Fun in the sunshine city Tour 1 • April 10, 2014 The beginning portion of this tour follows Central Avenue from downtown through western St.Petersburg and Pasadena to the barrier island communities of Island and St. Pete Beach. From St. Pete Beach, we cross the to Bradenton and the ultimate destination for the trip, Sarasota.

St. Petersburg to Sarasota Tour 1 • April 10, 2014 • 9 am – 6 pm Presented by the Society for Commercial Archeology with generous support from the Historic Preservation Division of the City of St. Petersburg, Kilby Creative, and Archaeological Consultants, Inc St. Petersburg We will start this tour in downtown The current bandshell, designed St. Petersburg at the Pennsylvania by architect William “Bill” Harvard in Hotel, now a Courtyard Marriott 1952, won an Award for Excellence in Hotel which is serving as the confer- Architecture from the national American ence hotel. Situated on the corner of Institute of Architects. He later designed 4th Street North and 3rd Avenue, the the inverted pyramid pier. In the early Pennsylvania was built by Harry C. years, shuffleboard, roque, chess, and Case in 1925. In the next few blocks, dominoes attracted tourists to the park. we will pass the Mirror Lake When clubs formed and attempted to Carnegie Library, completed in limit the park’s use to their members, 1915 and situated on Mirror Lake, the heirs of John Williams sued as it was the source of the City’s early water dedicated as a public park for all citizens. supply and St. Petersburg’s WPA funded This led to the creation of the Mirror 1937 City Hall, the location for the Lake Recreation Complex. paper sessions for the conference. As we reach the corner of 4th Street and 2nd Avenue North, we will face Williams Park, named in honor of Detroit native and City founder, John C. Williams. Dedicated as park on the city plat, Williams Park originally held a gazebo before a series of bandshells replaced it.

2 Fun in the Sunshine City The arrival of John Williams in literature cited the 1885 annual conven- 1875 and the Orange Belt Railroad in tion of the American Medical Associa- 1888 served as the major impetus to the tion where Dr. Van Bibber endorsed the formation of St. Petersburg. Hamilton peninsula as the perfect location Disston, who owned and developed for a “Health City”. These excursions thousands of acres in during were one of the first concentrated efforts the 1880s, financed the construction by the community and the development of the Orange Belt Railroad to the company to attract tourists. Although the sparsely settled Pinellas Peninsula under Orange Belt’s advertising efforts failed to the assumption that the railroad would save the company, Frank Davis, a promi- terminate in his newest development, nent publisher from Philadelphia who Disston City (now Gulfport). Instead, arrived in Florida to alleviate his own Orange Belt owner, Peter Demens, built health problems, utilized Dr. Van Bib- the narrow gauge railroad to land situ- ber’s endorsement to heavily promote the ated northeast of Disston City owned by benefits of St. Petersburg. Davis, along John C. Williams. Demens and Williams with other new residents including St. collaborated in their plans to build a new Petersburg Times editor William Straub community around the terminus of the and St. Petersburg Evening Independent railroad complete with a depot, hotel, editor Lew Brown, tirelessly promoted and city park. In exchange for naming the community during the late 1800s the city after Demens’ birthplace, St. and early 1900s. The creation of St. Petersburg, Demens named the hotel Petersburg’s waterfront park system and after Williams’ hometown, Detroit. The the construction of the Electric Pier drew lots surrounding the new depot, the additional tourists and new residents to Detroit Hotel, and the city park quickly the area. filled with new construction. Three of Largely through the efforts of city the main city churches fronted the park boosters to attract businesses and resi- including St. Peter’s Episcopal Cathedral, dents, developers such as Frank A. Davis, First United Methodist Church, and the H. Walter Fuller, Noel Mitchell, Charles First Baptist Church, of which only the Hall, Charles Roser, and C. Perry Snell front façade remains. triggered the city’s first real estate land In an effort to boost profits, the Rail- boom from 1909 to the start of World way started offering seaside excursions War I. Promotional efforts by the to St. Petersburg in 1889. Promotional Atlantic Coast Line railroad (formerly

St. Pete to Sarasota 3 the Orange Belt Railroad and Henry The lack of hotel space and the boom- Plant’s South Florida Railroad) brought ing economy during the late 1910s and organized tourist trains from early 1920s led to the conversion of a in 1909 and from the Midwest in 1913. number of private residences into board- Many of these tourists continued to ing houses or small hotels. Developers winter or permanently moved to St. remedied the lack of hotel rooms with Petersburg. With approximately 83 real the construction of eleven large hotels estate companies operating in the city in within or near the city limits between 1914, the focus turned increasingly to 1922 and 1926, eight of which were in winter residents with the local popula- the downtown area. Among these, the tion doubled during the season. These Princess Martha Hotel and winter residents even formed tourist the Hotel Dennis front Willliams societies organized by state or region of Park. Across from the Princess Martha origin which acted as booster clubs in Hotel, the Mediterranean Revival Open their native states. Air Post Office was constructed in St. Petersburg quickly rebounded 1916. Celebrating the temperate climate, following World War I with the winter the post office remained open air with season of 1918-1919 more profitable outside counters until 1969. South of than before the war. Thanks in part to the post office, the Snell Arcade, the efforts of John Lodwick, publicity developed by C. Perry Snell, remains one agent for the Chamber of Commerce, of the landmark Mediterranean Revival the hotels and boarding houses were style buildings in St. Petersburg. Snell, filled to capacity during the season. The who came to St. Petersburg in 1904, construction of a national, state, and developed large portions of the city local road system opened St. Petersburg including most of the northeast quadrant to an increasing number of middle-class prior to building his namesake building vacationers and “tin-can tourists.” The in 1928. It was designed by architect city’s shortage of hotel rooms led to the Richard Kiehnel of Miami and retains its 1920 creation of Tent City, a municipal ground floor arcade. campground for the “tin-can tourists”. A relatively healthy tourist trade kept the local economy afloat following the downturn of the real estate market in 1926 and the devastating hurricanes which damaged south Florida in 1926 and 1928. With the crash of the stock market in 1929, St. Petersburg suffered an economic loss due to the lack of

4 Fun in the Sunshine City which occupied the 2nd and 3rd stories of the hotel building, was removed. The buildings remain vacant, embroiled in disagreements among the heirs of the Pheil family. Although tourism had rebounded to some extent by 1940, the activation of the military, rationing, and travel restrictions during World War II severely curtailed St. Petersburg’s tourism based economy. Most of the city’s hotels and boarding houses remained empty during the winter of 1941-42, and new construction virtually halted. Realizing that the empty rooms could be an asset as military housing, city leaders success- fully lobbied the War Department for a military base. The opening of a technical services training center for the Army Air Corps brought over ten thousand soldiers to the city during the summer of 1942. tourist traffic during the ensuing national The military leased almost every major depression. A dismal tourist season dur- hotel and many of the smaller hotels in ing the winter of 1929-1930 led to the city. Only the Suwannee Hotel and business failures, mortgage foreclosures, some of the smaller hotels and boarding and unemployment in the city. Snell houses were open to civilian use. By the lost his arcade in the bust. Every bank in time the training center closed in July the city failed and closed by April 1931, 1943, over 100,000 soldiers had visited including the Central National Bank, St. Petersburg. Although the training located across Central Avenue from the center closed, the United States Maritime Snell Arcade. Service Bayboro Harbor Base, which The former Central National trained merchant seamen, continued Bank, built in 1912, and the Pheil to grow, and eventually leased four of Hotel and Theater, built the downtown hotels abandoned by between 1916 and 1924 by former the Army Air Corps. Other bases and mayor A.C. Pheil, lie beneath the metal support facilities throughout the area grille added by the First National Bank brought thousands of soldiers to central when it acquired the buildings in 1959. Florida and the St. Petersburg area. Intended to unify and modernize the The government also utilized the appearance, “the cheese grater,” as it is af- city’s cafeterias to feed the servicemen fectionately known, has largely protected and women. One of these, the the highly decorative exteriors of the Tramor Cafeteria, lies along buildings. Internally, the Pheil Theater, 4th Street South in the next block. Built

St. Pete to Sarasota 5 in 1929 as Bob’s Cafeteria by owner continue along Central Avenue, you’ll Robert Ely, it was soon renamed the see the painted ghost signs for the 1920s Holsum Cafeteria in 1931 and became era businesses of Ermatinger’s the Tramor Cafeteria in 1939. Although Millinery, Hayward’s Toy an excellent example of Mediterranean Shop, and Wisteria Confec- Revival style architecture on the exterior, tionary. Recently discovered when the atmospheric interior created the an adjacent building was demolished, the illusion of dining in a Spanish square owner has now repainted the signs. The with a central fountain and balcony Alexander Hotel at 535 Central which wraps around three sides of the Avenue and the State Theater at main room. Indirect lighting and the 685-87 Central Avenue were designed blue ceiling with white clouds gave the impression of dusk. Prior to World War II, hotels in St. Petersburg often provided breakfast and dinner. On their own for lunch, tourists flocked to the city’s cafeterias which were consid- ered an inexpensive lunch option at a cost of $.35 in 1935. During the war, by noted Atlanta architect Neel Reid. servicemen filled the cafeterias. Behind The hotel, completed in 1919, was one the Tramor, the city’s original YMCA of the first modern hotels in the city, provided lodging and recreation for men while the theater was originally built as following its construction in 1927. The a bank in 1924. Adjacent to the theater, Mediterranean Revival style building is the 1924 Mission Revival style Green- now vacant but retains notable interior Richman Arcade is one of three features such as the tiled courtyard, tiled arcades remaining in St. Petersburg. pool in the basement, and lobby with The city rapidly demilitarized fol- pecky cypress ceilings. Two theaters, the lowing World War II, and many veterans Florida Theater and La Plaza Theater, returned to St. Petersburg. Depression were located in the adjacent blocks across and governmental restrictions during the from each other but were demolished in war led to a housing shortage following the 1950s and 1960s. World War II. Many hotels and boarding Back on Central Avenue, the S.H. houses were again filled with tourists and Kress & Co. Building, completed new residents awaiting the construction in 1928, dominates the corner of 5th of new homes. New houses filled the Street and Central Avenue. As we subdivisions platted during the 1920s

6 Fun in the Sunshine City but left vacant by the real estate decline which the buildings were demolished. and depression. At 6th Street the six- Webb’s lasting contribution to retail was story St. Petersburg Federal the creation of the Express Check-out Savings & Loan Association for 10 items or less. was the first high-rise built after World War II and remains a fine example of modern architecture. Designed by architect Bill Harvard in 1953, with two additional stories added in 1958, the building was described in the local newspaper as “dignified, secure and hospitable” upon its completion. South of Central Avenue in the vicinity of what was then 9th Street, James Earl “Doc” Webb came to St. Petersburg in 1925 to partner with an old friend in opening a small drugstore. With the collapse of the land boom, Webb bought out his partner and renamed the enterprise Webb’s Cut Rate Drug Company. Webb established himself as the friend of the After passing several 1920s era “little guy” by promising to undersell the former hotels, commercial buildings competition by at least 10 percent on from the 1920s through the 1950s, every item and accepting IOUs and scrip. and the modern St. Petersburg Police In addition to great deals and giveaways, Department, our next stop is World he created a carnival-like atmosphere in Liquors. Originally built as a 1920s his store using vaudeville and circus acts, service station and store and then serving dancing chickens, talking mermaids, as a used car lot, it was converted to the and bathing beauties to advertise and sell Ace Liquor Drive-In in 1953. In 1961, his goods. By the mid-1930s, his small Anthony Misiewicz purchased the store, drug store had expanded over several changed it to World Liquors, and built blocks to become “’the World’s Most the 22 ft tall World Liquors sign utilizing Unusual Drug Store’” offering groceries, a 1950s globe that was part of a sign a bakery, a meat shop, a florist, a clothing outside of a downtown furniture store. emporium, a beauty shop, a travel The globe originally rotated on its own agency, a hardware store, a cafeteria, and but stopped working in the 1970s, and several soda fountains and coffee shops the light inside the globe died in 2001. in addition to his drug store. By 1936, During the boom of the last decade, it annual sales topped $1 million and grew was threatened with demolition when to almost $4 million per year by 1941. the current owner, Anthony’s nephew, Doc Webb sold his holdings in 1974, Paul Misiewicz, planned a new 22,000 and the business closed in 1979 after square foot building. At the time, he

St. Pete to Sarasota 7 commercial development filled the vacant lots and the business area became known as Grand Central. Continuing west, we will pass the Patio Theater, which was built at 1850 Central Avenue by owner Anthony Shimko in 1925. One of three open air theaters in operation in the city at the time, Shimko decided to remodel the structure in 1928 to create an atmo- spheric theater, advertised as the first in St. Petersburg and the second in the state with Tampa Theater soon to open. With a stage to allow for live performances in addition to the motion pictures, the received a quote of $60,000 to repair it. theater now featured a domed ceiling Another local business owner was inter- “perforated with myriads of tiny lights ested in acquiring the sign, but planned arranged to give the effect of the sky to remove the “World Liquors” and on a starry night,” with clouds moving “drive-in” lettering to reflect her business. slowly across the stars. The Patio Theater Continuing west along Central, we cross closed in 1931 and entered receivership under I-275 and enter the Kenwood like many other businesses during the neighborhood. Depression. As downtown prospered during the Just down the street, John and Mary pre-World War I boom, residential devel- Haslam opened Haslam’s, a small opments slowly spread west of down- used book and magazine store, in 1933. town along Central Avenue. Newcomer Their business grew into Florida’s largest Charles Hall purchased 80 acres located new and used book store and has become at Central Avenue and 25th Street from a local institution. Now run by the third the St. Petersburg Investment Company generation, the bookstore is located near in 1912, advertising the sale of lots in full the corner of 20th Street and Central page newspaper ads within 48 hours of Avenue. In addition to small “mom and his purchase. Named Hall’s Subdivision pop” businesses, the Mari-Jean Hotel, a No. 1, lots sold rapidly with prices rang- 1920s era mid-sized hotel, several historic ing from $100 to $1,500 with a 50% gas stations, and one of the original discount which was scaled down as the Kenwood houses, a Craftsman bungalow sale progressed. The first subdivision was which now houses the Craftsman soon followed by Hall’s acquisition of ad- Gallery line Central Avenue in this ditional land and Hall’s Subdivision Nos. business district. 2, 3, 4, and 5, starting the Kenwood By World War II, St. Petersburg had neighborhood, which is filled with 1910s more than 300 miles of paved streets, and 1920s era bungalows. With a few 200 miles of concrete sidewalks, many scattered houses along Central Avenue, of them hexagon shaped blocks, and 208

8 Fun in the Sunshine City miles of street lighting. As we approach the St. Petersburg Investment Com- 34th Street, Goose Pond, a marshy pany, led by general manager H. Walter area between 30th and 35th Streets Fuller, purchased approximately 4,000 and 5th Avenue South and 5th Avenue acres west of the city. The company, North, was originally used as farm land in conjunction with its subsidiary, the by a group of Japanese Americans. The Johns Pass Realty Company, subdivided area would flood to cover Central Avenue several large tracts in 1911 and 1912 during the rainy season, but catch fire backing a plan to extend Central Avenue during the dry season. As development west to Boca Ceiga Bay. The company spread west following World War II, opened the Davista subdivision at the the area was paved over in the 1950s. west end of Central Avenue in 1912. In 1952, Central Plaza, the city’s The Jungle Subdivision, immediately first strip shopping center, opened at 1st north of Davista, was filed in 1915 with Avenue South and 34th Street. With the city’s first successful golf course parking for 2,500 cars, the plaza opened and the St. Petersburg Country Club to record crowds of between 30,000 which opened in 1916. This high-end and 50,000 shoppers on the first day. residential neighborhood was supported Publix, McCrory’s and a Belk-Lindsey by the brick paving and the extension Department Store anchored the center. of the trolley line to the western end Wolfies, a delicatessen style restaurant, of Central Avenue in 1913 and 1914. drew diners. North of 1st Avenue, Following the death of Frank Davis in Montgomery Ward opened a department 1917, Walter P. Fuller acquired the Davis store, and the Post Office completed a properties and focused on expanding the new facility in 1956. The opening of the Jungle development north of Davista. He Sunshine Skyway Bridge in 1954 and sold most of the vacant land south of 5th the completion of US 19 in 1955 drew Avenue North to developer Jack Taylor, additional stores, restaurants, and motels who renamed Davista and opened new to the 34th Street corridor. sections as Pasadena Estates. A number Continuing west, much of the of Mediterranean Revival style residences interior portion of the city was platted in were built in the neighborhood, and the 1920s with a few houses built during to the south, Taylor built the massive the Florida land boom, but not built Roylat Hotel (which is Taylor spelled out until the post-World War II period. backwards). At the first decline in the However, the west end of St. Petersburg real estate market in 1926, “Handsome developed much earlier. In 1902, Frank Jack Taylor,” as he was called, left in the Davis had formed the St. Petersburg middle of the night. The Roylat Hotel is Investment Company, which served as now Stetson Law College. the holding company for both the city’s As we turn south onto Pasadena electric and streetcar companies. The first Avenue, it is interesting to note that this trolley line was completed in 1904 and area is known as Pasadena, but is still part extended to present-day Gulfport the of the city of St. Petersburg. Immediately following year. Taking advantage of the south lies the City of South Pasadena. local real estate boom starting in 1909, Before it was known as the municipality

St. Pete to Sarasota 9 of South Pasadena, the area was briefly synagogue in 1961. The Temple was known as “Coreytown” in 1948. The designed by well-known modern architect bridge that connected this area with Morris Lapidus, who also designed St. Petersburg Beach was known as the the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami Corey Causeway, and this mainland Beach. Pasadena Community community was “rough-and-tumble,” to Church, established in 1925, built a put it mildly. The town was incorporated Mission Revival style building in 1925. under older laws more appropriate for By 1937, the Sanctuary could not hold all pioneer days, and, by one account, was of the parishioners for Sunday morning made up of “four bars, three fruit stands, services and benches were placed outside a novelty shop, a floral shop, a tourist of the church. In 1940, the church leased park, and fewer than half a dozen resi- several vacant lots around the sanctuary to dences.” The town’s purpose, of course, develop into a “Radio Garden.” During was so the bars could stay open later than World War II, an outside pulpit to serve in the county or St. Petersburg, creating the Radio Park used for the overflow a town that was nothing more than a congregation was located under one of saloon. A judge dissolved Coreytown the few large pine trees on the church in 1951 because they could not find 25 grounds. It became the focal point of eligible voters within the town limits. activities relating to the armed forces. Ironically, by the 1980s, South Pasadena In spite of several additions to the sanctu- had the oldest average age in Pinellas, ary, the congregation again found itself hovering around 70 years of age. outgrowing its facilities after the war. In As we reach Park Circle South, you 1960, they hired architect Bill Harvard to will see two mid-century Modern church design a new sanctuary. The new facility buildings. Temple Beth-El at provided seating for 2,000 people and 400 Pasadena Ave., a Jewish congrega- accommodated adrive-in church tion formed in 1928, built a new congregation with 18 acres.

10 Fun in the Sunshine City Continuing through the Pasadena the economy slowed following the onset neighborhood, we will see a number of of World War I. As a result, limited Mediterranean Revival style residences. development occurred on the island Situated on the corner of Central Avenue from the 1910s through the 1930s. In and Park Street, the Sunset Hotel the late 1930s, Treasure Island property opened in 1916 as the first hotel built owners incorporated the City of Treasure beyond walking distance of downtown. Island in order to build a bridge to the With 35 rooms, the building served as mainland. In exchange for the City of St. a promotional tool to house prospective Petersburg allowing Central Avenue to buyers interested in purchasing lots in be extended through Sunset Park and for the Davista, Jungle, and, later, the Pasa- infill of the bay, Treasure Island promised dena subdivisions. When constructed, St. Petersburg a municipal beach on the many residents doubted it would suc- island for her citizens. The causeway, ceed, but the proximity of the Jungle golf designed by Kunde, Driver, Simpson, course and direct access from downtown and Associates, was completed at a cost via the trolley and a completed Central of over $1 million. The 1.8 mile cause- Avenue proved a boon to the hotel. way consisting of three bridges formally The construction of the opened on November 15, 1939. After World War II, dredging along in 1939 also benefited the hotel, at least the barrier islands created finger islands initially, as an increasing number of in Boca Ciega Bay for residential devel- visitors passed by on their way to the opment. Causeway Isles and Paradise beaches. The causeway, built to connect Island developed along the causeway Central Avenue to Treasure Island, was in the early 1950s. Churches, such as initially proposed when Central Avenue Lutheran Church of the was built to Boca Ciega Bay in 1914. Holy Comforter on Paradise However, the idea was rejected when Island at 10255 Paradise Blvd were built

St. Pete to Sarasota 11 to serve the needs of the new residents. Hotel along with a few Mediterranean Noted Sarasota School architect Victor Revival residences were completed just as , was inspired by the nautilus shell the real estate market burst in Florida so when he designed this structure in 1962. the beaches remained somewhat isolated Lundy, who studied architecture at Har- till the end of the Great Depression vard University under Walter Gropius when the economy and tourism started and Marcel Breuer, was part of the group to improve. Although the onset of World of architects which became known as the War II again limited construction and Sarasota School of Architects, which will tourism, the thousands of servicemen be discussed more in Sarasota. Lundy and women who trained in the area established his own architectural firm in returned after the war. Many moved to Sarasota in 1954, where he continued the area and acquired homes on the GI to practice until 1962. Best known for Bill, but many more used their new- his many church designs in the area, his found prosperity to take their families signature element is his dramatic roofs on vacation. With an improved road and the interactions between his dynamic network due to the war, new roadside forms and the landscape. His other attractions making the trip fun, and the designs included the Sarasota Chamber beach as a destination, the Gulf Beaches of Commerce, which we will see later transformed from sleepy coastal com- today, Galloway Furniture Store, Alta munities to booming tourist destinations Vista Elementary School Addition, the within 20 years. Siesta Drive Post Office, and the Warm The concept of the middle class Mineral Springs Motel and Pavilion. family vacation changed the coastline of Florida. Motels with amenities such Treasure Island as air conditioning, drive-up parking, The Pinellas County beaches initially de- television, and swimming pools attracted veloped as small fishing communities in families. They often wrapped around a which tourists would stay for a few days sunny courtyard. Older rental properties for sport fishing or visit for an afternoon modernized, adding amenities such as picnic, not a year round residence. At the shuffleboard courts and beach umbrellas. south end of the string of beaches, Pass- Restaurants, commercial buildings, and a-Grille was the first settled largely by St. family oriented roadside attractions soon Petersburg residents arriving by boat and followed. As the beach became the place building small fishing cottages during to be, older cottages converted to house the late nineteenth and early twentieth year round residents. centuries. During the 1920s land boom, The first hotel on Treasure Island the Gulf beaches remained a quiet side was the three-story Coney Island Hotel trip, not a destination. The lone wooden built in 1915 by Whitey Harrell with 25 toll bridge to the southern islands which guest rooms. Harrell provided boats to was built in 1919 was heavily dam- ferry guests to the mainland. The island aged in the 1921 hurricane. Although was named after a 1918 promotional repaired, a permanent, concrete bridge stunt propagated by William McAdoo, was not built until 1928. The Don Cesar who held an option to buy a large tract

12 Fun in the Sunshine City of land on Long Key to the south. With Treasure Island. These communities some assistance, he buried two “old consolidated to form the City of Treasure treasure chests” during the night. The Island in 1955. following day he enlisted two guests Situated toward the north end of of the Coney Island Hotel to help him the island at 11800 Gulf Blvd., the unearth some “treasure” he had found. landmark construction of The Sands News of the secret treasure spread like of Treasure Island Motel wildfire. Although the actual burial and in 1947-48 created a model for motel recovery of the treasure chests happened development along the beach. The motel on Long Key to the south, because the offered 24 “ultra-modern apartments visitors at the Coney Island Hotel played with hot water, heat, picture windows, a part, local residents started referring Bendex washers, tile tub and shower, to the area of the hotel as “out at that all electric kitchen, Simmons furniture, Treasure Island.” daily maid service, and shuffleboard Treasure Island, which had only three at this year ‘round apartment hotel.” families living within the limits at the Herbert Dowling, of the Dowling Hotel time of its 1937 incorporation, became Company of Washington, DC, built the the center of beach development during motel. Within ten years, Gulf Boulevard the 1950s and 1960s. By the mid-1940s, was lined with modern streamlined small cottages and motor courts dotted motels lit with neon. The City of St. the north end of the island, known as Petersburg opened its Municipal Sunshine Beach, and the south end of Beach with a snack bar and comfort the island occupied by the communi- station at 11260 Gulf Blvd in 1951. ties of Boca Ciega and Sunset Beach. Nearby, the Thunderbird, built at In 1950, a town hall along with a few the end of the Treasure Island Causeway cottages composed the community of in 1957, beaconed vacationers to enjoy

St. Pete to Sarasota 13 this modern playground paradise known Blvd., and the adjacent Page Terrace as the Holiday Isles. The construction of built in 1958 at 10500 Gulf Blvd. A shopping centers and business buildings number of the early beach cottages also in the early 1950s had established the remain with some of the best on Treasure commercial center of Treasure Island Island dating back to 1938 located along around the intersection of Gulf Blvd 124th Avenue and Sunshine Lane at the and the Causeway, which was designated north end of the island. A number of 107th Avenue on Treasure Island. these cottages were built after the 1928 Many of these early motels remain, construction of the John’s Pass but it has been a struggle for owners to Bridge. John’s Pass, created as a result of maintain these “mom and pop” establish- the 1848 hurricane, was a well-known ments in the face of rising taxes (which fishing destination, but could only be are figured at “highest and best use”), reached by boat prior to the construction newer hotel developments with more of the bridge. A prosperous sport fishing amenities, and condominium construc- industry developed around the bridge. tion. In addition to The Sands, some of Toward the south end of the island, the the best examples of beach motels which Seahorse Cottages, built in remain include the Arvilla Motel 1938 at 10356 Gulf Blvd. are indica- built in 1950 at 11580 Gulf Blvd., the tive of the small motor courts which Algiers Motel built in 1956 at dotted the island before the onslaught 11600 Gulf Blvd., the Sea Jay of motel construction. A few of the Motel built in 1958 at 11240 1st St early commercial establishments such as E, the Tropic Terrace Motel, the Florida Shell Shop, which built in 1950 at 11730 Gulf Blvd, the opened at 9901 Gulf Blvd in 1955, Sea Chest Motel started in 1949 remain as landmarks along the beach at 11780 Gulf Blvd., the Beach communities. House Motel, built in 1956 at Some of the losses on Treasure Island 12100 Gulf Blvd, the Bilmar Beach have included The Surf, which Resort built in 1966 at 10650 Gulf was demolished in 2004 for a 30-unit condominium. Located just north of the Treasure Island Causeway at 11040 Gulf Blvd., the Surf was built by Herbert Dowling in 1956. The Surf became an anchor motel of “The Golden Mile.” It was among the first motels on the beach to have central air-conditioning. A promotional brochure advertised that it was “a new motel of spectacular beauty…[that] exemplifies the new- est trends toward casual comfort and luxurious living…extreme convenience, completely adaptable to your every holiday need….A brilliant NEW flash

14 Fun in the Sunshine City on the Southern Horizon!” When it was demolished in 2004, the St. Petersburg Times noted that “The Surf is com- ing down because it costs too much to upgrade the ailing building, whose space-age, 1950s furniture has never been replaced and whose mid-century look was featured in Architectural Digest. A 30-unit hotel-condo is planned to rise in its place. Each unit could cost near residential, while the hotels, motels, and $400,000, as opposed to The Surf’s rental units were along the Gulf. rents of $66 a night (April 19, 2004).” In 1919, William D. McAdoo Other losses include the acquired land on the northern end of Hotel, demolished in 2005, the Long Key and hired the International Jamaican Motel, the Edward Realty Company to sell the land. He James Motel, demolished in 1982, built a wooden toll bridge connecting and the Flamingo, demolished in the island to the mainland. A hotel 1983. Similarly, the roadside beach bathing pavilion with a dance hall was entertainment venues have suffered the built in 1923, and McAdoo built a bank same fate. Gulf Golf, a miniature building in 1925 (demolished in 1955). golf attraction, was demolished in 2008 Although a few other buildings including for the Crystal Palms Beach Resort a gas station, the Marion Apartments, Condominium. and scattered cottages were built during the mid-1920s, the construction of St. Pete Beach the Corey Causeway by Pinellas South of Treasure Island, the communi- County in 1928 prompted the Inter- ties of St. Petersburg Beach, Brightwater national Realty Company along with Beach, Bennett Beach, Punta Vista, Lido the First National Bank of Tampa to Beach, Belle Vista Beach, Don Cesar purchase McAdoo’s land. They hired the Place, and Pass-a-Grille Beach occupied Upham Company owned by William the barrier island known as Long Key. Upham as sales agents. At the same time, As we head south, across the Blind Pass Pinellas County built the Blind Pass Bridge, the north end of Long Key was Bridge, John’s Pass Bridge, and the Welch originally considered the industrial area Causeway, creating a circular route from and remained sparsely settled into the the mainland through the beaches. 1950s. In this area, the Gulf Beach- In 1936, the Upham Company es Elementary School opened envisioned creating a downtown St. in 1950, St. Albans Episcopal Petersburg Beach around the scattered Church built a church in 1953, and businesses that existed at the foot of the St. John’s Catholic Church bridge and along Corey Avenue. and School built new facilities in When the owners refused to finance the 1951. South of 75th Avenue and along plan, the Upham Company purchased the Bay was developed as primarily the lots along Corey Avenue, filled in

St. Pete to Sarasota 15 the mangrove swamp, and paved the street. They eventually created about one-fifth of the island through dredging. With the official dedication of Corey Avenue held on Febru- ary 13, 1937, the timing of their endeavor was ideal. As tourists area originally devoted to small rental returned during the late-1930s with the cottages and motels. Largely built out in recovery of the economy, visitors found the 1940s and 1950s, some of the early an attractive approach to the beaches tourist accommodations included the and new businesses opened along Corey 1946 M&M Apartments at 526 Avenue. Baynard’s Funeral Chapel, now Corey Avenue, the 1949 Tropical the Garden of Memories Funeral Home, Shore Apartments at 635 Corey was built in 1937 at 301 Corey Avenue. Avenue, and the 1948 Patio Tour- Next door, the Beach Theater at ist Home at 645 Corey Avenue. 315 Corey Ave opened in 1939. On the Decorative elements on the buildings same side of the street, the 1937 McKin- included panels with palm trees, flowers, non’s Drug Store building was the first and birds. At the end of the street, along building constructed on Corey Avenue Sunset Way, one of the early waterfront and housed a tavern and menswear bars remains at 7308 Sunset Way. Built shop. Across the street, the original Gulf in 1945, it was Vic’s Bar and Bait Beach News building was also built in House in 1960 and had four cottages 1937. Other early buildings included the to the rear which were Vic’s Tourist Indian Rocks Fruit Company and the Apartments. Owner Victor Higgins lived Gables Building. Most of the remaining in the first cottage. Nearby, the Sun- commercial buildings were constructed dial Inn remains much as it did when in the two decades following World War built in 1949. Before we turn onto 71st II. Interestingly, the former First Federal Avenue, you can see in the next block the Savings and Loan Building at 401 Corey Gulf Winds Apartments and Avenue briefly served as Criswell’s Villas. The six buildings constructed Money Museum in operation in 1947 provided 326 units and housed around 1965. Across the street, the 1963 the Imperial House Restaurant oper- bank replaced the Upham Real Estate ated by Morrison’s Cafeterias. On 71st Office at 400 Corey Avenue. Avenue, the 1948 Gulf Haven Crossing Gulf Blvd, we enter the Cottages at 635 71st Avenue and

16 Fun in the Sunshine City the 1948 Lantern Lane Apart- and collection of giant animal including ments at 521 71st Avenue remain as a coiled snake still catch the eye of the evidence of the post-World War II boom. passerby. Several of the concrete and steel St. Petersburg Beach, which structures were built by Frank Schmudde originally had limits of 68th and 78th of Indian Rocks Beach, who also made Avenues, incorporated in 1943. In 1957, Tiki statues for Tiki Gardens, which was voters approved, by a five vote margin, a largely demolished in 1989. Restaurants, referendum to combine the municipali- like the 1939 Caldwell’s Drive Inn at ties of Pass-a-Grille, St. Petersburg Beach, 6712 Gulf Blvd., were built to feed the Don CeSar Place, Belle Vista beach, and tourists. The Gulf Wind U Drive-In the unincorporated areas on Long Key Theater originally provided entertain- into the City of St. Petersburg Beach, ment, but vanished with the change in which later shortened its name to St. Pete times. Beach. In addition to the sparkling modern Back along Gulf Blvd., motels with new hotels, two popular tourist attrac- names like the Beachcomber, tions opened on St. Pete Beach. The Sandpiper, and the Alden filled Aquatarium, located on the Gulf the road to Pass-a-Grille during the at 67th Avenue, opened in 1964 with 1950s and 1960s. The Colonial aquariums and dolphin shows under a Inn Beach Resort, now the Post giant geodesic dome. The London Card Motel at 6300 Gulf Blvd., was built Wax Museum, associated with the in 1957, but grabbed attention as one of popular Madame Tussaud’s Wax Mu- the few that recalled a more classical ar- seum in London, opened at 5505 Gulf chitecture. Most motels focused on space Blvd. With only $1.50 admission for age modern designs. One of the most adults and $.50 for kids, the attraction well-preserved is the Bon-Aire with remained popular through the 1960s. its sweeping sign which was constructed Unable to compete with larger theme in 1952 with an addition in 1964. Some parks in the 1970s, both attractions of the small motels, like the 1956 Sea closed and were demolished. Palms Motel, built their own roadside attractions to draw guests. The 18 hole miniature golf Polynesian Putter course was built by owner John McConnell in front of the motel in 1966. The mini golf course with its giant Tiki head facing Gulf Blvd.

St. Pete to Sarasota 17 Travelling south along Gulf Blvd., Don Cesar, retains the majority of its the pink palace of the Don Cesar pre-World War II ambiance. Recently looms in the distance as one of the grand replaced, the 1962 Bayway Bridge now 1920s era Mediterranean Revival style serves as an artificial reef offshore. hotels. It was built at the north end of The completion of the Bayway the Pass-a-Grille community in 1928 Bridge system also opened Tierra Verde by owner Thomas Rowe and designed to development and prompted Pinel- by architect Henry Dupont. Completed las County to open Fort Desoto at the end of the 1920s land boom, the Park. The Park, situated on Mullet Don Cesar survived the Great Depres- Key, and nearby Egmont Key, which sion as a destination for the rich and is accessible by boat, are home to a famous drawing such visitors as Franklin lighthouse and the remains of gun D. Roosevelt, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Al batteries and troop quarters built during Capone. It also housed the New York the Spanish American War of 1898. Yankees during spring training for three Historically, and the Manatee years. After Rowe’s death, the military River were patrolled by Union gunboats purchased the hotel in 1942 to serve as stationed on Mullet and Egmont Keys a hospital, and, after the war, converted during the Civil War, while Confederate it to the regional office for the Veteran’s blockade runners transported cattle to Administration. After the facility closed in exchange for items not readily in 1969, William Bowman acquired the available in the Florida wilderness. When building, restored it and reopened it as war broke out with Spain, local residents a hotel in 1973. By the time the Don and the Federal government feared Cesar was constructed in 1928, Pass- invasion by the Spanish into Tampa Bay a-Grille, as the oldest Pinellas beach com- and established Fort Desoto on Mullet munity, was largely built-out. Although Key, which remained an active military the construction of the Bayway Bridge in post until 1910 and finally abandoned front of the Don Cesar in 1962 opened the fort in 1923. In 1938, Pinellas St. Pete Beach to modern development, County bought Mullet Key for $12,500, Pass-a-Grille, situated south of the but the federal government acquired it porkfork6

18 Fun in the Sunshine City again during World War II. After the war, Pinellas County again purchased the key and eventually opened the park in 1962 in conjunction with the construction of the Bayway Bridge system. Now, the park is well-known as a public beach. In 2005, “Dr. Beach” named Fort Desoto the nation’s #1 beach, and used as an informal African American TripAdvisor named it America’s Top beach during the days of segregation and Beach in 2009. officially became a city park in 1940. Chartered as Florida Presbyterian This archaeological site was one of a College in 1958, present-day Eckerd complex of mounds and middens along College is located at 4200 54th Ave the southern boundary of the Pinellas S on our way to the Sunshine Skyway peninsula, most of which have been Bridge. When drug store magnet Jack M. destroyed by commercial and residential Eckerd provided a substantial gift which development. This site was also threat- provided the means to keep the college ened with the construction of I-275 by open, trustees renamed the college in the planned development of entrance his honor in 1972. With the central ramps, but the owners of O’Neill’s core of buildings completed in 1963, Marina fought to save the park. Origi- the campus remains a fine collection of nally known as O’Neill’s Skyway mid-century designs executed by notable Boat Basin, the marina was built in regional architects such as Harvard-Jolly, 1954 by Fred “Hap” O’Neill after the Sanford Goldman, and Connell, Pierce, construction of the Sunshine Skyway. He Garland & Friedman of Miami. had originally opened a fishing dock and As we enter the approach to the concession stand in 1946 at the end of Sunshine Skyway, Maximo Park 4th Street South adjacent to the Bee Line and O’Neill’s Marina will be adjacent Ferry, but the completion of the bridge to the highway on the west. Maximo caused the ferry to close and his business Park contains an aboriginal shell midden declined. After relocating to the Sunshine complex and was the presumed site of Skyway, he expanded to provide supplies Antonio Maximo Hernandez’ mid- to fishermen, boat storage, a small nineteenth century fishing ranchero. restaurant, and chartered tours of fishing Although his ranchero was washed away hot spots in the region. in the 1848 hurricane, Hernandez is One of the most far-reaching mid- credited as the first white settler on the century projects was the construction of Pinellas peninsula. By the 1930s, it was the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.

St. Pete to Sarasota 19 Completed in 1954, the bridge opened have become icons of “Old Florida.” southern Pinellas County and the One of the old local citrus gift box Gulf beaches by providing a major packing companies grew into multi- north-south route between Pinellas and million dollar citrus producing Tropicana Manatee and Sarasota Counties. Built at Products, Inc., which offers “100% Pure a cost of $22 million, the 15 mile bridge Squeezed Florida Sunshine.” Opened as cut the distance from St. Petersburg to the Manatee River Packing Company in Bradenton from 70 miles to less than 20 Palmetto in 1947, owner Anthony Rossi miles. Promotional brochures stated that relocated to east Bradenton as his busi- “Touring the Sunshine Skyway is like ness grew into supplying jars of sectioned going to sea in your automobile.” citrus to northern commercial businesses,

Terra Ceia, Palmetto, such as the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in Bradenton . Renaming the company After crossing the Sunshine Skyway Fruit Industries, and then Tropicana Bridge, we will take US 19 through Products, Rossi produced frozen the island farming community of Terra concentrate orange juice and developed Ceia. The Citrus Place remains flash pasteurization in 1954 before the as evidence of the island’s agricultural company started shipping their juice tradition and as one of the few extant products nationally and then internation- roadside citrus stands which offered fresh ally. Tropicana is now part of the Pepsico squeezed juice and tours of the associated brand. US 19, which divided Terra Ceia orange grove in back. Both the Citrus island in the mid-1950s merges with US Place and the nearby Crab Trap 41 just north of Palmetto. US 41, also Restaurant opened in the mid-1970s as known as the Tamiami Trail, locally-owned roadside businesses which will then separate and we will follow

20 Fun in the Sunshine City Business 41 through downtown Palmetto crossing over the Manatee River into Bradenton on our way to Sarasota. In 1915, a group of businessmen met to discuss the feasibility of a cross-state highway from Tampa to Miami by way of Sarasota and Fort Myers. A portion of this route, which stretched from the Hillsborough County line to Sarasota, was constructed by Manatee County with the passage of a bond issue in 1911. In 1914, through the efforts of the Sarasota Good Road Boosters and the creation of the Sarasota-Venice Road and Bridge District, the portion of the road from Sarasota to Venice was financed. This road, named the Tamiami Trail, after the origin and destination cities, was designated US 41. Even though the portions through Bradenton and Sarasota were completed early, the section of the Trail through the Everglades was not completed until 1928. We have entered Manatee County, named for the gentle aquatic mammal, the “sea cow.” Although several burial, midden, and temple mounds provide The outbreak of hostilities during the evidence of the Native American Civil War brought Federal and Confeder- occupation, the first white pioneers ate boats and soldiers to patrol and camp settled the land along the Manatee River along the banks of the Manatee River. As following the Armed Occupation Act of the Confederacy crumbled, Secretary of 1842, which gave white, male heads of State Judah P. Benjamin escaped federal households 160 acres if they cleared five capture while fleeing through Manatee acres, built a house, served in the militia, County by staying at John Gamble’s sug- and lived on the land for five years. The ar plantation. Now open to the public as influx of new residents prompted the a State Historic Site in Ellenton, just east creation of Manatee County in 1855, of Palmetto, Gamble Plantation is the which included most of southwest only remaining Antebellum Plantation Florida from the Gulf of Mexico to Lake in southwest Florida. On the south shore Okeechobee. The Village of Manatee, of the Manatee River, Dr. Joseph Braden now within the boundaries of Bradenton, also established a sugar plantation in the was the county seat. 1840s and built a fortified residence built

St. Pete to Sarasota 21 of tabby, a type of concrete that com- state of South Carolina, the Palmetto bines lime, water, sand and oyster shells. State. On the south shore of the river, the Another settler, Dr. Franklin Branch, Fogarty Brothers built Fogartyville and planned to create a sanatorium around a opened a shipbuilding business. With mineral spring and built his home forti- the influx of new settlers, Desoto County fied with sable palm trunks for protec- was carved from the eastern portion of tion against the Seminoles. Local families Manatee County. sought refuge in both “Fort Branch” During the early 1900s, the river and “Fort Braden” during the Third remained the main source of transporta- Seminole War, but the houses were soon tion in the agriculturally based economy. abandoned during the Civil War. The Cattle, commercial fishing, sugar cane, ruins of “Fort Braden,” which became celery, tomatoes, and citrus were the known as “Braden Castle,” served as an largest crops, while associated support early tourist attraction and still remain industries like shipbuilding and crate along the south shore of the Manatee manufacturing developed along the River. It inspired Major William Iredell shore. In 1902, the Seaboard Airline Turner to name the nearby community Railway Company built the first bridge Braidentown when the post office was across the Manatee River, roughly in established in 1878. Renamed Braden- the location of today’s US 41. In 1910, town in 1905 and then Bradenton the first wooden automobile bridge, in 1924, the community eventually the Davis Toll Bridge, was constructed outgrew and incorporated the village of across the Manatee River by the Manatee Manatee. During the same formative Bridge Company for $5,000. Pro- period, Samuel Sparks Lamb established motional post cards from the period Palmetto on the north bank of the advertised sixty automobiles in town. Manatee River, naming it after his home The first non-toll bridge, completed in

22 Fun in the Sunshine City 1919, was named The in manatee born in captivity. Originally honor of World War I. In 1927, the State loaned to Manatee County when he was Road Department opened the new $1 a year old, his owner Sam Stout soon million E.P. Green Bridge across donated Baby Snoots to Bradenton. In the Manatee River. It came into Braden- 1952, you could visit him and see Indian ton on 10th Street, one block west of artifacts and exhibits for an admission present-day Business 41 and now serves fee of $.50. In 1966, Snooty, as he as a fishing pier after the construction of became known, moved to a tank at the a new bridge in 1986. newly constructed South Florida Like Pinellas County, the 1920s Museum. He remains the oldest cap- also brought a boom in development to tive manatee and the oldest known living Manatee County. Even though Sarasota manatee. If you’d like to see Manatees County was formed from the southern in their native environment, the Tampa portion of Manatee County in 1921, Electric Power Plant in Apollo Beach has Manatee County’s population still tripled a Manatee viewing facility as manatees between 1920 and 1925. During this gather in the warm waters around period, the Manatee River was dredged the plant during the winter months. to extend the waterfront in downtown Manatees also gather in Spring Bayou in Bradenton. Completed in 1927, the Tarpon Springs, which we will visit on Mediterranean Revival style Braden- Saturday. ton Municipal Pier has served as Next door to the museum, the the Chamber of Commerce, a radio sta- 250-room concrete and steel Manatee tion, a community center, and as several River Hotel, completed in 1925, different restaurants. Snooty, Manatee offered a rooftop garden with a dance County’s official mascot, originally lived floor and waterfront view. Valued at $2 in a tank at the pier when it served as the million upon completion, a single room Chamber of Commerce. Born on July on opening night could be rented for 21, 1948 at the Miami Tackle Company $2.50. It was restored and reopened last and Aquarium, Baby Snoots is the first November as a Hampton Inn & Suites.

St. Pete to Sarasota 23 As we reach Manatee Ave. and turn right, Tervis Tumbler, is produced locally and you will see the city’s first skyscraper, the is specially insulated to keep cold drinks Bradenton Bank and Trust, cold, hot drinks hot and your beverage at 1023 Manatee Avenue West. It opened from “sweating” in the humid Florida air. in 1926 just east of the brick Manatee As we pass through downtown, some of County Courthouse, which was the historic downtown buildings remain built in 1912. When opened, the bank such as the Manatee River National Bank occupied the ground floor with approxi- Building at 12th Street, the First Baptist mately 90 commercial tenants located Church, and the First Presbyterian in the other six floors. By 1929, only 20 Church. tenants remained, which was followed by When the Dixie Highway was the failure of the bank in 1933. completed between Montreal and Miami The intersection of Manatee Ave. in 1915, automobile tourism increased and Main St. historically served as the dramatically. The Tin Can Tourists of center of town with a number of impor- the World organization was established tant businesses lining the surrounding in 1919 in a park immediately south of streets. Robert Beall opened a dry goods . Locally, the Braden Castle store on Main Street in Bradenton in Park Historic District, a tin can tourist 1915. Although he lost everything in camp, opened surrounding Braden the Great Depression, he kept the bank Castle in 1924 and new tourist courts owned store open and slowly rebuilt his opened along the newly designated business and purchased the store back Tamiami Trail. Although the real estate piece by piece. Today, Beall’s has grown market and tourism floundered in the to include 86 department stores in late 1920s, Manatee County relied upon Florida and 473 outlet stores across the its agricultural foundation during the south capitalizing on the “Florida style.” Great Depression. As tourists returned One of their most popular items, the in the late 1930s, new tourist courts,

24 Fun in the Sunshine City motels, gas stations, and restaurants started popping up along the Tamiami Trail on the route to Sarasota. Driving south along the Tamiami Trail, the Shannon Funeral Home, built in 1926, stands out as one of the earliest businesses remaining along the street. Driving south, we will pass the Bradenton Trailer Park, Pliny and Egbert Reasoner, the main which is now Bradenton Tropical Palms nursery is nearby in Oneco and is now at 2310 14th St W. It was established known as Royal Palm Nurseries. Across by the Bradenton Kiwanis Club in the street from Bradenton Donuts, 1936 and was advertised as the “World’s Cortez Shopping Plaza, named Largest Trailer Park.” By the 1940s, the after Cortez Road which we just crossed, park provided electric meters, water remains as one of the oldest shopping piped to each trailer, paved streets, and centers in the area. The construction of entertainment. By 1950, the park offered the Cortez Bridge from the mainland 1,190 lots for rent. Along the Tamiami to Anna Maria Island drew develop- Trail in this area, numerous gas sta- ment south and west from downtown tions, motels, and car dealerships were Bradenton. built in the 1940s and 1950s. Along As we drive further south, a number this stretch, several motels retain their of historic trailer parks remain including original appearance including the 1950 the Vacationer Motel, which Kentucky Colonel Motel is now Eagle Village, K&K Trailer at 1431 14th St W, the 1949 Royal Park, Lincoln Arms Trailer Motel at 1526 14th St W, the 1947 Park, Ritz Trailer Park, and Blue Boy Motel at 1839 14th St Luxor Trailer Park, among W, the 1956 Baxter’s Motel at others. Bayshore Gardens, 3225 14th St W, and the Michiana a shopping center and subdivision Motel at 3239 14th St W. A touch development, started with a Publix su- of Googie remains at the former Ford permarket constructed in 1957. The rest Dealership at 3400 14th St W. Built of the shopping center, which included in 1966, the simple folded plate roof the Aloha Straw Hut, Liggett Drugs, and remains indicative of the period. Further a Wash-o-Mat, followed in 1959-60. The south, the folded plate roof reappears at residential section of the professionally Bradenton Donuts, which was planned community offered Ranch built at 4616 14th St W as a Mister Do- style homes, which could be purchased nut in 1967. A branch of Reasoner’s for $16,590, as well as apartments and Tropical Nursery was next door condominiums. Before development at 4610 14th St W. Although this retail spread south in the 1950s and 1960s, outlet is gone, Reasoner’s remains in Tin’s famous Chinese vegetable farm business and is the oldest plant nursery shipped Chinese vegetables throughout in Florida. Founded in 1881 by brothers the United States.

St. Pete to Sarasota 25 Sarasota spans the Tamiami Trail, opened in 1963 Crossing into Sarasota County, Whit- on the grounds of the Charles Ringling field Estates Presbyterian Estate on Bay Shore Road. Church is located on the east side Brothers Charles and of the road at 7045 N. Tamiami Trail. came to Sarasota during the 1910s as As “America’s First Planned Drive-in winter residents. Although a few scat- Church,” the congregation offered 400 tered settlers acquired land in the 1860s individual car speakers for outdoor and 1870s, the first organized settlement worship when it was constructed. of Sarasota started with promotion in the Continuing further south, we will pass 1880s by the Florida Mortgage and In- the Pamaro Furniture Shop, vestment Company Limited of . which has offered “Florida style” With a national depression and poor liv- furniture for over 60 years, and the ing conditions in Scotland in the 1880s, Kreissle Forge Ornamental new residents and tourists arrived steadily Metals, established in 1947. Origi- throughout the first years. The Town nally from Germany where he became of Sarasota was platted in 1885 with a Master Metalsmith, George Kreissle, development focused along Main Street. Sr. immigrated to the US in 1927, first The company heavily promoted Sarasota establishing the Freeport Ornamental as a sportsmen’s paradise with warm Iron Works in New York. He came to weather, white beaches, plentiful fishing, Sarasota to establish a “practical and and a golf course, which also drew artistic” iron works, a tradition which tourists. Incorporated in 1902, company his family continues. Kreissle Forge is manager John Hamilton Gillespie, who the oldest hand forge in continuous introduced golf to Florida with his arrival operation in Florida and one of the few in the 1880s, was elected the first mayor. remaining in the country. Note the large Convincing railroad tycoon Henry Plant black anvil, which was originally gold, on that golf would attract tourists, Gillespie the side of the circular drive. went on to design several courses for Point Welcome, located at Plant throughout the state. the corner of Bay Shore Rd. and the In 1910, wealthy Chicagoan Bertha Tamiami Trail, held a welcome center Potter Palmer visited Sarasota, loved it, operated by the American Legion and and bought 213 acres and a house as her the City of Sarasota in which tourists winter retreat. Other wealthy mid-west- from the north were welcomed with erners and northerners soon followed, a handshake and a free glass of orange and built cottages along Bay Shore Road juice. Nearby, Midway Groves taught on Shell Beach. John Ringling purchased numerous local children on school trips one of these winter residences along the how to pick an orange. In 1947, the Wel- bay in 1911. His brother, Charles, came come Center became Zinn’s Restaurant, to visit John in 1912, purchased land im- operated by ‘Mama’ and ‘Papa’ Zinn. mediately north of his brother’s property, Described as very “Sinatra-like,” the and initiated construction of a residence. restaurant closed in the 1980s and was The two spent their winters in Sarasota, demolished. New College, which now but spent the rest of the year following

26 Fun in the Sunshine City and managing the family circuses in Sarasota Terrace Hotel. Charles Ringling conjunction with their brothers. At died in 1926 after a short illness. the end of World War I, the remaining At a loss following the sudden death brothers combined the Ringling Bros. of his brother, John Ringling gained his and the Barnum & Bailey Circuses. With reputation as the savior of Sarasota after a single crew of experienced managers, he relocated the circus winter quarters to the brothers turned their attention to the city in 1927. Already suffering from investment in Sarasota. John Ringling, in the decline of the real estate market, association with Owen Burns, initiated the arrival of the circus meant new jobs development of the barrier islands and to construct and work at the winter built the Ringling Causeway from the quarters and increased tourism from mainland through his Ringling Isles winter visitors to the site. Located along Corporation. John and Mable Ringling Fruitville Road east of downtown, the hired New York architect Dwight winter quarters were open to the public James Baum to design their new home, from early September to late March Ca’d’Zan, which was built on the offering zoo and training acts with site of their existing home. He built the occasional complete performances. As a Italian Renaissance Revival style John result, Sarasota became synonymous with and Mable Ringling Museum the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey of Art, which opened to the public Circus as well as the whole circus sub- in 1931, in honor of Mable, who had culture. During the Great Depression, passed away. Charles Ringling founded Ringling largely managed to disguise his the Ringling Bank and Trust Company, financial troubles by constantly moving donated land for the construction of a money from investment to investment. courthouse to be designed by Dwight After John Ringling’s death in 1936, his James Baum, and built the eleven-story will revealed that he had donated most

St. Pete to Sarasota 27 of his assets to the State of Florida in an In the early 1930s, David Lindsay effort to save his beloved art collection purchased 10 acres along Sarasota Bay from creditors. At the time, it was the with plans to develop a botanical garden second largest art museum in the US. and horticultural experiment station. Embroiled in court challenges for over Preston Conrad, who operated a nursery ten years, Ca’d’Zan and the Ringling adjacent to Lindsay’s property, assisted Museum of Art were finally conveyed in the creation of a tropical garden. to the State of Florida in 1948. In In 1936, Lindsay started charging 1956, the Circus Hall of Fame opened admission to view the gardens, and in nearby along the Tamiami Trail with over 1940, opened Sarasota Jungle Gardens 5,000 attendees. When it closed, most as a tourist attraction. As a member of the items in the museum collection of Florida Attractions Association, the transferred to the Ringling Museums in gardens eventually grew to include bird Sarasota and Baraboo, Wisconsin, the shows and advertised “the most beautiful original home of the Ringling family. flock of flamingoes in the USA.” The Ringling Museum of the Circus was As we leave Sarasota Jungle Gardens, built on the Ringling Museum Grounds we will return to the Tamiami Trail and to house the collection. head south toward downtown passing by On our way to Sarasota several mid-century motels and com- Jungle Gardens, we will pass mercial buildings including the 1950 by two diminutive Tudor Revival style Monterey Village Motel, the former houses at 4237 and 4215 Rus-en-Urbe South Aire Motor Court (now the Circle. Although rumored to have Royal Palm Lodge), and the former Twin been built for circus people, there is no Motel (now the Sunshine Inn & Suites). evidence to support the theory. They Closer to downtown along the west side were constructed by contractor Paul of the road, the Art Deco Sarasota Bergmann around 1936. Municipal Auditorium was e Ebyab

28 Fun in the Sunshine City designed by Thomas Reed Martin and comprised approximately 75% of the built utilizing WPA monies in 1938 as land in Sarasota, Burns formed construc- the first structure in the public recreation tion, dredging, and realty companies and cultural area. Shuffleboard courts, to sell the land. Ringling and Burns tennis courts, and lawn bowling courts formed a company in which Ringling were constructed north of the auditorium. would become the “front man” with To the south, the Chidsey Library financing and ideas, while Burns was was built in 1941, the former the one who could bring the ideas to Sarasota Chamber of fruition. Although local businessmen Commerce Building designed by hoped the two would build a resort on Victor Lundy was constructed in 1956, the mainland, Ringling intended to and the Sarasota Garden Club develop the keys. Under the Ringling was built in 1960 to complete Isles Corporation, his plans included the municipal complex. a causeway from the mainland, a great As we approach downtown, we will hotel, and shops on St. Armands, Lido, turn to head to Lido Key at the site of and Longboat Keys. During the land the former El Vernona Hotel, boom of the 1920s, Burns dredged to one of the great preservation losses in form land for development along the bay Sarasota. At the onset of the Florida and throughout the keys, handled all of Land Boom, John Ringling formed a the island development, and built the business relationship with Owen Burns, Ringling Causeway from the mainland who had settled in Sarasota in 1910. to St. Armands and Lido Keys under the After purchasing all of the remaining charter of their company, the John Ring- holdings of John Hamilton Gillespie and ling Estates, Inc. Through his construc- the Florida Mortgage and Investment tion company, Burns also built numerous Company Limited of Scotland, which buildings including his own El Vernona

St. Pete to Sarasota 29 Apartments, an enclave of bungalows completion of the hotel. As construc- he created as Burns Court, and the new tion continued, Burns grew increasingly Ringling home, Ca’d’Zan. Burns then uncomfortable with the transfer of funds hired architect to from the solvent Ringling Isles Corpora- design a new realty office and a hotel he tion to the hotel. Ringling then loaned wanted to build on the mainland. The money to the corporation, thereby mort- office and hotel were constructed along gaging to himself all of the real property Broadway Avenue approximately three of the corporation. Burns viewed this as blocks from downtown, which shifted an attempt by Ringling to take posses- the concentration of construction from sion of all of the corporation’s assets, the commercial buildings on Main Street including Burn’s 25 percent. Meanwhile, to the Sarasota bayfront. Burns, who was heavily invested in land, The Mediterranean Revival style started liquidating his assets in an effort El Vernona Hotel, completed in 1926, to keep his El Vernona Hotel open at stood at the entrance to downtown the onset of the Great Depression. His along the Tamiami Trail and became a efforts to save the El Vernona failed and popular gathering spot for Sarasota’s elite. the hotel sold at auction in 1930. The Simultaneously, John Ringling worked ultimate purchaser was John Ringling to finance and construct his Ritz Carlton and a long period of court battles ensued. Hotel on Longboat Key. Scheduled to The hotel reopened as the John Ringling open on December 1, 1925, investors Hotel. Although Ringling’s Ritz had panicked by the decline of the Florida failed and was never completed, he now Land Boom withdrew their financing. In had a completed hotel at a fraction of spite of this loss, Ringling initiated con- the cost. struction of the hotel, and Burns agreed Although largely hidden by his that their corporation would finance juggling act, Ringling’s financial woes

30 Fun in the Sunshine City caught up to him by 1932, when he of the movie, which starred Charlton had to sign away most of his assets, Heston, stayed at the hotel. With numer- which was followed by the first of several ous famous visitors and as lodging for the strokes. The City of Sarasota filed tax Boston Red Sox during spring training liens against the art museum and collec- in the late 1940s, the hotel flourished tion in part to protect against foreclosure during the 1940s and early 1950s. of the museum and disbursement of the After final disposition of Ringling’s collection. In his final years, Ringling estate in 1948, John Ringling North lived on the verge of bankruptcy, not received the circus and the John Ring- because he had lost his wealth, but ling Hotel, which closed in 1957. In because his wealth was tied up in assets the same year, the Tamiami Trail was and his assets were pledged as collateral. widened, and, in 1961, a new Bayfront After Ringling’s death, his nephew and Drive was constructed to connect the executor of his estate, John Ringling northern and southern portions of the North, modernized and reopened the Trail sweeping along the bayfront, and John Ringling Hotel in 1937. As general bypassing downtown Sarasota. With manager of the circus, North introduced increased traffic, small rooms, out-of- the circus to the hotel to draw tourists. date systems, no beachfront access, or Clown Emmitt Kelly, aerialist Penito air conditioning, the hotel languished. Del Oro, and Captain William Heyer The sparkling, modern motels along the with his horse Starless Night performed beaches beaconed newcomers. In 1959, in the main dining room. North opened the Arvida Corporation, founded by mil- a nightclub, the M’Toto Room, in the lionaire developer Arthur Vining Davis, hotel in 1944. In 1951, Cecil B. DeMille purchased the hotel and the other land filmed the movie “The Greatest Show along the beaches owned by Ringling. on Earth” in Sarasota. He and the stars The corporation initiated demolition of

St. Pete to Sarasota 31 the abandoned Ritz Carlton in 1963, these architects start practicing here, but and sold the John Ringing Hotel, while they entered teaching positions in major retaining the right to use the name for architectural schools such as Harvard their own future hotel. This, combined University and the Illinois Institute of with the relocation of the Circuses winter Technology, influencing young architects quarters to Venice in 1960, spelled the in training such as those who settled end of an era for Sarasota. The hotel was in Sarasota after World War II. In demolished in 1998, followed by the addition to , the Sarasota former realty office within a few years. architects included Victor Lundy, Gene After we cross the John Ringling Leedy, Ralph and Bill Zimmerman, Causeway, we will circle around St. Jack West, and designer/builder Philip Armand’s Circle. This area was Hiss. Some of these young designers, platted and originally developed by Ring- such as Rudolph, began their careers by ling and Owen Burns during the 1920s. working in the architectural office of Although a few Mediterranean Revival . Twitchell had worked style homes and commercial buildings on Mediterranean Revival style designs were constructed in the development during the 1920s, including Ca’d’Zan, during the 1920s, full build-out of the the John and Mable Ringling Residence, keys waited until the post-World War II but had segued into a more modern boom. Servicemen and women who were course during the 1930s and following stationed at the Sarasota-Bradenton Air his service in World War II. Soon after Field and the Venice Air Base for training his arrival, Rudolph joined Twitchell as a during the war returned to the com- partner in his architectural firm. munity following the end of hostilities. Between the mid-1940s and the mid- From 1945 through 1954, construction 1960s, these Sarasota architects showed a in Sarasota increased at an average of strong commitment to modern architec- approximately 35% annually. With ture and design and their work attracted this flurry of building activity, Sarasota international attention. Influenced not attracted many young architects eager to only by the International style, but also experiment with the then-popular Mod- by the modern work of Frank Lloyd ern Movement adapted to the climate of Wright, they adapted their designs to coastal southwest Florida. The Modern the Florida climate and geography while movement had originated in early integrating new materials and methods twentieth century Europe with the In- of construction. These architects ternational style and the Bauhaus School produced creative and unique design of modern design, but was slow to gain solutions and were later referred to as the acceptance in the United States. As Nazis “Sarasota School of Architecture.” The gained control of Germany during the designs of many of their homes, schools, 1930s, well-known German architects, churches, and public buildings were such as Walter Gropius and Ludwig Mies published nationally and internation- van der Rohe, immigrated to the United ally in numerous architectural journals. States and led to the rapid acceptance Their work was recognized as highly of these design principals. Not only did original, and they received credit for

32 Fun in the Sunshine City their experimentation with materials and Lido Shores as a collection of modern design. Although a few of the architects homes for a semi-tropical climate. Hiss, remained in Sarasota, many left the a well-educated man of independent region by the mid-1960s. One of the means, came to Sarasota in 1948 and most well-known, Rudolph later went soon initiated work on Lido Shores. To on to achieve international fame as the draw attention to his development, he Chairman of the School of Architecture commissioned Paul Rudolph to design at Yale University. a speculative house, the Umbrella Characteristics of the Sarasota School House, in 1953. Next door, he hired designs included an open plan, use of Edward J. Seibert to design a studio for walls of glass, the merging of inside himself. As an elevated glass box, Hiss and outside spaces, low pitched or flat Studio was one of the first air condi- roofs, use of local materials and new tioned spaces in Sarasota. In addition to construction techniques, concrete slab Rudolph and Seibert, other mid-century foundations, clarity of construction, clear houses in the development were designed geometry floating above the Florida land- by William Rupp, Ralph and William scape, honesty in details and in structural Zimmerman, and Hiss Associates. connections, cantilevered roofs, and post Seibert also designed the Colin Brown and beam construction. The Sarasota Building on St. Armands Circle. On the School offered a new architectural direc- return to the mainland, Frank Folsom tion which resonated with the new social, Smith and Louis F. Schneider designed economical, and political optimism of the Plymouth Harbor Condominium in mid-century culture in the United States. 1966, the tallest residential structure in As Sarasota’s growth extended to Florida at the time of its construction. the islands, Phillip Hiss developed Continued development on Lido Key

St. Pete to Sarasota 33 in the 1960s led to the demolition of of the Bradenton Post Office, which we the landmark Lido Beach Casino, which will see on our trek north, and an armory was a WPA project opened in 1940 with at McKetchnie Field, the spring giant sculpted seahorses. training home of the Pittsburg Pirates. Returning to the Tamiami Trail to Back in Bradenton, baseball started head north to St. Petersburg, we will in the community as early as 1908. The see some of the most intact motels and Fats and Leans Team, named for the size motor courts remaining along of its players, operated between 1915 the Tamiami Trail including the and 1917. McKechnie Field opened in Allamanda Motel at 4014 1923 and named after Bill McKechnie, N. Tamiami Trail, the Cadillac a major league baseball great of the era. Motel at 4021 N. Tamiami Trail, and When constructed, the grandstand held the Sun Dial Motel at 4108 N. 1,300 attendees, while the bleachers Tamiami Trail. Although unremarkable could accommodate 700, which included from the outside, the Bahi Hut at 4675 separate facilities for African Americans. N. Tamiami Trail retains its tiki interior The existing fairground buildings were and is well-known locally for its Mai converted into locker rooms. The field is Tais. Originally known as Horn’s Cars now the oldest stadium used for spring of Yesterday, the Sarasota Classic training. In addition to the Pittsburgh Car Museum, located at 5500 N. Pirates, McKetchnie Field was home Tamiami Trail, opened in 1953. Brothers field the St. Louis Cardinals from 1930 Bob and Herb Horn built the museum to 1936, and to the Negro League Nine to house their extensive car collection. Devils team which thrived from 1937 When Walt Bellm wanted to buy their to 1956. The team, originally called the car “Tucker,” the Horn brothers wouldn’t Braidentown Aces, played between 70 sell it separately, so Bellm bought the and 75 games a year against white and entire collection and the attraction, black teams throughout the state. renaming it Bellm’s Cars and Music of Yesterday. In 1960, the facility advertised St. Petersburg more than 70 antique cars, cycles, and After crossing the Sunshine Skyway music boxes could be viewed for the into St. Petersburg, we will take US 19, $1.50 admission price. locally known as 34th Street. The 1954 As we continue north, we will pass completion of the Sunshine Skyway the Sarasota-Bradenton International Bridge connecting St. Petersburg with Airport, which started as a WPA funded Bradenton and Sarasota to the south led project in 1939. When aviation facili- to a shift in commercial development ties were completed in 1942, the field from downtown and points east to a was leased to the Army Air Corps as a westward expansion. Suddenly, US 19, fighter pilot training base during World which originally followed what is now War II. The field transferred back to the Alternate US 19 through the heart of Airport Authority in 1947 following the Tarpon Springs, Dunedin, Clearwater, war. Federal programs during the Great and Largo, bypassed these communities. Depression also led to the construction Designated as the Gulf Coast Highway,

34 Fun in the Sunshine City it served as the main route north and World War II housing developments. south through the county, and new Returning to US 19, the shopping centers, motels, and restaurants Sandman Motel at 570 34th quickly followed. Street North retains its original design Among the old motels and eateries and neon sign from 1956-1957. Across along 34th Street South, the former the street, the former Dobb’s House Henry’s Diner, located at 1789 Restaurant, now the Donut Connection, 34th St S, stands as one of the few, provides a remnant of Googie along possibly the only diner, remaining in the sprawling strip. As we head back to the region. It was moved from MacDill downtown and the Pennsylvania Hotel, Avenue in Tampa around 1956. we will see the mid-century 1962 Plaza Taking a brief detour a few blocks off 5th Apartments, the 1963 300 East of 34th Street South, we will visit the Building, the 1946 Tripplett’s Bethwood Terrace Subdivision. Drive-in Restaurant, and the This collection of late 1940s and early 1954 rotosphere at the Star Deli Food 1950s Ranch style residences was devel- Store. Closer to town, we will pass the oped by Eden Homes, Inc. in 1947 and Coliseum, a 1924 Moorish Revival 1948. By exhibiting tropical elements style ballroom at which big name considered quintessentially Florida, entertainers like Louis Armstrong, developers intended to lure families and Count Basie, Duke Ellington, and retirees to settle in the “Sunshine State.” Dizzy Gillespie performed. In the These elements include rounded fluted next block, the Avalon Hotel and the corners, curved wing walls, large picture Hollander Hotel provided nearby windows, tile clad roofs, wavy elements lodging for visitors before we turn reminiscent of the ocean, and decorative right on 4th Street and return to the features with flowers and birds. Pennsylvania Hotel. It remains a fine example of post- Text by Kimberly Hinder, Historic Preservation Planner Planning and Economic Development Department, City of St. Petersburg Layout by Rick Kilby, Kilby Creative Kilby Rick Kilby, by Layout

St. Pete to Sarasota 35 Established in 1977, the SCA is the oldest national organization devoted to the buildings, artifacts, structures, signs, and symbols of the 20th-century commercial landscape. The SCA offers publications, conferences, and tours to help preserve, document, and celebrate the structures and architecture of the 20th century. Visit SCA-roadside.org to learn more.