Bartow, Florida

The following buildings in Bartow were added to the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Bartow Multiple Property Submission (or MPS).

The Lawrence Brown House, better known as the L.B. Brown House, is the home built by Lawrence Bernard Brown a self-made businessman, community leader, and master carpenter. It may be the only home built by a former enslaved person left in Florida. The house "stands as a living testimony to one person's triumph over adversity."Until 1989, was known as the "Thomas House." It wasn't until the death of the former resident, Lavina Thomas, that the original builder was discovered.The house is located at 470 L.B. Brown Avenue, Bartow, Florida 33830 (formerly 2nd Ave). Clifton Lewis, president of Corporation Of Neighborhood Improvement and other Bartow residents set about restoring old homes in the early 1990s. When Robert Brown, son of L.B., came to look at his childhood home, he casually mentioned to Lewis, his father had built the house. From that point on, it was known as the L.B. Brown Home and the street name was officially changed from 2nd Ave., to L.B. Brown Avenue.The L.B. Brown House was added to the National Register of Historic Places, a division of the National Park Service, on January 4, 2001. The house was completed in 1892. Every year the town of Bartow recognizes L.B. Brown's "life and achievements" at the annual L.B. Brown Festival, usually held mid-February.The L.B. Brown house will be represented at the new National Museum of African American History and Culture. There will be cornerstone with L.B. Brown's name on it.

Thompson and Company Cigar Factory is a national historic site located at 255 North Third Street, Bartow, Florida in Polk County. It was used by the Thompson Cigar, established in Florida in 1915. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 9, 2002.

The Wonder House, is a private residence in Bartow, Polk County Florida, that offers historic tours by online advance reservation. The Wonder House was built by Conrad Schuck, who was given only 1 year to live by his doctors.

The John J. Swearingen House (also known as the R.H. Langford House) is a historic home in Bartow, Florida, designed by B. Clayton Bonfoey. It is located at 690 East Church Street. On May 13, 1982, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

The Benjamin Franklin Holland House (also known as The Gables or Roy Trent Gallemore House) is a historic home in Bartow, Florida. It is located at 590 East Stanford Street. Benjamin Franklin Holland was the father of Spessard Holland, one of Florida's governors as well as a United States senator representing the state. On April 3, 1975, the house was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

The Northeast Bartow Residential District is a historic district in Bartow, Florida. Composed of an area bounded by Jackson and 1st Avenues and by Church and Boulevard Streets, the district includes twenty-six contributing properties. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

The Bartow Downtown Commercial District (also known as the Old Polk County Courthouse) is a historic district in central Bartow, Florida. Composed of an area bounded by Floral and 1st Avenues and Main and Vine Streets, the district includes 204 contributing properties. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

The South Florida Military and Educational Institute was established in 1895 by Evander M. Law in Bartow, Florida, United States, and is considered one of several predecessors of the University of Florida. It was renamed the South Florida Military College in 1903 and was granted the authority to confer degrees. The school stressed scientific and technological studies. The college was abolished in 1905 by the Buckman Act and some of its civil engineering equipment was transferred to the University of Florida at Gainesville. The college's remaining building is a historic site located at 1100 South Broadway which served as a dormitory, and after the college's closure as a private home. On July 24, 1972, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Bartow Senior High School is the only high school in Bartow, Florida. It resulted from a merger of the whites-only Summerlin Institute and Union Academy, a school for African Americans, after desegregation.

The Bartow Downtown Commercial District (also known as the Old Polk County Courthouse) is a historic district in central Bartow, Florida. Composed of an area bounded by Davidson and Summerlin Streets and Broadway and Florida Avenues, the district includes twenty-one contributing properties. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.

The Old Polk County Courthouse (also known as the Imperial Polk County Courthouse) (constructed in 1908–09) is an historic courthouse in Bartow, Florida, located at 100 East Main Street. It was ostensibly designed in the Classical Revival style by architect Edward Columbus Hosford. On August 7, 1989, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The Polk County Historical Museum is located in the courthouse.