One of America's wealthiest men, Charles K. Eagle, landed in West St. Pete in 1925. Although his dream of building the most desirable home community in west Florida would never be realized, his improvements left a lasting impact on the character and landscape of the Eagle Crest neighborhood.
Cornering the Silk Market
In the early 20th century, Charles K. Eagle and his brother John nearly cornered the global silk market. Thousands of workers were employed at their factories in the United States, Japan, China and India. Charles also owned valuable real estate in New York City including a high-rise building where he lived in the penthouse suite overlooking Central Park.
One of J.H. and C.K. Eagle's silk mills. This factory employed 8,000.
In the Beginning
It came to pass that in 1925, at the peak of the Florida land boom, one of the wealthiest men in America paid $1 million for a 220-acre tract on the western outskirts of St. Pete. He named the subdivision Eagle Crest and he vowed it would be the most desirable home community in west Florida. His development team immediately began infrastructure and beautification projects including brick-paved streets with granite curbing, gas, electric and water utilities, a storm sewer system and a man-made lake. Today, Eagle Lake is the centerpiece of St. Petersburg College's Gibbs Campus. The character and charm of the Eagle Crest neighborhood continue to be defined by the improvements made a century ago.
Eagle Lake on St. Petersburg Junior College Campus, 1948
Location, Location ...
The Eagle Crest subdivision was ideally situated to benefit from the amenities of other large developments on the west side of town. Two golf courses and three hotels were nearby in the Jungle and Pasadena-on-the-Gulf subdivisions. An important part of Eagle's vision was the beautiful Floral Drive, which was built as an extension of Pasadena-on the-Gulf's Floral Drive.
Floral Drive in Eagle Crest ‒ colorized from St. Petersburg Times Nov 17, 1925
"In the eyes of our sales representatives, there is no prettier lane in all St. Petersburg than Floral Drive, Lake Pasadena. This same Floral Drive extends through Eagle Crest and in time will be improved in beauty as the Lake Pasadena part of the thoroughfare."
‒ Eagle Crest Advertisement. St. Petersburg Times, March 3, 1926.
Eagle Crest location in West St. Pete
Promising Start, Tragic End
Fifty-seven lots were sold on Eagle Crest's opening day of sales in November 1925, but the land boom was in its final stages. The price of land began to level off, then fall. When investors weren't able to make quick money from flipping lots, they lost interest. In 1927, Charles turned the Eagle Crest operation over to his nephew, Harry. A year later, Charles, in his New York City penthouse, put a bullet through his head. He was 59 years old.
At the time of his suicide, the failed Eagle Crest venture was the least of Charles K. Eagle's concerns. The recent invention of rayon was taking a toll on the silk business. Both he and his wife were being treated for nervous conditions. According to obituaries, Eagle took his life after three weeks of unrelenting insomnia brought on by health issues.
A year later, the stock market crashed. The multi-million dollar estate was settled for a mere $141,000.
The Next Generation
Eagle Crest languished during the Depression, but St. Petersburg Junior College built its campus next to Eagle Lake in 1942 and a new generation of homes was built along the deserted brick streets where Charles K. Eagle had promised the most desirable home community in west Florida. It just took a few years longer than he expected!
Postcard from the early 1940s.
Historic images and newspaper articles:
The Eagle Building, owned by C.K. and J.H. Eagle, at Park Avenue and 21st Street, built in 1911 and still standing in New York City.
St Petersburg Times Feb 28, 1926
St Petersburg Times Feb 28, 1926
St Petersburg Times Feb 4, 1926
St Petersburg Times Apr 20, 1926
St Petersburg Times Aug 18, 1925
St Petersburg Times Nov 17, 1925
Colorized image from Nov 17, 1925 article. Some of the men are dressed for golf.
Charles K. Eagle's NYC penthouse was on top of the lit building at the center left (now called The Briarcliffe)
Publisher's Note 1: Walter P. Fuller has written about the history of Eagle Crest (click here to read his article). Fuller writes in the style of a raconteur, so some of the details are embellished for entertainment purposes. Even though he was an eyewitness to the events, at times he confuses the identity of Charles K. Eagle with his nephew, Harry Eagle. My version of Eagle Crest history relies on newspaper reports from the time.
Publisher's Note 2: The life of Charles K. Eagle mirrors the lyrics to a song by Simon and Garfunkel about Richard Cory, a man who was richer than a king and who had everything a man would want - power, grace and style, but "Richard Cory went home last night and put a bullet through his head." The song is based on a poem written by Edwin Arlington Robinson in 1897. The header image for this post is an image of Richard Cory from an antique book of poetry.
