The Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum bought 105 St. George St. in St. Augustine for $4.5 million on Jan. 26.
The sellers were Richard Pinto and his wife, Mary Dee Stensgaard, and Michael and Pamela Pounds.
The 3,847-square-foot building was constructed on 0.16 acre in 1809.
Cheryl Alleman, Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum CFO and daughter of the founder, the late David Karpeles, said the St. Augustine location is a perfect fit.
“We are sure that it is a record sale for that street,” she said. “We wanted it because of the high volume of traffic.”
The Casa Rodriguez property at 52 St. George St. last sold at auction for $2.31 million in 2020.
At one time there were as many as 16 Karpeles Manuscript Library Museums around the country, including one in Jacksonville that closed in January 2023 after 30 years.
The family is now consolidating to five or six locations, she said. It is one of the reasons they sought the St. George Street location.
“My father wanted it to be available to people everywhere. St. Augustine answers a lot of those questions for us. People from all around the country and from around the world come there,” Alleman said.
The Jacksonville location had been open for 30 years at 101 W. First St. in Springfield.
That building was built in the early 20th century and it had flooding problems, Alleman said.
Plans in St. Augustine are for a July opening after interior renovations are completed. Len Weeks Construction Design Development of St. Augustine is the contractor. No project budget has been set.
“We don’t know yet. He doesn’t know what to quote us until we open up the walls. When you’re dealing with a 215-year-old building nothing is cut and dry. We are going to do what we need to do to make it solid and work for our purposes,” she said.
Karpeles Manuscript Library Museums display historic manuscripts, musical compositions, treaties, drawings, maps and letters. In all there are more than 10,000 subjects covered, she said.
Its mission statement is: “We are committed to making valuable historic materials accessible to the public and fostering a deeper appreciation for the written record of human history through free admission, rotating exhibits and educational programs. We invite visitors of all ages to gain insights into the events and individuals that have shaped our collective past.”
There already is a Karpeles Manuscript Library Mini Museum at 106 St. George St. It is 94 square feet.
Reproductions of some of the more popular manuscripts and drawings are on the walls.
Reproductions are shown there to thwart thievery.
The mini museum has three years remaining on that lease and may remain open to serve as advertising for the larger museum across the street.
“We may have the smallest walk-in museum in the country. It is about the size of a bedroom. Maybe it will allow for six to eight people to look at the manuscripts,” she said.
Admission will continue to be free, she said. The museum’s business model involves selling less valuable portions of the collection and seeking donations when possible.
The Jacksonville museum at 101 W. First St. in historic Springfield now is called Karpeles Grand and is marketed as an event venue. Joshua Pardu of Tampa owns the building. It was built a century ago as the First Church of Christ, Scientist, according to its Facebook page.
It says it features 30-foot-high ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows and a mezzanine. Its grand ballroom can hold up to 240 seated guests.