Church of Scientology monthly “Historic Buildings Tour” Welcomes Guests to Clearwater Icons

CLEARWATER, Fla., March 01, 2017 -- Clearwater natives, long-term residents and out-of-state visitors gathered Saturday afternoon, 25^th of February at the Historic Fort Harrison for a tour of two historic buildings owned by the Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization.

The Historic Fort Harrison, the International Religious retreat for the Church of Scientology, welcomes parishioners from all over the world. Monthly guided tours are now available to the community of this landmark and the Historic Clearwater Building housing the Scientology Information Center.

The tour began at the Fort Harrison, the Church of Scientology’s Religious Retreat and 90-year-old icon, with a brief introduction as to how the Fort Harrison got its name. Guests toured the Crystal Ballroom with its chandelier of 11,000 Bohemian crystals, oval oak wood dance floor and panoramic view of the inter-coastal water way. Next guests viewed one of the 220 guest rooms, the Tea Lounge, board rooms, restaurants and gift shop.

The tour then took visitors to the Clearwater Building, located on the corner of Cleveland Street and Fort Harrison Avenue. Originally built in 1918 and serving as the home to the first Clearwater Bank, the building was purchased in 1975 by the Church of Scientology for administrative purposes. In July 2015, the Church fully restored the building and re-opened it as the Scientology Information Center open to the community. The Center houses a gallery of audio-visual displays with some 400 videos allowing guests a self-guided tour showing basic Scientology beliefs, who L. Ron Hubbard was, Churches around the world and ongoing social programs.

The Manager of the Center informed guests of the architectural history of the building and answered questions about Scientology’s religious nature, how the Church helps in the community, the difference between the staff of the Church and parishioners and more.

One local resident named Jeff said, “I expected a lot from this tour and got way more than I expected out of it. Keep up the good work!”

The tour concluded with a gift bag and complimentary brochure covering the Church of Scientology’s activities in the local community for the year 2016.

The next Historical Buildings Tour is on March 25^th.
To learn more about the tour or to RSVP please contact Amber at 727-467-6966 or [email protected].

The Church of Scientology:

The Scientology religion was founded by humanitarian and philosopher, L. Ron Hubbard. The first Church of Scientology was formed in the United States in 1954 and has expanded to more than 11,000 churches, missions and affiliated groups in 167 nations. The Church of Scientology regularly engages in humanitarian programs and community events. Clearwater is the home of the spiritual headquarters for the Church of Scientology. 

For more information please visit www.scientology-fso.org.

Amber Skjelset
(727) 467-6966