Tuesday, November 4, 2014

More About Naples Florida History

By Jony Mozen


Naples history is relatively short but interesting. This lovely town was founded in the late 1880s, by John Stuart Williams and Walter N. Haldeman. You will find more about Naples Florida history if you visit one of beautiful museums built here, and there you will be able to see numerous photographs and other documents saved from this period. Here are some historic facts Naples Florida archives still save, and you might find interesting.

The entire area where this town is built on was occupied by the Caloosa tribe. The first white settlers were Roger Gordon and Joe Wiggins. They came here in 1960, but back then there were only swamps on this area. In any case, the coast is so lovely, especially the bay, that some people soon realized the value of this territory. Comparing this bay with the one in Naples, Italy, they concluded that this one is more beautiful.

John S. Williams was Senator, but also the former general from American Civil War. Walter N. Haldeman was a successful businessman and publisher. They both agreed that this area had good chances to become great tourist destination. Their idea for designing the perfect little town soon became popular among wealthy people from Kentucky and Ohio.

Thanks to these two visionaries, six hundred feet long T-shaped pier was built, and that was the beginning of tourism in this area. Wealthy tourists started to come. For the next thirty years or so, only a few families used this area as their winter resort. The problem was in very poor roads leading there, as well as in the fact that there was no railway.

Another visionary, Barron Collier, made the next important step. He bought over million acres of swampland and spent great deal of money in building the paved highway called Tamiami Trail. It was called so because it connected two cities, Tampa and Miami. Collier understood the importance of good roads and trains, and the whole county was named after him.

The first passenger train came here in 1927, in January 7. The train was called the Orange Blossom Special. The last train left this area in 1971. The Depot is now restored and used by numerous community organizations. Every day at noon, the train whistle can still be heard, just as it was for years.

The first bank was established here in 1949, on Fifth Avenue. The first library was opened in 1932. In 1945 there were only seventeen telephones in the city. Numerous celebrities were seen here during these years, including Greta Garbo and Gary Cooper, for example. Thomas Edison also spent some time here.

Some other famous people spent their time here as well. For example, Charles Lindbergh. He and his wife Ann landed here in 1932, and bought supplies in the store. They were spending their holiday nearby. The first airport was military one, because pilots were trained here during the war. Civil airport was built in 1953.

This rich, beautifully designed and pleasant town is one of the wealthiest towns in the entire state today. Fast growth and development, great climate, beautiful and interesting touristic destinations and overall prosperity make this town really appealing place to visit. This is a great place to live in, too.




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