In our effort to help home buyers relocating from different areas of the country, we have developed an 11 part video series to highlight the various cities we cover on the Gulf Coast of Florida. These are our third & fourth videos and they highlight Greater Clearwater, Saint Petersburg, & the Beaches.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE ST PETERSBURG VIDEO CLICK HERE TO VIEW CLEARWATER VIDEO
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE PDF RELOCATION GUIDE FOR CLEARWATER ST. PETE, & THE BEACHES
Most of Florida was inhabited by Native Americans long before white explorers first set foot on its shores. The Timucuan tribe gave Spanish explorer Ponce de León a violent reception when he landed near Mullet Bay in 1513. Injuries de León suffered upon his next visit 8 years later proved his demise - after his second skirmish with the Timucuans, he fled to Cuba where he died of an arrow wound. De León did, however, give Florida its name, and his statue now stands in Tampa Bay's Waterfront Park.
St. Petersburg
In 1876, the ambitious Detroit businessman John Constantine Williams purchased a large tract of land overlooking southeast Tampa Bay, on a peninsula between the Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Williams, an asthma sufferer, moved to Florida for health reasons. Although he had bought several thousand acres in what is now St. Petersburg, he lived in Tampa until a yellow fever epidemic drove him across the bay in 1887.
Williams transferred a portion of his land to Russian aristocrat Peter Demens, who had taken over the charter to the Orange Belt Railway in 1885. In exchange for the land, Demens agreed to bring a railroad terminus to Pinellas County to encourage trade and prosperity in the region. Local legend has it that Williams and Demens flipped a coin to decide who would name the city; Demens, the winner, chose St. Petersburg after his Russian birthplace. As a consolation prize, Williams got to name the city's first hotel, "The Detroit." In June 1888, the first train chugged into town with one passenger on board. The population of St. Petersburg was 30.
By 1893, the town's population had grown to 300, and in 1903 St. Petersburg became incorporated. Unlike many American cities formed at the turn of the century, St. Petersburg's development began without an established industrial base. Instead, its growth became dependent on selling itself as a tourist destination. The area's tourist trade got an early boost from W.C. Van Bibber, M.D., when he described his property near Maximo Point as the perfect location for "Health City" in his 1885 presentation to the American Medical Association. St. Petersburg booster Frank Davis echoed this claim in his company's medical journals, and newspapermen W. L. Straub of the St. Petersburg Times and Lew Brown of the St. Petersburg Independent lent their enthusiastic voices to promote the region.
W.L. Straub again went to bat for the growing community between 1908 and 1923, when he helped convince St. Petersburg citizens to back bonds totaling over $1.3 million to acquire and develop the city's waterfront property. The city used these funds to dredge a channel for pleasure craft, build a yacht basin, and construct a 50-acre park and seawall. This foresight set the stage for the city's population boom from 1,575 in 1900 to 14,237 in 1920.
On New Year's Day 1914, Tony Jannus flew the first commercial airplane between St. Petersburg and Tampa. The same year, Al Lang succeeded in bringing Major League Baseball's spring training to the area. The erection of the Gandy Bridge, connecting the peninsula to Tampa, along with development of subdivisions - from Lakewood, to the Jungle, to Rio Vista, to Weedon's Island - contributed to further growth. Completion of the Sunshine Skyway, linking St. Petersburg to the Gulf Beaches communities, bolstered the area's reputation as the "nation's playground."
Although the Great Depression left its mark on Pinellas County as on other parts of the U.S., St. Petersburg continued to grow, with permanent population exceeding 60,000 by 1940. After Pearl Harbor, war restrictions virtually destroyed the tourist trade, but the region escaped economic disaster when empty hotels were converted into military barracks. Another boom occurred after WWII, as servicemen who had trained in the area returned with their families to settle. The invention of air conditioning contributed to the ongoing growth of the tourist business. The advent of social security and private pension payments allowed an influx of retirees to enjoy their golden years in Pinellas County.
During the 1960s many of St. Petersburg's cultural landmarks were built, including the Museum of Fine Arts, the Municipal Marina, the Main Library, and the Bayfront Center. The area's dramatic population growth led to the adoption of comprehensive city planning and land use regulations in the 1970s. Environmental concerns sparked the creation of the largest water reclamation system in the country, and St. Petersburg continues to lead the nation in water conservation.
Since the 1980s, St. Petersburg (now often called "St. Pete") has worked to shift its image from retirement community to a thriving mecca for investment and business growth. Major corporations like Franklin Templeton, Home Shopping Network, Danka, PSCU, and SRI have made St. Petersburg their base. Following civil disturbances in 1996, the city's residents united to revitalize the inner city by creating jobs, improving education, increasing property values, and reducing crime. The National League of Cities awarded St. Petersburg top honors for promoting cultural diversity in 2000. While population growth has leveled off, Pinellas County continues to thrive as one of the most beautiful, prosperous, and livable regions in the country.
Clearwater
Clearwater's historical growth occurred parallel to that of St. Petersburg. Originally home to the Tocobaga tribe, the area was named for the fresh water springs that flowed from its banks into Tampa Bay. Clearwater began to be settled by whites when the U.S. Army constructed Fort Harrison as a recuperation center for troops during the Seminole Wars. The Federal Armed Occupation Act of 1842 promised 160 acres to any man over 18 who would bear arms and cultivate the land. James Stevens, the proclaimed "father of Clearwater," was one of the first to take advantage of this offer. Samuel Stevenson and James Parramore McMullen followed, and these three families held many local governing positions during the settlement's early years.
Like St. Pete, Clearwater grew steadily after the railroad arrived in 1888, and was affected similarly by the Great Depression. The city incorporated in 1915, and its Main Library was built in 1916 with a grant from Andrew Carnegie. Clearwater hotels also were commissioned as barracks during WWII and many soldiers returned to settle in the area after the war. The population continued to grow from the 1950s until reaching today's levels.
If you are looking for real estate in the Greater St. Pete, Clearwater area or the Beaches (Clearwater Beach, Sand Key, Belleair Beach, Indian Rocks Beach, Indian Shores, Redington Shores, Redington Beach, Maderia Beach, Treasure Island, or St. Pete Beach) , please call or e-mail!
Steve Eckhardt, Broker, Luxury Real Estate Professional
Contact me at (813) 765-1182
Check Out Steve Eckhardt's Other Social Networking Profiles
My Blog http://www.luxuryhomeblog.com
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/CornerstoneProperties
Twitter http://www.twitter.com/theflbroker
Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/27264581@N08/
Linked In http://www.linkedin.com/in/cornerstoneproperties
YouTube http://www.youtube.com/csmtggrp85
