1891 - Tampa Bay Hotel - Tampa, FL
N 27° 56.814 W 082° 27.847
17R E 355964 N 3092182
An old hotel, now part of the University of Tampa campus, was built in 1891.
Waymark Code: WM5KP0
Location: Florida, United States
Date Posted: 01/19/2009
Views: 8
The Tampa Bay Hotel was built by railroad magnate Henry B. Plant at a cost of over 2.5 million dollars. It was considered the premier hotel of the eight that Mr. Plant built to anchor his rail line. The hotel itself covers six acres and is a quarter-mile long. It was equipped with the first elevator ever installed in Florida. The elevator is still in use today making it one of the oldest continually operational elevators in the nation. The 511 rooms, some of which were actually suites consisting of between three-to-seven rooms, were the first in Florida to have electric lights and telephones. Most rooms also included private bathrooms, complete with a full-size tub. The price for a room ranged from $5.00 to $15.00 a night at a time when the average hotel in Tampa charged $1.25 to $2.00. The building’s poured concrete steel reinforced structure was advertised as fireproof.
The grounds of the hotel spanned 150 acres (0.61 km2) and included a golf course, bowling alley, racetrack, casino and an indoor heated swimming pool. In all, 21 buildings could be found on the hotel's campus. The Moorish Revival architectural theme was selected by Mr. Plant because of its exotic appeal to the widely traveled Victorians that would be his primary customers. The hotel has six minarets, four cupolas and three domes. In the early 90's, all were restored to their original stainless steel state.
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Hotel rotunda and sitting room in c. 1905During its operating period from 1891 to 1930, the hotel housed thousands of guests, including hundreds of celebrities. When the Spanish-American War broke out, Plant convinced the United States military to use his hotel as a base of operations. Generals and high ranking officers stayed in its rooms to plan invasion strategies, while enlisted men encamped on the hotel’s acreage. Colonel Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders also were at the hotel during this time. Roosevelt retained a suite, and during the day led his men in battle exercises on the property. Other visitors of note during the hotel’s heyday were Sarah Bernhardt, Clara Barton, Stephen Crane, the Prince of Wales and the Queen of the United Kingdom. Babe Ruth was also a guest of the hotel during its latter days, and signed his first baseball contract in the Grand Dining Room. According to local legend, he hit his longest home run ever at the old Tampa Fairgrounds stadium located on the hotel grounds.
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