St. Augustine's Gilded Age Tourist Amusements

This blog and all my subsequent writing is the direct result of my fascination with the city of St. Augustine. My wife and I visit at least once a year, and I never seem to run out of entertainment options, despite the fact that I've making treks to the ancient city my whole life. There are both high brow and low brow offerings  – from spectacular architecture and sophisticated museums to cheesy gift shops and campy tourist traps. I can't seem to get enough of either.

The Gilded Age visitor would have had also had a variety of entertainment options and as the city exploded with travelers in the last few decades of the nineteenth century there was no excuse for ennui on a visit to St. Augustine. If you were staying at a hotel in the Flagler system, (the Ponce de Leon, Alcazar, or Cordova) it was almost like staying in an all-inclusive resort. The list of leisure activities was vast and varied from cakewalks, dances, and concerts at the Ponce to a spa experience across the street at the Alcazar – complete with gymnasium and an enormous indoor swimming pool. Outdoor activities included tennis, golf and baseball (both played on the grounds outside the fort), and the ever-popular Victorian pastime of bicycling.

Swimming in the pool of the Alcazar Hotel was a favorite activity of Victorian visitors to St. Augustine. Image from the Library of Congress. 

Promenading on the seawall; colorized illustration from Harper's Weekly
courtesy of the Matheson History Museum.

Of course, promenading along the seawall was an essential activity, as it was seen as both healthful to inhale the salubrious salt air and it fulfilled a valuable social component to see and be seen by prospective mates and potential rivals. According to the City of St. Augustine website, the historic St. Augustine Seawall has long been "an integral part of the city’s fabric — a coquina sentinel from rough waters, a promenade for romantic strolls and waterside socials." Along the seawall, several other entertainment options presented themselves, the equivalent, perhaps, of the establishments one might find today on present-day St. George Street. Here are a few of my favorite second-tier diversions that competed for the opportunity to separate Victorian visitors from their wallets.

Dr. Vedder's on the left side of the sea wall, Capo's Bath House on the right.

Dr. Vedder's Museum and Menagerie

Dr. John Vedder practiced dentistry in the old city in a Spanish Colonial building not far from the Cathedral. Accreditation for medical doctors and dentists was a bit sketchy in the nineteenth century and it appears likely that Vedder learned his trade from studying his son's dentistry textbooks, (his son earned a dentistry degree from Union College). The senior Dr. Vedder, a native New Yorker who worked on railroads up north, moved to St. Augustine in the late 1870s.

Dr. Vedder on Treasury Street, photo from Shorpy.com.

Apparently, teeth and trains weren't Vedder's only interests and he, like many Victorians, was an "avid collector of natural specimens and began displaying these specimens in his office," according to this online account. A flattering profile published in the Hartford (Kansas) News states that he began the study of taxidermy in 1876 and soon became an "acknowledged authority on the subject." The article claims that he created the "finest collection of live animals and birds, Indian relics, mounted fish, reptiles, crustaceans, etc. in Florida." Eventually, his collection's popularity dwarfed his dentistry practice, and he began operating Dr. Vedder's Museum and Menagerie across from the Yacht Club, full time.

Looking west down Treasury St. from Bay St., circa 1880.
The gentleman on the right appears to be Dr. Vedder. From the State Archives of Florida. 

Advertisements list the contents of his Curiosity Shop in great detail; "all the most poisonous reptiles on earth," the "St. Augustine Monkey Owl," "Dens of Alligators," and "Oceanic Wonders" including the "Monster Man-Eater Shark." All this and more for a reasonable two-bit admission price.  Vedder's building, located on Bay Street across from the seawall next to Treasury street, sported large painted signage that made it nearly impossible to miss.

African American boys posing in front of Dr. Vedder's Museum on Bay St.
From the State Archives of Florida.

Vintage postcard from the State Archives of Florida. Note the alligator in front of the building. 

This view shows the Sea Wall which was where Gilded Age visitors promenaded.
From the State Archives of Florida. 

The establishment thrived until Vedder's death in 1899 and it eventually came into the possession of the St. Augustine Historical Society. Ads in the 1906 Standard Guide show a rare glimpse inside the building, which in addition to Vedder's collection, included Native American artifacts, "relics" from the Spanish occupation, maps, and more. Sadly, the historic coquina building was destroyed in the fire of 1914.

Treasury Street postcard with a sign for the Museum.
From the State Archives of Florida. 

Rare image of museum interior from the 1906 Standard Guide.

Listing for St. Augustine Historical Museum before the fire.

Capo's Bath House

I'm obsessed with what I call "Florida's Golden Age of Bathing" and I have a book about the subject coming out this fall. St. Augustine's largest spring actually bubbles up in the Atlantic, so taking the waters in the city limits was a bit of a challenge. Capo's Bath House was a perfect solution for those needing a hydropathy fix, especially invalids and hypochondriacs, both of whom frequented St. Augustine in great numbers during the 19th century. The octagonal-shaped building was just south of the fort on Matanzas Bay near the end of Treasury Street across the street from Dr. Vedder's Museum. It had a stone foundation but was mostly made of wood. It was built around 1870 by Philip V. Capo, a descendant of the Minorcans who escaped from Andrew Turnbull's ill-fated colony in New Smyrna. Capo served the Confederacy during the Civil War and after the end of hostilities like so many Floridians of the era, he went to work making money from Yankees.

The sea wall with Capo's Bath House from the Library of Congress.

The facility offered baths in both hot and cold seawater, sulfur water baths, and showers, which were at that time more about hydropathy than hygiene. Capo also rented sailboats from a pier that extended beyond the bath house into the bay. According to writer Stuart B. McIver, women and children would bathe at low tide and then at high tide, a "ball war raised to the top of a wooden pole" to signal it was men's bathing time. Ideally situated adjacent to the promenade, the location was hard to miss, but sadly the structure also burned down in the fire of 1914.  Today you can still see a few of the terracotta-colored steps that led to the bath house along the seawall. The lounge of the famed Conch House Restaurant was created to look like the bathhouse, repeating the same eight-sided design with a similar clerestory.

Detail of Sanborn Fire Insurance map showing the location of Dr. Vedder's Museum
(marked "Curios and Museum") and Capo's Bathhouse on either side of Bay Street.

The lounge of the Conch House Restaurant is an homage to Capo's Bathhouse.

Whitney's Fountain of Youth/Oldest House/Burning Spring Museum

John F. Whitney was another northern entrepreneur who invested in St. Augustine's 19th-century infrastructure, developing the Ravenswood neighborhood beyond the St. Sebastian River and creating several notable attractions. The home of the Massachusetts newspaperman and former politician was constructed on Spengler Island, and there he entertained notable guests there such as Mary Todd Lincoln. Whitney, the grandson of cotton gin inventor Eli Whitney apparently knew notable celebrities of the era including Thomas Edison and P.T. Barnum. Historian Thomas Graham called Whitney the "prototype of the modern Florida land developer," and he published a booklet called "A Brief Account of St. Augustine and Its Environs" to further promote his investments. Much of the booklet is devoted to glowing accounts of the healthful climate of St. Augustine, but it also included floor plans for new houses and a great deal of advice for one interested in making a home in Florida.

Note Ravenswood at the top of this map from the St. Augustine Directory from 1885-86.

Whitney's entire booklet can be viewed here.

As he developed the property around his home, an area he dubbed Ravenswood, he turned to the myth of Ponce de León s quest for waters of immortality as a gimmick to attract potential investors.  He constructed a small observation tower over a small spring and proclaimed it to be the fountain of youth and visitors could drink the famed life-giving elixir. Whitney's Fountain of Youth appears on several tourist maps from the era and an ad in the Standard Guide includes this description:

One of the most historical spots in America, Tonic 

Water, Iron, Iodine and other' medicinal properties. 

CAUTION! Do not drink more than three glasses at one 

time. It acts quickly and takes away that tired feeling. 

HAPPINESS RESTORED. 

According to the St. Augustine Social magazine, the spring was located in West Augustine near the present-day Crookshank Elementary School. This spring attraction is not the same Fountain of Youth Park that was developed by "Diamond Lil" MacConnell around the turn-of-the-century and is still owned and operated by the Frazier family today.

"Whitney's Ponce de Leon Springs Fountain of Youth Tonic Water No. 1513 St. Augustine, Fla." From Dr. Bronson's St. Augustine History Facebook page, used courtesy of the Usina family.

In addition to having multiple Fountains of Youth, St. Augustine had more than one oldest house museum, including Whitney's Oldest House. Whitney's son Everett, leased what is now known as the Gaspar Papy House - Don Toledo House in 1903 and advertised it as "The Oldest House in America, ... built in 1516 by Don Toledo, for his Indian bride, assisted by the Seminole Indians..." But as a historical account in the Library of Congress points out, 1516 is only three years after Ponce de León discovered Florida, 49 years before Pedro Menendez founded St. Augustine, and there were no Seminole Indians in Florida until the 1700s. The house was actually constructed by a Greek named in Gaspar Papy early in the 19th century.  Ads boasted of "mahogany doors, coquina floors, and furnishings over 200 years old." Everett Whitney ran the attraction until 1912 but the next owners continued to operate it under as "Whitney's Oldest House."  The collection was eventually purchased by the St. Augustine Historical Society. 

Interior of Whitney's Oldest House, Library of Congress

Postcards from the State Archives of Florida.

According to Thomas Graham, it was the younger Everett's idea to feature a pen of alligators at the Fountain of Youth location. The genesis of his concept appears to have derived from a single gator that made the unfortunate decision to settle in the spring; soon Whitney had a dozen alligators, in addition to "bears, wildcats, snakes, and other Florida animals." Alligator wrestling attracted more visitors to what was then a remote location in west St. Augustine, but at some point, Whitney moved some of his alligators to South Beach on Anastasia Island near the terminus of the trolley line that traveled between the town and the island. Eventually, the South Beach alligator attraction was taken over by Felix Fire and George Reddington, and they are given credit for being the founders of the St. Augustine Alligator Farm that still exists today.

Could this be Whitney's alligator pen? Photo from a private collection, circa 1900, shared by Tim Jackson on the Historic Florida group on Facebook. Used with permission.

1880s image of the horse-drawn trolley to Anastasia Island
from the State Archives of Florida.

Panoramic image showing the South Beach Alligator Farm and Burning Spring Museum.

Undated photograph of the St. Augustine Alligator Farm
from the State Archives of Florida.

Adjacent to his South Beach alligator pen, Everett Whitney opened a dubious attraction known as the Burning Spring Museum, another attraction full of Florida "curiosities" including an artesian well that when ignited "burned like alcohol." One account testifies that gas was poured on the spring before it was ignited, which might explain its apparent flammability.

"History of the Burning Spring" from the State Archives of Florida.

Here is a description by Hewstone and Hazel Raymenton, travelers to St. Augustine in 1916:

"Soon after crossing the toll bridge we came into sight of the sea.  At about the same time we passed close to the lighthouse which forms such a landmark when viewed from the city.  It is painted in a manner to resemble a stick of black and white peppermint candy . . . At this place there is an alligator farm much like the one we saw at Los Angeles. There may not be so many alligators here but there are more of the large sized specimens. One old monster is said to be fully four hundred years old and there are several others not much younger.  There are, in addition, several huge leather back turtles and cages of numerous different animals and birds. In one room is a collection of reptiles including an iguana and two gila monsters. One diamondback rattlesnake was so excited by the keeper that he rattled loudly for fully five minutes.  Most curious of all is a spring of water, the fumes arising from which can be ignited.  When allowed to rise through a pipe a fierce flame could be got but, strange to say, there seemed to be no burning qualities in it.  The water itself did not have an unpleasant taste." – Hewstone and Hazel Raymenton, 1916, from the holdings of the P.K. Yonge Library of Florida History

Tire advertisement from St. Augustine urging motorists to visit Anastasia Island, circa 1921,
from the State Archives of Florida

Fire and Reddington eventually moved the alligator farm further inland to its current location and the original location of the alligator pens and the burning spring "succumbed to erosion" according to Graham, and both were visible along the shoreline at low tide for many years afterward.

Undated promotional image from the St. Augustine Alligator Farm
from the State Archives of Florida.

Museums, Curiosity Shops, or Both?

The Victorian appetite for Florida's "curiosities" seemed immense – there was another establishment mentioned in the 1885 St. Augustine Directory called "The St. Augustine Museum" with an "almost endless collection" of historical objects, oddities, and novelties.  On the map in the tourist's guide, it is listed in the legend three times, as a "Collection of Old Spanish Relics," a "Circulating Library," and the "Bric-a-Brac and Antiquarian Store." The section preceding the museum's multiple page descriptions is a section titled "Curiosity Stores" that states that there were several establishments where the "natural productions of Florida can be obtained," the foremost being the Fort Marion Store within the Museum. It appears clear than many of the natural oddities on display in museums, could also be purchased.

Larry Roberts, author of "Florida Golden Age of Souvenirs" explains that natural science was a popular hobby among Florida visitors as "Darwinian doctrine fashionably infused Victorian intellect." "One could assume that tourists with dawning scientific curiosities would enjoy whiling away the hours seeking items of intrigue for their developing specimen collections" Roberts explains. "Bio curios" included seashells, exotic bird feathers, alligator teeth, and other miscellaneous items crafted from natural specimens. The line between museum and gift shop seems fuzzy and curio shops appeared to stock their stores with the same historic and natural novelty goods that were on display in museums of the era. The plethora of Florida curio stores in St. Augustine and other destinations is a phenomenon worthy of exploration in a future post.

The Museum was located opposite the fort near the city gates.

Add for a business selling Florida curios in the 1885 St. Augustine Guide.

Is there still a market for offbeat oddities and natural curiosities in the 21st century? One merely needs to look only as far as Ripley's Believe It or Not Odditorium, in operation continuously for 70 years in St. Augustine, to find out the answer is yes. In all my visits to the city, I've never visited Ripley's –  it's just another reason for a return trip.  If I could only purchase a Fiji Mermaid in the gift shop...

The building in the background of this 1892 cyanotype is the Castle Warden
which has served as the home of Ripley's Believe it or Not since 1950.
From the State Archives of Florida. 

Postcard of Fiji Mermaid from Ripley's.

Confessions of a devout lover of Florida

© New York Times

The following is my response to an T.D. Allman's April 1st Op-ed piece in the New York Times. Allman has been creating a furor in Florida academic circles since the release of his"Finding the Florida" book earlier this year...

I must confess as a graphic designer and admitted collector of "Ponceabilia" the most attractive element of T.D. Allman's recent editorial in the Times is the brilliant pen and ink illustration by Johnny Sampson.  In the spirit of full disclosure, I must also admit that I, unlike Mr. Allman was not born in the Sunshine State but have resided here for forty-six of my forty-eight years. But Florida is my home and I love her completely, warts and all.

I attended the commemoration of "The First Landing" in Melbourne Beach and Mr. Allman couldn't have known this, but no statue of Ponce was unveiled on this day. For some reason the statue was not ready and rows of folding chairs faced a statue-less podium on April 2nd. The chaotic event was much like what I love about Florida; diverse, surprising, and slightly surreal. I saw little "illusion" referenced by Allman; the reenactors put on their period armor in plain sight of the attendees; yet the folks still crowded them for photos like they were Mickey at Disney.

I never even got to see the reenactor who played Ponce – he was two hours late and by the time he arrived I had moved on. The real Ponce's biggest contribution was the discovery of the Gulf Stream, the current that allowed the Europeans to return safely back to the Old World –  making it the first highway to return tourists home. As for his landing point, well that is subject of great debate, as any firsthand accounts of the expedition of his journey have been lost and we may never be exactly sure where Ponce first stepped foot in the land he named La Florida.

Mr. Allman points out Ponce's arrival ultimately led to the extinction of the state's original inhabitants, the hundreds of thousands of indigenous people known as the Timucua, Calusa, Ais, Apalachee and others. But he didn't point out that in the 18th century the surviving members of the tribes, along with former slaves, were given sanctuary by the Spanish and were ultimately driven from the state by the British and their allies, the Creek Indians from Georgia and the Carolinas. When the Creeks stayed in Florida, some of these original natives, as well as the former slaves, were assimilated into what we now know as the Seminole nation. Since the day Ponce arrived, Florida has been a melting pot of people of different colors.

Ponce's association with the Fountain of Youth, an archetypal myth with roots stretching back to ancient Greece, goes well beyond Washington Irving to 15th and 16th century accounts by Oviedo and Herrara. The century-old attraction known as the Fountain of Youth in St. Augustine was not created by Walter Fraser but by "Diamond Lil" McConnell who claimed to have unearthed the stone cross created by the Spanish explorer on his initial landing.

My favorite statement by Mr. Allman is "if we took the trouble to understand the past, we might stop building our lives on sinkholes." The release of his book "Finding Florida" earlier this year has generated much publicity and kick started a conversation about our state's past. In the complex, multicultural Florida of the 21st century that in itself is an accomplishment. But our state's history is not as cut and dry as Mr. Allman claims and our perspective as Floridians is constantly evolving.

My personal journey to learn more about Florida's past has led me to become a champion of Florida's threatened natural resources including its most incredible wonders – its 1,000 artesian Florida Springs. Much of the indifferent attitudes of those in power in Florida expressed by Mr. Allman have put these real fountains of youth at risk. But instead of taking shots at those that got us here, maybe we should focus our energy on solutions. The challenges facing the state today are complex, as is Florida's rich past.  Narrow definitions and incomplete portrayals of where we came from, can limit the creativity needed to go forward. For those of us who embrace Florida and all her blemishes, a more complete understanding of Florida's past than is presented by Mr. Allman is necessary to prevent our fall into the sinkholes of the future.

Viva Florida 500: Mythbusters Edition

April 2,  2013 marks the 500th anniversary of Juan Ponce de Leon’s naming of Florida.  The commemoration of Ponce’s landing has been designated by our state as Viva Florida 500 and Florida’s history will be highlighted throughout the year.  But because our state’s rich past is often misunderstood and ignored, I’ve prepared 7 Florida historical nuggets to prepare you for 2013. See how many you already know.

Fact or Fiction: Ponce de Leon discovered Florida.

Fiction: At the time of Ponce’s arrival in Florida, it is estimated that close to a third of a million Native Americans already lived here. The Timucuan, Calusa, Apalachee, Ocalii and other tribes lived in Florida thousands of years before the arrival of the Europeans. By the end of the 18th century, the last of these original Floridians, who had no immunity to the diseases brought by Europeans and enslaved Africans, were finally driven out of the state by the English and their Indian allies.

State Archives of Florida

Historians also believe that it is likely that other Europeans may have made unauthorized slaving expeditions into Florida before Ponce ever got here.

Fact or Fiction: Ponce de Leon was searching for the Fountain of Youth

Fiction: The origins of the Fountain of Youth legend can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and stories associated with Alexander the Great. While it is possible that Ponce had heard Indian legends of life-giving waters, the myth was not associated with Ponce until written accounts more than a decade after his passing. Historian Fernandez Oviedo, who seemed to have had a bone to pick with Ponce’s family, may have started the myth by writing that Ponce sought the fabled waters as a cure for impotence. In reality, Ponce was driven by the search for gold and glory.

Before landing in Florida, Ponce had become wealthy through agriculture and by supplying Indian labor for gold mining in Puerto Rico. When Columbus’s son Diego challenged his power, Ponce sought a charter from the King of Spain to explore the lands further north. In his two expeditions to Florida, Ponce encountered hostile natives, and was critically wounded on his second journey here and later died in Cuba.

Fact or Fiction: Ponce de Leon landed in St. Augustine

No one knows exactly where Ponce landed. St. Augustine has always made the claim to be where he came ashore based on a 17th century chronicle that says Ponce landed south of Ponte Vedra Beach. However a contemporary historian re-traced Ponce’s journey and landed near Melbourne Beach. Both sites now claim to be the site of Ponce’s first footsteps on land.  The truth is, we may never know, as there is no archaeological evidence of his landing.

Fact or Fiction: The English colony of Jamestown was the first settlement in the new world.

Fiction. St. Augustine was settled in 1565 by Pedro Menendez de Aviles. By the time the English landed at Plymouth Rock, the settlers in St. Augustine had children and grandchildren that were born in North America.  Historian Michael Gannon jokes that by the time Jamestown and Plymouth were settled “St. Augustine was up for urban renewal.”

Fact or Fiction: The Fountain of Youth attraction in St. Augustine is a fraud.

It depends on who your believe.

• Near the end of the 19th century, “Diamond Lil” McConnell uncovered a well on her St. Augustine property.

• Nearby was a rock cross with 15 vertical stones intersected by 13 stones horizontal stones. She believed it was a reference to the year of Ponce’s landing, 1513. She also claimed to have found a silver urn with a parchment inside that she thought confirmed the location as that of Ponce’s landing and the nearby well as the Fountain of Youth.

• In the early 1900s she opened her property as an attraction allowing visitors to drink the fabled water.

• After McConnell’s death the park passed to the Frazier family.

• In 1940s the Fraziers sued the Saturday Evening Post because the magazine asserted the property was not the Fountain of Youth. The Fraziers won the lawsuit and still own the park to this day.

• While historians agree the connection to the mythical Fountain of Youth is fabrication, the site has enormous archaeological value.

From the Florida State parks website

Fact or Fiction: St. Augustine was a destination of the Underground Railroad.

Fact: 100 years before the Emancipation Proclamation, escaped slaves fled the British Colonies and headed south to freedom in Florida.

• The Spanish granted the slaves freedom if they pledged allegiance to the King of Spain and converted to Catholicism. 

• The first free community of former slaves in the US was called Fort Mose (Moh-say). Just north of St. Augustine, the Fort was the first line of defense against the enemies of Spain.

Fact or Fiction: Members of the Seminoles Indians included escaped slaves

Fact: In the early 1700s the English began attacking the Spanish in Florida from their colonies in the Carolinas.

• They enlisted Indian tribes from outside the state to attack Spanish strongholds which included the remaining indigenous Indian settlements, many of who had converted to Catholicism while under Spanish rule.

• By the end of the century most of the native Indian population was wiped out and these tribes from further north, mostly Creek Indians, began to move into the state.

• These Indians, joined by escaped slaves, became autonomous and were called cimarrones by the Spanish, which means “runaway or wild ones”. This morphed into the term we use today, “Seminoles.”

• In the 19th century members of the tribe sought refuge in the Everglades, and today the descendants of these people live mostly in South Florida…

Coming full circle, just last Monday in South Florida, the Big Orange ball that drops to start the new year in Miami was renamed La Gran Naranja to honor Florida’s 500 year-old Spanish cultural heritage, and mark the beginning of 2013. Throughout the year, programs statewide will mark the anniversary of Ponce’s landing in La Florida.  

The above is an excerpt from a speech delivered last night to Toastmasters Chapter 1066, which meets on Monday nights at 6:45 at Legends Sports Bar on Orange Avenue in Orlando. In preparation for speaking events associated with my upcoming book release, I have been attending Toastmasters to improve my presentation skills.