Florida has a history of seeing it’s magnificent hotels from a previous era finding new life as institutions of higher learning. St.Augustine’s Flagler College was once Henry Flagler’s jewel – Hotel Ponce de Leon, and his rival Henry Plant’s Tampa Bay Hotel now houses the University of Tampa. “Handsome Jack” Taylor and his wife Evelyn DuPont arrived in St .Petersburg at the close of 1921 and began purchasing land on the southwest side of the city. Taylor’s goal was to create a subdivision that rivaled the finest in Florida, naming it Pasadena-on-the-Gulf. Mediterranean mansions, golf courses and of course his spectacular Hotel Rolyat (Taylor spelled backwards) quickly took shape. Taylor, described as a Great Gatsby figure and huckster, created a wealthy, high-class image for himself and his development. When the Hotel Rolyat opened on January 1, 1926, its guests were a who’s who of starlets, tycoons and pro athletes such as Babe Ruth and Walter Hagen. But built with unimaginable flair and excess, the Hotel Roylat was one of the first casulties of the bust of 1926. In the late fall of 1926, Handsome Jack and Evelyn left in the middle of the night, leaving a trail of debt and unpaid employees behind. Handsome Jack’s beloved Hotel Rolyat was eventually purchased by Stetson College and opened as Stetson College of Law in 1954.
This historical image of St. Petersburg, and many more, are available in the Museum’s archives. For more information, visit HistoryStPete.org.
