Villa Zorayda

Villa Zorayda was constructed in 1883 as the winter home of Franklin Smith, a Boston millionaire inspired by the Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain, and built as an exact replica of one wing of the palace at one-tenth of the original size. The 12th century palace had been built by the Moors, who ruled Spain for six centuries before being expelled in 1492. Smith, a gifted amateur architect, designed the house himself, using the innovative technique of poured concrete reinforced with crushed coquina stone, and many materials used in finishing the residence were imported from Spain. In 1913, the building was bought by Abraham S. Mussallem. In 1922, it became a nightclub and gambling casino, which closed in 1925 when Florida outlawed gambling. In 1936, it opened as a tourist attraction called the Zorayda Castle, exhibiting items fitting the building's architectural theme. The property was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

St. Augustine, Florida · United States