds of oranges that came here by ship from Jamaica 30 years earlier, and that he would be harvesting 40,000 oranges from the trees that year.

Thomas Orman lived a long and successful life. By 1870 he owned 40,000 acres of land in five counties here in Florida. He died at the age of 81 from brain fever. At this time his son William and his family came back home to live with his widowed mother. William, a veteran of the Civil War and Senator, built four additional rooms to the back of the house along with the porches.

When William died of yellow fever in 1888 at the age of 58, he left his wife, a daughter, his mother, and a large estate. He owned 66 of the 190 city blocks in town in addition to his father's estate.

Four years later, his daughter Sadie married James Fenimore Cooper Griggs, the Collector of Customs for the area. He built the library on the front of the house to use as a business office. Sadie lived in the house until her death in 1953 at the age of 84. She willed her estate to her second cousin Earl Orman and his wife Mary Iona who had come to live with her during the last few years of her life. Earl was the grandson of Thomas Orman's youngest brother Orris Orman.

Upon their deaths, the house and property was passed on to their daughter Iona Mary Orman Andrews. The state of Florida acquired the house in 2001 and made it a historic state park. To hear more about Thomas Orman and his family, I invite you to tour the house.