College Park in Orlando in Orange County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Jack Kerouac House

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, October 20, 2014

1. Jack Kerouac House Marker

Inscription. Writer Jack Kerouac (1922-1969) lived and wrote in this 1920s tin-roofed house between 1957 and 1958. It was here that Kerouac received instant fame for publication of his bestselling book, On the Road, which brought him acclaim and controversy as the voice of The Beat Generation. The Beats followed a philosophy of self-reliance and self-expression. The unedited spontaneity of Kerouac's prose shocked traditional writers, yet it brought attention to a legion of emerging poets, musicians, and artists who lived outside the conventions of post-World War II America. Photographs show Kerouac in the house's back bedroom, with piles of pocket notebooks in which he scrawled thoughts and dreams while traveling. In April 1958, following completion of his follow-up novel, The Dharma Bums, and a play, the Beat Generation, Kerouac moved to Northport, New York. He died in 1969 at the age of 47. In 1996, author Bob Kealing discovered the house's significance while researching an article to mark Kerouac's 75th birthday. In 1998, The Kerouac Project established a retreat here for aspiring writers in tribute to him. In 2013, the house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Erected 2014 by The Jack Kerouac Writer in Residence Project and the Florida Department of State. (Marker

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Number F-806.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Arts, Letters, Music.

Location. 28° 33.877′ N, 81° 23.49′ W. Marker is in Orlando, Florida, in Orange County. It is in College Park. It is at the intersection of Clouser Avenue and Shady Lane Drive, on the left when traveling north on Clouser Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1418 Clouser Avenue, Orlando FL 32804, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Central Florida.

It is also in the American South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Lake Adair~Lake Concord Historic District (approx. half a mile away); Astronaut John Watts Young (approx. half a mile away); Lake Ivanhoe Residential Historic District (approx. 0.6 miles away); The Black Bottom House of Prayer (approx. 1.2 miles away); Dubsdread Golf Course (approx. 1.3 miles away); Original Jones High School / Callahan Elementary School (approx. 1.4 miles away); The Red-Tail Pilots of the Tuskegee Airmen (approx. 1½ miles away); Loch Haven Park (approx. 1.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Orlando.

Also see . . .
1. The Kerouac Project. (Submitted on March 22, 2016, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida.)
2. Wikipedia Entry for Jack Kerouac. “He is considered a literary iconoclast

Jack Kerouac House image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tim Fillmon, October 20, 2014

2. Jack Kerouac House

and, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Kerouac is recognized for his method of spontaneous prose. Thematically, his work covers topics such as Catholic spirituality, jazz, promiscuity, Buddhism, drugs, poverty, and travel. He became an underground celebrity and, with other beats, a progenitor of the hippie movement, although he remained antagonistic toward some of its politically radical elements.” (Submitted on March 11, 2017.)

3. On the Road at Amazon.com. This page has the “Look Inside” the book feature. Quote from Page 4: “As far as my work was concerned he said ‘Go ahead, everything you do is great.’ He watched over my shoulder as I wrote stories, yelling, ‘Yes! That’s right! Wow! Man!’ and ‘Phew!’ and wiped his face with his handkerchief. ‘Man, wow, there’s so many things to do, so many things to write! How to even begin to get it all down and without modified restraints and all hung-up on the literary inhibitions and grammatical fears . . .’” (Submitted on March 12, 2017.) This website may earn income if you use this link to make a purchase on Amazon.com.

Jack Kerouac image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Tom Palumbo, circa 1956

3. Jack Kerouac

Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2024. It was originally submitted on March 22, 2016, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 2,668 times since then and 74 times this year. It was the Marker of the Week March 12, 2017. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 22, 2016, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. 3. submitted on March 11, 2017. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.