A First Beach Resort?
By: Sally Yoder
| As mainlanders
found passage by the big ‘ol steamer boats, small skiffs
and party boats, to the islands quiet beaches, early pioneers
opened rough “hotels” to accommodate their needs.
Eight Street (not Ave. back then) quickly became the “main”
gathering and eating place, small rooming houses and fishing
docks soon became the norm. George Lizotte opened his “Bonhomie”
in 1910, which was French for “good fellowship”
and there was plenty of that! He rebuilt and renamed it “Hotel
Lizotte”. A fire in 1918 destroyed that and damaged
other nearby structures, but other hotels - The Mason House”,
The Holloway”, and the large Plaza at 26th Street continued
to lure visitors eager to bath in the Gulf waters and partake
of fresh seafood. |
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Local rooming houses
did well despite rains which brought hoards of mosquitoes
but the roomers stayed getting 3 meals a day, fresh fish,
homemade cakes and clean linen for as little as $2.00 a week.
They traveled back and forth over the bay in small (mostly
fishing) boats once or twice a week for supplies. When Capt.
Ken Marry, Sr. built and stocked his little general store
on what is now known as Merry Pier, it saved many a landlady
a trip over the sometimes rough waters to keep her kitchen
stocked! |
The
Plaza Hotel (it’s name was changed in 1913 to the
Pass-a-Grille Beach Hotel - note: the other hotel with that
name was built in the early 1920's between 9 & 10th
Ave.) had large rambling porches all facing the beach and
the Gulf. The “elite” patrons from Tampa and
St. Petersburg can be seen in old photos rocking in wooden
chairs on these porches. Spending time on the beach was
a treat for so many (just as it is today) and along with
the “day visitors”, Pass-a-Grille really was
an early version of our modern resorts.
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The upper beaches
experienced a share of mainlanders too, with many small
hotels or lodges, but storms were an enemy of these frailly
built structures and many were lost in a short period of
time. A 1921 storm did extensive damage to the Plaza which
was never rebuilt. However, a historic note here: the two
story building used by the hotel employees still stands
on the north- west end of 26th Ave. Named the “Butler
House”, it has national historic landmark recognition
and has been a “condo” unit for many years.
But the beaches had been discovered for sure and would continue
on a slow but steady development course never losing the
resort image that began in the early 1900's. |
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