It was soon decided that the classical style of the exterior would be featured in the interior but blended with early American historical and local detail. To make this combination work, we decided to place all the antiques, both European and American primitive, on plinths, giving a "museum like" feeling to the interior of the bank.

Interior designer, Michael Blocker searched the south and northeast for furniture, antiques and paneling. As customers enter the front door, they pass through a large wood-paneled archway which came from an estate in Bath, England. As customers enter the lobby, they see a pair of lead/zinc garden deer from upstate New York. Paneling in parts of the bank is made from Cypress and came from an old house in Charleston, S.C.. The cabinets showcase Indian and other local artifacts reflecting the area's early history.

Art in the bank, much from the private collection of Luther Drummond, compliments the various periods and styles of furnishings.

Robert Jackson, a muralist and master of trompe l'oeil artistry from New York City, was engaged to apply his talent to the interior walls. Mr. Jackson's work appears in the American Wing period room of the Metropolitan Museum of Art as well as in many other historical buildings and homes throughout the United States. Perhaps the most important attraction in the bank's lobby is the Mitchell map. There are only about twelve known maps to exit today, and the bank is lucky to own one. The Mitchell map is often described by historians as one of the most important maps in North American History. This map was the most comprehensive map produced in the 1700's and was used by Lewis & Clark in their exploration of the west. The map is still referred to today in settling boundary disputes between states.

Behind the teller line is a huge glass window where customers can look out to a walled-in court yard, complete with a fountain. This area has been used by the community, for weddings, receptions honoring Florida's governor, chamber socials and many other community events.

As technology evolved, the need for customers to come into the bank lobby diminished, but the customers using the drive thru increased. Therefore, we expanded our drive thru lanes and decided to double the size of the glass window and created a room behind the glass that expanded our uniquely-decorated lobby to the drive thru area. We know of no other bank that has done this. Opposite the drive-thru window, we walled in an area and planted a garden, so no matter what lane a customer is in, they have something beautiful to look at.