Good Day to all! Here is the second “Bridges” column.
Did you know the first bridge connecting Charlotte Harbor and Punta Gorda was obsolete by the time it was completed in 1921? You do if you read my first “Bridges” column. Henry Ford’s success replacing the horse and buggy as the principal mode of travel and completion of the Tamiami Trail in 1928, a new road across the Everglades from Tampa to Miami, created the need to construct a more practical and safer replacement.
An early “new bridge” promoter was Barron Gift Collier who had made a fortune selling street-car advertising up north. He first visited southwest Florida in 1911 and fell in love with the area. After purchasing a “run down” Hotel Punta Gorda in the mid-1920’s, he refurbished it, added a fifth-floor ballroom and renamed it Hotel Charlotte Harbor. Collier was also principal stockholder in the Punta Gorda State Bank and owned the local telephone company.
Work on the new replacement bridge began in early December 1929 and, lesson learned, it was designed for three lanes including a pedestrian sidewalk. Seventy-five-foot reinforced concrete pilings, using “fresh” water this time, were cast at the city docks, now the location of Fishermen’s Village, then floated by barge to the worksite. Like the first bridge, the new one ran from Sandy Point on the Charlotte Harbor side, but this time reached Punta Gorda at King Street (today’s northbound U.S. 41), which not so coincidentally ran alongside Collier’s newly renovated Hotel Charlotte Harbor.
A strike by workers delayed completion, but the bridge was ready to open July 4, 1931. Barron Collier, the bridge’s namesake, cut the ribbon accompanied by Florida Governor Doyle Carlton. Total cost, just over $1,000,000. Attendees at the opening celebration fish fry were estimated at 14,000-15,000 with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad running special excursion trains. To put that in perspective, the 1930 census placed Charlotte County’s total population at just over 4,000.
The first “Barron Collier Bridge” served Charlotte County for over 50 years until its replacement by the current structure in 1983 and continues to do so as a fishing reef. The Albert Gilchrist Bridge, completed in 1976, also leaves Charlotte Harbor from Sandy Point, but reaches Punta Gorda at Cross Street (southbound U.S. 41).
Photographs of Barron Collier and bridges can be viewed by visiting Charlotte County online library resources. Select “Community Services”, then “Libraries and History”. Click on “Physical Items”, then “Archive Search”. Enter the subject of your search on the “Search” line.
Photos are also available on The Punta Gorda History Center’s website, choose “Online Collection”, then “Key Word Search”, as well as the internet.
“Did You Know” appears, typically, every other Wednesday, courtesy of this newspaper and the Charlotte County Historical Society. The Society’s mission is to help promote and preserve Charlotte County’s rich history. We are also always looking for volunteers and interested individuals to serve as board members. If you believe our area’s history is as important as we do, please visit Charlotte County Historical Society on-line at https://cchistoricalsociety.com/, or call 941- 769-1270 for more information
Check out History Services’ yearlong project, “Telling Your Stories: History in the Parks”. It began in January 2021 with placement of the first interpretive sign “Charlotte Harbor Spa” at South County Regional Park. The last was dedicated December 15, 2021 at Centennial Park featuring Florida postcards. All dedicated signs can be viewed at online library resources. Select “Programs and Services”, then “History Services” and “Virtual Programs”.
Visit the same site to access recently released oral histories featuring 40 local folks. Select “History Services” and scroll down, or phone 941-629-7278, to find out what history related programs and videos are available.
February 4 column
