Marjorie Merriweather Post and Edward F . Hutton were the first owners of Mar-a-Lago , and Marjorie retained ownership of the property following their divorce . She held it through her subsequent marriages , and really never considered selling the property to another private owner . During the midsixties Marjorie was considering getting rid of Mir-a-Lago since it had become such a drain on her finances . She wanted to find other uses for the property . She considered giving the property to the state of Florida and she went ahead and approached the state with a proposal for developement . The proposal , the one bound in red leather was declined after the Florida officials studied it and toured the estate . The reasoning for the state to not take on such a project was that the
Top left : April 1967 , Entrance to owner ’ s suite from cloister . Top right : April 1967 , Bas relief , north pavilion of cloister .
Bottom left : April 1967 , Stair lamps and tile in Gothic stair . Bottom right : April 1967 , Overall view of swan fountain below patio on west elevation .
30 PORTFOLIO MAGAZINE