By Peter Roos
It all began in … Pass-a-Grille
Pass-a-Grille’s resort debut occurred during the last year of the third and final Seminole War (1856-57). “Old settler John A. Bethell conceded in 1914 that Pass-a-Grille was making good at last.” Excursion boats (from Disston City, now Gulfport to P-a-G), usually running Wednesdays and Sundays from 7am to 10pm, were bringing thousands of visitors to Pass-a-Grille in the era of the 50-cent shore dinner.
The day after Tony Jannus flew the world’s first commercial flight on Jan. 1, 1914, from St. Petersburg to Tampa, Pass-a-Grille host George Lizotte and a friend, Richard Gaylord, hired Jannus to fly passengers from Pass-a-Grille. It is believed to be the first time an airplane had been chartered for commercial purposes in the United States. For three days the amphibian plane took passengers on 25-minute flights over the Gulf as far as Egmont Key, returning to Pass-a-Grille. (Surf, Sand & Postcard Sunsets by Frank T. Hurley Jr.) The first bridge to Long Key, now known as St. Pete Beach, was the McAdoo bridge, which opened for business on Feb. 4, 1919. It was a wooden toll bridge that extended from Villa Grande Ave.in St. Petersburg to 87th Ave. in St. Petersburg Beach and cost 25¢ to cross to the beach. William D. McAdoo, a Greensboro, N.C., hotel owner, had steered his yacht to Pass-a-Grille in 1916. He sought “an opportunity to make a big noise,” said George Lizotte, then Pass-a-Grille’s mayor. McAdoo built the First Gulf Beach bank building (most recently the Bank of America) and 500 acres in north Long Key once owned by C. Perry Snell, H. Walter Fuller and Roy Hanna. St. Petersburg Beach’s first mayor was Bill Upham, whose family donated Upham Beach, the Chamber of Commerce building and the block that the Gulf Beaches Elementary School, now a math and science magnet school, sits on, among other gifts to the city and county.
The second bridge to St Petersburg Beach was built to end on Corey Avenue, which is now the city’s downtown shopping district. The first bridge constructed in the 1930s was a low-level two-lane drawbridge. The southbound span consisting of a high-level drawbridge was constructed in 1966 one block north of the 1930s span. A northbound span paralleling 1966 southbound span replaced the 1930s bridge in 1975.St. Pete Beach City Hall and the largest full-service U.S. Post Office on the south barrier islands are near Corey’s east end. At Corey’s west end there’s a beautiful view of sunset from two city parks. One park, aptly named “Sunset Park,” offers views through “Blind Pass” to the Gulf of Mexico. That view can also be seen from the bar at “82 Degrees,” one of St. Pete Beach’s top new restaurants. St. Pete Beach is “Sunset Capital of Florida” thanks to an idea from Renee Roos. Google the story “St. Pete Beach set to shine as the Sunset Capital of Florida!”
Tierra Verde
Other than folks connected with Fort Desoto, which was built in 1898 and turned into a park in 1963, the first memorable resident of the area was the colorful Silas Dent, “the Happy Hermit of Cabbage Key,” who lived there from 1912 to 1952. Silas kept a few head of cattle and would row fresh milk to Pass-a-Grille each day for the hospitality industry.
Later, as developers Louis and Fred Berlanti reshaped 15 islands into a park-like setting on six isands, Tierra Verde became the home of Guy Lombardo’s “Port-O-Call Resort” where Frank Sinatra, Marlene Dietrich, Liberace, Mel Tormé, and many other musical and theatrical stars performed. A mural from the lobby of the Port-O-Call Resort depicting the history of Tierra Verde Island, is on display in the lobby of Steve Westphal’s Island Grill and Raw Bar, which sits where the resort once sat.Pinellas County’s largest park with the biggest boat launch facility and the only public campground is also home to a world-famous beach and a fort that has become a tourist attraction in its own right.
Fort Desoto Beach awards:
- “Best Family Beach” – USA TODAY (2013)
- “No. 4 – America’s Top 25 Beaches – 2013” – TripAdvisor
- “No. 20 – World’s Top 25 Beaches – 2013” – TripAdvisor
- “Best Family Beach” – Parents magazine (2011)
- “No. 1 Beach in America” – Dr. Beach (2005)
John’s Pass – Madeira Beach
On September 27, 1848, a hurricane passed through the area now known as Madeira Beach and destroyed much of the shoreline. John LeVeque was sailing his ship homeward and looking for a way to pass through back to safe harbors. Theorists agree that he might have been looking for Blind Pass, or even Pass-a-Grille, but instead he found a more northerly opening never seen before. It was from this time that the new opening was to be called John’s Pass in honor of John LeVeque’s first passage.
Today John’s Pass Village has become one of the top tourist destinations on Florida’s West Coast. It is home to waterfront shops, dining, marinas, charter fishing, sunset cruises, watercraft rentals and entertainment of all types. There is always something to do at John’s Pass and each year thousands of visitors, seasonal residents, and locals all converge here to spend their days enjoying the scenery and atmosphere.
Treasure Island “Sand Sculpture Capital of Florida”
Treasure Island was originally settled in small communities by the Tocobaga natives around 300 CE. The Timucua traded with other native tribes in the area until 1528. The arrival of Pánfilo de Narváez decimated the natives before the Spaniards left the area in search of gold. The 1848 hurricane that formed John’s Pass also split off two smaller islands (now the Isle of Palms and Isle of Capri).
So, you ask, how did Treasure Island get its name? After William D. McAdoo bought 500 acres in north Long Key, to boost sales of the properties being developed on the island, he and his handyman secretly buried two wooden chests on Coney Island Beach. Swearing them to silence, he brought two strangers to the spot to discover the treasure chests on the beach. The news of the discoveries spread quickly. People began to call the island …Treasure Island! McAdoo sold his holdings for $1.8 million in 1920 and his bridge was demolished in 1928. Treasure Island had a surge in growth with the residential home and hotel development following World War II through the 1950s. These ventures were usually built on fill from dredged material. Treasure Island got its claim to fame as the home to the champion sand sculpting team of Dan and Meredith Doubleday, who with the city of Treasure Island host Sanding Ovations, a worldwide sand sculpting competition here each year. This year’s main event will be November, 21-24.
