The HARPER House of Montverde
The HARPER Residence of MONTVERDE Harper House, 17498 Porter Ave., Montverde, FL Reuben Wyatt Harper was a bachelor when, in 1891, he acquired the historic residence shown above. The house, located on Porter Street in Montverde, according to Lake County records, was built in 1881. Reuben bought the home a decade after it was built, says a history monument out front of the residence today, first for a store and Montverde Post Office, and later as a personal residence. A Florida Heritage Site, the Harper House is believed to be the oldest building in Montverde. Reuben Harper , born 1863 in Alabama’s Sumter County, came here to Florida’s Sumter County in the 1880s, married Mary Jane McQuaig in 1892, and converted his store into a family residence. Mary Jane was the daughter of Thomas Jefferson & Nancy (Tootle) McQuaig . The McQuaig’s had relocated as well to Sumter County in the 1890s. Montverde Railroad Station Homesteaders began arriving in an area that was to become