It was 1888, and Henry Flagler, a co-founder of Standard Oil with Rockefeller, had opened the Ponce de Leon Hotel in St. Augustine (the first structure to be built out of poured concrete), where people could experience electricity designed personally by Thomas Edison, enjoy the murals by George W. Maynard and architecture by John Carrere and Thomas Hastings, watch the sun's rays hit glass made by Tiffany, and drink running water imported and stored in the two towers.
Staying at this luxurious resort was for the wealthy at over $5 per day. People like Mark Twain, Theodore Roosevelt, Somerset Maugham, and Babe Ruth came to stay. Hotel staff were available to turn on and off the lights, as this was the first public place to have electricity making naive guests nervous of switches (no blow dryers in the tub please). Staff was also there to change the light bulbs every 8 hours, as that was their lifespan.
The hotel was eventually transformed into what is today, the center of Flagler College. The ballroom now serves as the cafeteria, and the hotel rooms have been transformed into dorm rooms. Students of the college give tours and share a little of the history to travelers like myself.
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| On the campus of Flagler College. |
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| They appeared to be land mines, but with the lack of explosion after touching them, it was concluded they were not. |
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| Ponce de Leon Hotel entrance with two very important people: Henry Flagler and JDub. |
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| Ponce de Leon Hotel has now been converted into a residence hall for Flagler College. |
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| The fountain was built to look like a sword inserted into the ground, surrounded by four turtles (for the seasons) and 12 frogs (for the months of the year). |
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| Oh so pretty. |
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| The hotel was in every aspect perfect, so Henry decided one mistake must made for good luck.. Can you spot it? |
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| The architects used the capitol building in Washington D.C. to design the hotel. The similarities are very distinguishable (wait, does that make sense?). The rotunda (said in a very deep voice). |
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| In the ballroom surrounded by Tiffany glass. May I have this dance? |
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| A close-up of the Tiffany windows. What did they do pre-Windex era? |
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| Thomas Edison built the clock above the mantel. It no longer works and would only be broken if fixed. Total bummer! |
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| Oh Scarlet, I would be forever delighted to dine at your place. Lunch after our tour. |
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| Finally some beach time! Maya digging to China. I placed my order for some crab rangoon. Did you want anything? |
