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Hotel Seminole: 1910

Jacksonville, Florida, circa 1910. "Hotel Seminole." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.

Jacksonville, Florida, circa 1910. "Hotel Seminole." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.

 

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I enjoyed the building in this photo so much

... that I had to attempt to make a 3D model of it:

Architectural Embellishments

Those wonderful porches would probably not be possible today with modern zoning laws and such, but they do add a nice counterpoint to the "native" detailing. The flower boxes were a neat touch.

Brief history

Dining and lounging on the balcony.

I have always thought that the shade and rain cover/ roof (whatever it is called) over building entrances would be an excellent place for dining and lounging (or drinking) - yet this is the first hotel I have seen that does that! Now I'll have to look out for more.

Otherwise a boxy unappealing building except for the "native" style artistic touches.

Resort central, but not for long

The railroad offices on the ground floor indicate that northeast Florida (today called the First Coast) was still the destination of choice for leisured winter travelers. They didn't know it at the time, but the opening of the Seminole Hotel in 1910 was the beginning of the end for that.

Miami, 300+ miles to the south, was only 14 years old, but Henry Flagler's Florida East Coast Railway was already there and would extend to Key West in 1912.

By my childhood in the 1950s, the Seminole was a somewhat shabby relic of the old days. The cafe and dining room over the entrances were gone; the loungers were of a different sort.

First Thought?

Hideous.

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