Originally named after the Sanford Mayor and president of Seminole County Bank, construction of the Forrest Lake Hotel began in 1916. Local architect Elton J. Moughton designed the hotel. In 1925, Hotel Forrest Lake opened and became a popular destination for tourists visiting Sanford. By 1929, the hotel closed after the stock market crash and the downfall of Florida's tourism and real estate boom. William E. Kirchhoff leased the building in 1934 and the hotel reopened in 1935 with the new name Mayfair Hotel. Under Kirchhoff's ownership, the Mayfair Hotel became known as one of the finest hotels in the South. Kirchhoff sold the hotel in 1948 to Horace Stoneham, owner of the New York Giants. Stoneham then sold the building to the Bernard McFadden Foundation. After the Naval Air Station Sanford acquired $1.3 million to fund the construction of a naval academy in 1963, the Foundation made significant alterations to the building to house students from the Sanford Naval Academy. The Foundation later sold the building to the New Tribes Mission in 1977. The New Tribes Mission's goal is to reach tribes who have no access to the Gospel through translated publications and missionary work.]]> The Seminole Herald]]> The Seminole Herald: Cities/Towns-Sanford Collection, Library and Archives, Orange County Regional History Center, Orlando, Florida.]]> The Seminole Herald.]]> Library and Archives, Orange County Regional History Center, Orlando, Florida.]]> Hotel Forrest Lake Collection, Sanford Collection, Seminole County Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.]]> Politics, Tourism, Education, Non-Profits...Oh My!" RICHES of Central Florida.]]> The Seminole Herald.]]> The Seminole Herald and is provided here by RICHES of Central Florida for educational purposes only.]]>