1940s Coconuts On Seista Key, Sarsota FL.

[Butch]

 

A scan of an old family photo... Probably mid to late 40s...

Butch

[Meangreen94z]

It looks like your parents had some great travels.

[Palmaceae]

Cool, thanks for the picture!

[RedRabbit]

Do you know where this photo was taken? It almost looks like they’re growing wild since no buildings were nearby.

[Mr. Coconut Palm]

I bet Florida was a great place to live before the 1980's, back before it became way over developed with too many tourists and too much theme park b.s.   The old natural Florida back when the Everglades and coral reefs were healthy and the springs in Central and Northern Florida were pristine would have been a fantastic place to experience.  The new over developed destroyed Florida is TOTAL CRAP to me.  What a shame, and a prime example of how putting Profits BEFORE People, the Environment, and Climate WILL TOTALLY RUIN A REGION!!!

[Butch]

The photo was probably taken along Midnghtpass Rd. That was the main/only road going from one end of the key to the other. My dad owned the Midnightpass Fish Camp at the southern tip of the island, That is where I was born( It's a big condo complex now.) And the Pass has filled in with sand. All that open land is houses now... 

Butch

[Bill H2DB]

1 hour ago, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

I bet Florida was a great place to live before the 1980's, back before it became way over developed with too many tourists and too much theme park b.s.   The old natural Florida back when the Everglades and coral reefs were healthy and the springs in Central and Northern Florida were pristine would have been a fantastic place to experience.  The new over developed destroyed Florida is TOTAL CRAP to me.  What a shame, and a prime example of how putting Profits BEFORE People, the Environment, and Climate WILL TOTALLY RUIN A REGION!!!

   What he said .        ( I've lived here since 1952 .)

Reasonable development is.....well ,.... reasonable .         Out of control growth , because the super pro growth people are the majority  on the various boards has resulted

in what we now have .

No changing the clock back , but a less rampant rate from now would be appreciated .

[DoomsDave]

24 minutes ago, Bill H2DB said:

   What he said .        ( I've lived here since 1952 .)

Reasonable development is.....well ,.... reasonable .         Out of control growth , because the super pro growth people are the majority  on the various boards has resulted

in what we now have .

No changing the clock back , but a less rampant rate from now would be appreciated .

Sounds like California 

but I’m part and parcel of that rampant over development 

[RedRabbit]

2 hours ago, Butch said:

The photo was probably taken along Midnghtpass Rd. That was the main/only road going from one end of the key to the other. My dad owned the Midnightpass Fish Camp at the southern tip of the island, That is where I was born( It's a big condo complex now.) And the Pass has filled in with sand. All that open land is houses now... 

Butch

That's cool you're from Siesta Key.  

You said the pass was filled in with sand... Was there a pass between Siesta Key and Casey Key? That would explain why they're the same island now, but with different names. My property down there is right by Casey Key so I visit frequently. 

Edited April 20, 2020 by RedRabbit

[Butch]

1 hour ago, RedRabbit said:

That's cool you're from Siesta Key.  

You said the pass was filled in with sand... Was there a pass between Siesta Key and Casey Key? That would explain why they're the same island now, but with different names. My property down there is right by Casey Key so I visit frequently. 

Yes.  Midnight Pass, between Siesta and Casey Key. It was filled by a hurricane, and the Army Corp Of Engineers was gonna reopen it, but the local homeowners vetoed it. So the whole Sarasota Bay has changed. 
Butch

[RedRabbit]

2 hours ago, Butch said:

Yes.  Midnight Pass, between Siesta and Casey Key. It was filled by a hurricane, and the Army Corp Of Engineers was gonna reopen it, but the local homeowners vetoed it. So the whole Sarasota Bay has changed. 
Butch

Very interesting. It’s too bad the pass is filled, the Intercoastal water is so much nicer further south by Albee Rd. I guess that’s probably what it used to be like by Siesta Key prior to the pass being filled.

[Butch]

https://siestasand.net/sarasota-history-13/

Butch

[Butch]

Found another one...

Butch

[IHB1979]

On 4/19/2020 at 6:19 PM, Mr. Coconut Palm said:

I bet Florida was a great place to live before the 1980's, back before it became way over developed with too many tourists and too much theme park b.s.   The old natural Florida back when the Everglades and coral reefs were healthy and the springs in Central and Northern Florida were pristine would have been a fantastic place to experience.  The new over developed destroyed Florida is TOTAL CRAP to me.  What a shame, and a prime example of how putting Profits BEFORE People, the Environment, and Climate WILL TOTALLY RUIN A REGION!!!

I’ve lived all over the country and I think Florida is great place to live now. It would have been interesting to visit before the interstates were built, too. At that time, one of the biggest attractions on the east coast of Florida was McKee Botanical Gardens on US1, that quickly ended after Disney opened. 

I understand your comment but it’s a low resolution description of Florida. There are many areas of Florida besides the theme parks. Actually quite a bit of Old Florida still exists, too. The development you describe in your comment is every city/region that’s experiencing growth. Those areas have to balance impacts with progress, it’s a fine line and not everyone agrees. There is no utility to say an entire state is crap, especially not offering up solutions to the very grievances you mention.

[Alan_Tampa]

Midnight Pass was not filled in by a hurricane.  It was filled in by two homeowners' attempts to save their houses. Sid Soloman and Pablo Carter.  I was there, I grew up on the south end of Siesta Key in late 70's and beyond.  Little Sarasota Bay pales in comparison to what it once was.  There were coconut survivors of the 80's on the south end, 2010 did a number also and many were removed, but some are still there.

Butch, I am familiar with the bait shop! It was in business under the Martel's when I was kid! 

 

My family still has a house down there, right across the street from where Happy Landing restaurant was (then it was Chez Med, now condos.)

 

 

[Alan_Tampa]

Oh, and for fun, the original Mote Marine laboratory was on the south end of siesta key.  The tanks were there when I was a kid, and I watched the pass consume them.  Eugenia Clark did her early work there, which is neat.  I think they moved in 1979. 

 

Alan

[RedRabbit]

24 minutes ago, Alan_Tampa said:

 There were coconut survivors of the 80's on the south end, 2010 did a number also and many were removed, but some are still there.

Isn’t the south end colder than the north end? I’ve been watching Siesta Key on Wunderground and it’s been colder than I expected. Definitely colder than Longboat and probably a half zone colder than Anna Maria. The north shore of Siesta seems like it might be okay since it’s along Sarasota Bay, but further south I guess the intercoastal just gets too narrow. 
 

Granted, it all looks impressive when you’re there. It just appears to be colder based on the data.

[Alan_Tampa]

I think it is.  North end benefits from Big Pass.  Pine Island off Ft Myers is same way, north end warmer, south end colder.

South end has way poorer soil, some stuff just doesn't grow right.  Things are kinda stunted in some part.  Family's avocado tree is almost 50 years old and very small for it's age.  It appears to be Guatemalan "strain" judging by the fruit it produces.  It just doesn't grow very fast, at 50 years old it should be a monster.

[DavidLee]

3 hours ago, IHB1979 said:

I’ve lived all over the country and I think Florida is great place to live now. It would have been interesting to visit before the interstates were built, too. At that time, one of the biggest attractions on the east coast of Florida was McKee Botanical Gardens on US1, that quickly ended after Disney opened. 

I understand your comment but it’s a low resolution description of Florida. There are many areas of Florida besides the theme parks. Actually quite a bit of Old Florida still exists, too. The development you describe in your comment is every city/region that’s experiencing growth. Those areas have to balance impacts with progress, it’s a fine line and not everyone agrees. There is no utility to say an entire state is crap, especially not offering up solutions to the very grievances you mention.

Back in the 1970s it was called Mckee Jungle Garden. My grandparents called it the Monkey Jungle. I remember back in the 80s it was abandoned and overgrown. Even back than the Royal Palms towered over everything.

[Butch]

2 hours ago, Alan_Tampa said:

Midnight Pass was not filled in by a hurricane.  It was filled in by two homeowners' attempts to save their houses. Sid Soloman and Pablo Carter.  I was there, I grew up on the south end of Siesta Key in late 70's and beyond.  Little Sarasota Bay pales in comparison to what it once was.  There were coconut survivors of the 80's on the south end, 2010 did a number also and many were removed, but some are still there.

Butch, I am familiar with the bait shop! It was in business under the Martel's when I was kid! 

 

My family still has a house down there, right across the street from where Happy Landing restaurant was (then it was Chez Med, now condos.)

 

 

The Martels bought the fish camp from my dad in the late ‘40s, or early 50s. There were rental cabins and boats..Boats and guides for offshore fishing too... I last saw it, and stayed in one of the cabins for a month or so in 1966... It was a highschool graduation present from my mom. Airfare and spending money from Los Angles... Fishing and diving down there for most of the summer. Great times for a 17yr old. A year or so later the Army gave me a trip too... Vietnam... No so great times..

Butch

Edited February 17, 2021 by Butch