Eugene Lawrence Architectural Collection

Collection

Identifier: EL.00

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Eugene Lawrence Collection contains photographs and newspaper clippings of and relating to properties designed and built by Eugene Lawrence and the Lawrence group between 1965-2013. Properties are both residential and commercial, and center in Palm Beach, Florida, although Lawrence did design buildings in other locations within the Palm Beach County, Florida region.

Dates

Majority of material found within 1960 - 2010

Creator

Lawrence, Gene (Clifford Eugene Lawrence Jr.), 1924-2013 (Person)

Conditions Governing Use

The Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational, and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions. The materials within the collections held by the Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach Archives are intended for research, educational, or informational purposes only. Materials in these collections may be under copyright protection, and copyright restrictions may apply. Written permission must be obtained from the copyright holder and the Preservation Foundation Archives to copy, publish, or otherwise reproduce.

Biographical / Historical

Clifford Eugene “Gene” Lawrence, Jr. was a talented, acclaimed and prolific Palm Beach architect with many premier residential and commercial buildings spanning the time period from the 1960s to 2013.

A native of North Florida, Gene Lawrence graduated cum laude from the University of Florida’s College of Architecture and Fine Arts in 1957 and then served in the Navy’s Civil Engineering Corps before coming to Palm Beach. After moving to Palm Beach, he worked with various architectural and engineering firms in Florida before opening his private practice, The Lawrence Group Architects, in 1965 in an office at 205 Worth Avenue. He continued working in that building for 47 years until his retirement in 2013.

Thousands of condominium homes in Palm Beach are in buildings designed by Lawrence. In addition to The Reef, his work includes the residential buildings at Sloan’s Curve, the Sun and Surf, L’Ermitage of Palm Beach, Parc Regent, Sutton Place, Ambassador South, The Cove, The Regency of Palm Beach, Il Lugano and the Bellaria. Lawrence’s firm also redesigned the Palm Beach Biltmore as part of the former hotel’s conversion into condominiums.