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Along about 1960 an acquaintance of mine migrated from Chicago and settled down in Venice. He said that he and his wife liked the cosmopolitan atmosphere, medical amenities and cultural opportunities available in Sarasota but they wanted to settle down in a small, laid-back, friendly little congenial town.

I, of course, told him that I had been born in such a city in 1929. To his "where was that?", my reply of "Sarasota" caused a stammer or two of "Wow! Really?"

Oh, what Venice could've been! Back in 1914 the Sarasota-Venice Company, part of the Palmer organization, attempted to sell small agricultural plots to newcomers and residents, almost assuring them financial success. And, with the coming of the Seaboard Air Line Railway, farmers had a marketing area that included 80,000,000 people

Are your finances short? Not to worry. The Palmer organization will loan you the money to buy (from them) the land and if you should default, well, then they get back the land and look for another eager aspirant of financial success and economic independence.

Years ago, before there was the first Sunshine Skyway bridge, the only way to get to St. Pete from Sarasota or places south was to drive up US 41 through Tampa to the Gandy bridge (cr. 1924) or Courtney Campbell (nee Davis cr. 1934) Causeway OR you could take the Bee Line Ferry from Piney Point (northern Manatee County) to Pinellas Point. They had ferries leaving every 30 minutes from either side for a 45 minute trip across Tampa Bay. There were four ferries: Sarasota, Manatee, Hillsborough and Pinellas. It was truly a fun trip and the cost was only $3.00 for a round trip. Sometimes, especially during the winter season you'd arrive at Piney Point to find a long line of cars waiting for the next ferry and then you had to make a judgment call to either wait for the next ferry or drive the 49 miles to St. Pete. Of course, gas wasn't $4.00 a gallon back then.

Another source of excitement was if you made a shopping trip to the big city of St. Petersburg you best not miss the last ferry going south because they didn't run at night.

But alas, they stopped running in 1954 when the Sunshine Skyway Bridge was opened. Another bit of our past has bitten the dust or water in this case.

This has been a fun story to do because I've been picking our children's brains for their memories to add to mine about King Kone. It was located on the northeast corner of State St. and Lemon Ave. King Kone was a little eatery run by Evelyn Kraft and sometimes friends and members of her family. It was your typical gathering place for a lot of the downtown crowd. Kinda like the "Cheers" song, "Where everybody knew your name". Our children loved to go there from our shop, Sarasota Lock & Key Shop, half a block away on State St. Evelyn was always so good to them and everyone greeted you so warmly. There was always a lot of chatter and kidding as folks had their coffee and donuts or lunch.

They had a walk up window on the Lemon Ave. side for the "to go" orders or ice cream. At one point they had Select-o-Matic coin operated juke boxes at each table on the north wall and at the counter. The big juke box was in the dining room. It was you typical 50s-60s diner style eatery with formica tables edged with fluted aluminum with red vinyl seats and stools. Evelyn also had several tables in a dining room setting on the south side of the building. On the counter there was a tall thin plexiglass cabinet with racks and plates with slices of cakes or pies to tempt the diners.

It always amazed me the meals they could turn out in a miniscule kitchen and lunch counter. Ah sweet nostalgia. I love wandering down memory lane.

Because of rising gas prices and falling tourist-generated revenue, state-wide convention and visitor bureaus are encouraging locals to take “staycations”.  And since we live in paradise already, why would we want to wander?  I admit, I’m being facetious.  I enjoy globe trotting as much as the next fellow.

But, if you’d like a quick treat, I’d suggest a nearby one-of-a-kind family entertainment venue AND admission is FREE.  Nowhere else in the world can you sit in your own personal automobile and have it roll up hill, all by itself, except at Spook Hill near Lake Wales.  Just follow the directions below and PLEASE let me know your reactions.

 

 

 

Sound like a college fight song? Oh yeah! But it's also the name of John Ringling's railroad car prior to the JOMAR. And the mighty "W" is now in the Circus Museum on the grounds of the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art. But no stampedes, please. It'll be available for viewing after some neatening up.

Both the Wisconsin and the JOMAR were products of the original Pullman Palace Car Company founded in 1867 by George Mortimer Pullman. The unique place he made for himself among nineteenth century industrial leaders is attested by the fact that his name appears in the dictionaries of twenty languages as a noun connoting the utmost in safety, comfort and luxury in land transportation vehicles.

Mr. Pullman died in October 1897 but the company continued its very active growth management policy by purchasing its competitors. In 1899 the company took over its last opposition, the Wagner Sleeping Car Company.

Aren't you as glad as I am about that? Who would want to sleep in a Wagner?