The city of St. Petersburg is known as a thriving destination on Florida's beloved Gulf coast. For the thousands of full-time residents--and the thousands more who visit each year--St. Petersburg offers an inviting atmosphere, where the warm sun shines down and the soft lapping of sparkling Gulf waters on white sand beaches drifts on the breeze. Not long ago, though, St. Petersburg was little more than a quiet, fledgling village--a smaller, quainter Sunshine City with seemingly limitless potential. Through a fascinating series of events, driven by a cast of colorful and ambitious characters, St. Petersburg grew into a first-rate Florida city, and it continues to flourish today. Remembering St. Petersburg, Florida: Sunshine City Stories provides an intriguing look at St. Petersburg's past, and highlights the contributions of a bevy of extraordinary individuals whose efforts and exploits shaped the city's history. Included are the stories of founder J. C. Williams and developer Hamilton Disston, who overcame their differences and worked with other visionaries like Edwin H. Tomlinson to lay a foundation for the city's success; C. A. Harvey, a man with a fierce determination to make St. Petersburg a true port city; Henry Hibbs, champion of the effort to bring world-class fishing to the area; and many more. In this unique collection of historical vignettes, local resident and historian Scott Taylor Hartzell provides a captivating account of St. Petersburg's history, sure to interest and entertain residents and visitors alike.

Known for its pleasant climate and inviting gulf coast waters, St. Petersburg has always attracted sun lovers in search of their own piece of paradise. As with many Florida cities nestled next to the Gulf of Mexico, St. Petersburg has experienced growth and change that has left few reminders of the once easy-going lifestyle that defined the city. As early as 1905, the city of St. Petersburg began creating postcards to attract not only tourists, but also business-minded individuals seeking an opportunity to take part in the area's growth. Depicting the area's beloved beaches and other sources of natural beauty, as well as a number of local businesses, these surviving postcards offer a glimpse of St. Petersburg in a golden age that is often forgotten. St. Petersburg, Florida: A Visual History by local author Wynelle Deese revisits a treasured time in St. Petersburg's past through the vintage postcards of this fascinating Florida destination. The images depicted in these postcards allow readers to travel back to the St. Petersburg of the early 20th century and relive the early innocence of the Sunshine City.

In the early 1900s, St. Petersburg, located on Florida's sunny Gulf Coast, was a place where dreams came true, where fortunes were won, and where thousands came to bask in the city's golden glow. "The Sunshine City" became its nickname and the advertising mantra that helped catapult St. Petersburg from a sleepy backwater of Tampa and a struggling rail stop to one of the nation's most popular tourist destinations. By the 1920s--often referred to as Florida's boom era--St. Petersburg saw fast and furious growth as the city's most significant institutions, buildings, and attractions came into being. Developers and promoters lured countless settlers and tourists from across the country by touting the city's many virtues and its perpetual sunshine. Almost overnight, St. Petersburg was transformed into a popular tourist mecca with a bustling downtown and waterfront, picturesque residential neighborhoods, lush parks and gardens, and the all the attractions of the day. This fascinating time was documented in both word and image by visitors, new residents, and the energetic players that made St. Petersburg boom.