Three of the most celebrated athletes in the world arrived in West St. Pete in early 1926, making headlines across the country. On the Pasadena golf course, Walter Hagen and Bobby Jones competed in the Match of the Century. A few miles away, America's most popular golfer ‒ the era's transcendent celebrity, Babe Ruth ‒ played at the Jungle Country Club.
The Best of Times
The Roaring Twenties is remembered as a period of optimism, prosperity and radical change. The Florida land and tourism booms, the Jazz Age, Prohibition, organized crime, speakeasies, women's rights, the advent of radio and moving pictures, the Golden Age of Sports, the dawn of aviation and the emergence of celebrity culture ‒ all these movements converged in West St. Pete in 1926.
The Land Boom
The country was in the midst of a decade of prosperity that gave rise to a middle class with leisure time and disposable income. Florida property values were increasing at a faster pace than the red-hot stock market. West St. Pete was teeming with real estate investors. Capital flowed in as wealthy northerners formed new communities like Pasadena-on-the-Gulf, Eagle Crest and Ruppert Beach. Here in The Jungle, local developer Walter P. Fuller and his Philadelphia partner, Charles C. Allen, sold a large portion of their west side properties, providing funding for improvements in The Jungle.
The Tourism Boom
There was also a tourism boom as the new middle class discovered Florida. A February 1926 blizzard dumped a foot of snow on New York City's Central Park. Meanwhile at Central Avenue and Park Street in West St. Pete, the weather was balmy and the Sunset Hotel, built in 1916, gave a warm welcome to winter guests. Our subtropical paradise must have looked like the happiest place on earth.
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| 1926 Advertisement |
As 1926 began, two luxury hotels, each featuring a world-class golf course, had grand openings on the west side of St. Pete ‒ the Rolyat on January 1st and the Jungle Country Club on February 10th.
The Golden Age of Sports
The decade of the 1920s is considered the Golden Age of Sports. New golf courses and sports venues were opened for spectators and participants. As sport media coverage increased, athletes became celebrities. In late winter and early spring, a spotlight was on the Yankees, Babe Ruth and St. Petersburg.
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| Feb 5, 1926 - Babe Ruth arrives and is welcomed by Al Lang New York Daily News Feb 6, 1926 |
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| On the Jungle Country Club golf course. New York Daily News, Feb 8, 1926 |
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| 32nd Birthday at the Jungle Country Club New York Daily News, Feb 11, 1926 |
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| In winter overcoats, Yankees are heading to the subtropics. Buffalo Morning Express, Feb 24, 1926 |
The Stars Aligned Over West St. Pete
In the midst of the Golden Age of Sports, with real estate and tourism booming and two fancy hotels opening, it seemed that the stars were aligning over West St. Pete. The excitement was amplified by the presence of three celebrity superstars, as well as a media entourage.
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| Stars aligned over West St. Pete by DALL-E and Steve of the Jungle |
One of those stars was already living on Park Street. The top professional golfer in the world, Walter Hagen, was president of the Pasadena-on-the-Gulf golf course. Another, Babe Ruth, purchased land in Pasadena and planned to build a winter home there. The third superstar, Bobby Jones, spent his winters golfing and selling real estate in nearby Sarasota.
For Jungle resident Al Lang, himself a local superstar and president of the Jungle Country Club, 1926 was everything that he envisioned when he persuaded the Yankees to move spring training camp to St. Petersburg. As a result, newspaper articles across America started with a "St. Petersburg, FLA" dateline and those articles showed people having winter fun in the Sunshine City. Free advertising!
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| Dateline: St. Petersburg, FLA., Feb. 7 Pittsburgh Post Gazette |
The Match of the Century
In March 1926 the greatest professional golfer, Hagen, faced the top amateur, Jones, in what was billed as the Match of the Century.
At the time, competitive golf was seen as an upper-class gentleman's game and professionals were looked down upon. An amateur was viewed as a pure golfer who played for the love of the sport while a professional, who played for meager tournament winnings, usually came from a lower-class background and often, like Hagen, started a golf career as a caddy.
Pasadena-on-the-Gulf developer Jack Taylor, Walter Hagen, Bobby Jones, Yankee owner Jacob Ruppert. (colorized by Steve of the Jungle)
In match play, low score on a hole earns one point. The first 36 holes were played in Sarasota and Hagen took a commanding eight-hole lead. The final 36 holes were played on the Pasadena course during the first week of March. Hagen increased his lead, eventually winning the match with 12 holes up and 11 to play. Hagen called it his greatest thrill in golf.
The Worst of Times
The 1920s land boom was approaching a critical juncture. Property values began to level off in 1926. Then a devastating category 4 hurricane ravaged Florida in September, further dampening investor confidence. As demand declined, property values declined. The land boom was over, but the tourism boom continued until the stock market crash in 1929. The next decade would be known as The Depression. In 1930 the City of St. Petersburg, saddled with expensive bond issues, defaulted on payments. The city was bankrupt.
Camelot-on-the-Gulf
The early months of 1926 on the west side of St. Pete rank among the happiest times of the Roaring Twenties, reminding us of a place in ancient lore...
Camelot final verse
The snow may never slush upon the hillside.
By nine p.m. the moonlight must appear.
In short, there's simply not
A more congenial spot
For happily-ever-aftering than here
In Camelot West St. Pete.
- Alan Jay Lerner
