Sunny Clearwater Beach

When you begin your drive over the Memorial Causeway Bridge from Cleveland Street in Downtown Clearwater, Florida, excitement fills your mind as you cross over the bridge and see the crystal blue waters and white sands in the background.  When you get onto the beach and are amongst the towering condominium buildings it is hard to believe that Clearwater Beach has any history to it at all.  It is not until you head north on Mandalay Avenue towards the north end of the beach and see some of the remaining 20's and 30's beach cottages off of Mandalay Avenue, and a couple of remaining vintage motels.  Remnants of a by-gone era continue as you enter the North Beach and Carlouel Sections of Mandalay.  

Even though Spanish artifacts were excavated at the site of the present day Carlouel Yacht Club, the first settler's on the island occurred in 1883, which is not surprising due to a lack of access and the lack of fertile soil for farming.  The first known settler's were: Prudence Chafer who purchased a good portion of the south end of Clearwater Beach and Patrick Houston who purchased the land to the north.  The entire island was then purchased by Ernest Tate in 1897 for $200.00 and the island was referred to as "Tate's Island".  The island went into foreclosure in 1899 due to an unpaid debt and the north end of the island was purchased by Dunedin residents and Victoria Drive neighbors, Christopher Bouton and James Malone, in 1902.  The southern end was purchased by J.R. Davey, J.T. Bennett and T.H. Asbury in 1903.

The development of the northern section of Clearwater Beach and Mandalay was spearheaded by L.B. Skinner in 1910-1920; reference "A Stroll Through Downtown Dunedin".  Skinner was a very savvy businessman in the citrus industry in Dunedin, hotel business in Tampa and the development of north Clearwater Beach through his development, dredging and bridge companies.  E.T. Roux, Roux House/Clearwater Beach Hotel now the current site of the Sandpearl Resort located at 500 Mandalay Avenue, partnered with Skinner in the Clearwater Island Bridge Co., and was also a prominent name in the development of north Clearwater Beach.  It is interesting to know that many of the 1910-1930 cottage style homes that still exist on Mandalay Avenue and cross streets were barged across Clearwater Harbor rather than being constructed on site.  

L.B. Skinner sold off the northern end of the island to T.R. Palmer in 1933 due to the economic collapse.  In 1934, T.R. Palmer, Garrett Hobart (son of 24th US Vice President) and Paul Randolph created the Carlouel Company (named after the wives of the original owners: Carolyn Hobart, Louise Palmer, and Eleanor Randolph) in order to provide a West Palm Beach style yacht and tennis club and beach cottages for lease to wealthy locals and northerners who would winter in the area.  In 1947, Palmer who had become the sole owner, sold his interest to the 100 club members for $1,000 each.  

The island has certainly been hit hard by development and many of the original structures have been demolished such as the oldest home of record, an 1890's cottage (Sandsfoot Cottage) that was located at 809 Bay Esplanade.  The home was barged over in 1932 by the Bayly Family from its location on South Fort Harrison; reference "Enchanting Harbor Oaks", the Roux House which became the Clearwater Beach Hotel is now the Sandpearl Resort, the Carlouel Orchestra House which was located at 963 Bruce Avenue has been demolished and is now a two-story stilt frame beach house, and lastly many of the original Carlouel cottages and homes of the 1910's through 1930's have since been demolished and replaced with new homes.  Even though many of the original homes have been demolished, especially the waterfront homes due to the land value, many of the early cottage or bungalow style homes exist at the beginning of the North Beach section of Mandalay and perpendicular cross streets and the original Carlouel Cabana cottage constructed in 1930 by the Aiken, Bishop, Dimmitt, Palmer and Randolph families located at 1030 Eldorado Avenue still exists to this day.

References:
1) Clearwater Beach History & Architectural Inventory of the Built Environment prepared by the Volunteers in Preservation, Fall 1980.  Obtained from the Private Collection of Michael Sanders, Historian and Realtor.