Don't miss the 17th Annual Trinity Episcopal Church Historic Apalachicola Home & Garden Tour. Many of Apalachicola's private homes and buildings can only be viewed from the exterior except for this unique day. For a $15.00 donation you can take a guided tour through architecturally and historically significant homes, churches and commercial building

This year’s event will begin Friday evening, May 1, at historic Trinity Episcopal Church, 79 6th Street, with Evensong at 5:30 p.m. Following the service, at 6:30 p.m., Mark Tarmey, an experienced preservation architect, will present a free lecture entitled, “The Economic Benefits of Historic Preservation”. Tarmey is President of the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation and is currently involved in several preservation projects through the 4M Design Group which he heads.

• Registration for the Tour begins at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 2, 2009 at Trinity Church.
• Advance tickets, which are $15, may be purchased before May 2 by calling Trinity Church (850) 653-9550, or the Chamber of Commerce (850) 653-9419 and may be picked up on the day of the tour from 10:00AM to 3:00PM. 
• Tickets on the day of the tour are $20 and may be purchased at Trinity Church from 10 AM to 3 PM.
• A silent auction is also planned from 10 AM to 3PM.
• A gourmet lunch will be available for $10 and will be offered in Trinity's Benedict Hall from 11 AM to 2 PM.

Ticket holders will receive a tour brochure which contains brief histories of the homes and a map on the day of the tour. The featured home for this year's historic tour will be the former home of world-renowned botanist Dr. Alvin Wentworth Chapman author of Flora of the Southern United States. 2009 commemorates the 200th anniversary of his birth. The Chapman home was recently purchased by Dr. Helen Tudor of New York City. Renovation of the property is underway with plans to devote the first floor to a museum.