The district is bounded by Sarasota Bay, Tamiami Trail (U.S. Route 41), Parkview Avenue, and North Shore Drive.

[1][2] Architecture (including walls and gateways), landscape architecture, art, sculpture, as well as social and humanitarian factors are cited on the 1980 nomination form as the significant qualification factors for listing the district.

The district was the first National Register of Historic Places nomination for a site in the city of Sarasota.

The estates associated with three of the homes are the part of the New College of Florida campus that is west of Bay Shore Road, all except that of John Ringling.

This article about a property in Sarasota County, Florida on the National Register of Historic Places is a stub.