Cody Fowler House

Text

Situated on the top of the hill on Sleepy Hollow Avenue is the Cody Fowler House. The home was built in 1922- 1923 by architect M. Leo Elliot; the domed roof can be seen in several of his builds. (example photo 2) The home is considered part of the Mediterranean Revival building style. This style movement drew heavily on the style of seaside villas and was popular in Florida and California through the 1920s and 1930s. During the 1970s the domed roof was removed, and the entry way relocated, a loggia (a covered gallery with one open exterior wall), and large detached guest quarter were added. The house was situated on 5 lots, and currently sits at 5,107 square feet with an additional 1477 square feet included in the guest cottage. It includes expansive views of the golf course and river.

The Fowler house was last sold in 2011, currently holds an estimated value of one million dollars, and is still in use as a private residence. Sources are unclear if the house was originally owned by Cody or Maud Fowler and who it was sold to later. However, the more reliable sources show the original owner as Maud Fowler and that the house was sold to Cody Fowler in 1926. Both were major participants in the development and growth of Temple Terrace and were very well-known figures.

Maud Fowler was a guiding force in the growth of the area. Maud moved to Temple Terrace in 1920 for closer oversight of the Temple Terrace project, which led to the incorporation of Temple Terrace. Maud Fowler would go on to become the first city Vice Mayor of Temple Terrace and Fowler Avenue is named in her honor. Cody Fowler was directly involved in many aspects of Temple Terrace. Arriving in 1924, he would go on to draft the city charter to incorporate the city of Temple Terrace. He would serve as a city attorney and a term as mayor in 1928. He would later move focus to Tampa where he chartered First Federal (later known as Freedom Savings and Loan Association), which was directly responsible for home loans in Tampa’s emerging communities as there was no other competition at the time. He would be elected president to the American Bar Association in 1950. Cody Fowler is also well known for his participation in the Tampa Bi-Racial Commission and his willingness to represent non-white clients in court. The Tampa Bi-Racial Commission became a driving force behind desegregation throughout the Tampa area, with Cody Fowler working directly with organizations such as the NAACP and Merchants Association. Fowler White Boggs, Cody Fowler’s Tampa law firm, is still in operation today.

Tampa Historical is created by student reserach.
Learn more About Tampa Historical.