The Founding of Naples

By Ron Jamro and Gerald L. Lanterman

A glittering, white sandy beach on the southwest coast of Florida may seem an unlikely birthplace for a history book. Yet, here in Naples, a determined effort was made to clarify and set straight the historical record of a city shrouded by more than a century of well-intentioned misteaching.

Naples rightfully boasts its sunny climate and choice location but frequently forgets its colorful past. Thus, the tired and traditional tale of its founding has endured the passage of time with a prominence and durability far beyond its true worth. Until now.

Price:$4.95

Naples Brochure

The Naples Company
This is a copy of the original brochure issued by the The Naples Company.  Issued in 1888.  

Naples is one of the youngest of the so-called "Cities" of South Florida.  Visitors in 1888 must not expect to find a "City" already made; but the location and surroundings, the advantages, beauties and attractions are all there, and the promise of rapid improvement and development is flattering.  Though so little knows, the uniqueness of the location has attracted a good deal of attention, and in three months after the survey was commenced, over one thousand town lots were sold, many of them to people of prominence and wealth, who will build permanent or winter homes.

Price:$5.00

The Tamiami Trail

A Collection of Stories by Maria Stone

The building of the Trail through the Everglades has been likened to the building of the Panama Canal. The Trail joined the Gulf of Mexico with the Atlantic Ocean. It covers 110 miles, beginning from the city of Naples and ending on the outskirts of Miami. Some said that it could never be built. It was built through swamps infested with poisonous snakes, panthers, and alligators. The builders fought raging wild fires, mosquitoes and swamp rot of the feet from having to stand and work in waist-deep water all day long. They also had to contend with the merciless sun as well as a hurricane in 1926 which brought a tidal wave in its wake that destroyed parts of the roadway and bridges that had just been built. New equipment was built to forge through the tangle mess that was the Everglades. But the men and women who forged ahead had grit and determination.

Everglades was just a spot on the map until the building of the Trail. It became a boomtown in the 1920's. Barron Collier built the Rod and Gun Club in Everglades City and it was the first county seat. He moored his yacht there. He realized the highway he had dreamed of when the official opening was held on April 26, 1928. Collier County became a reality also in 1923. Barron Collier was a man of foresight and many accomplishments.

Price:$24.95


Peacocks were Roasted and Mullet was Fried

by Doris Reynolds

This book is about those uncommon individuals who contributed so much to the character of Naples. This book is a culinary history of sorts, and hopefully will provide food for thought. It is hoped the reader will be transported back to a time when optimism was on the menu, when work was play and business was conducted without guile or pretense. The dessert was that sense of accomplishment in creating one of the lovliest cities on earth.

This book is a collection of recipes, stories and pictures of old Naples. Some recipes included: Deviled Crab, Wild Boar, Marinated Coleslaw, and Keylime Pie.

Price:$23.95

Swamp Buggy Fever

by Maria Stone

When hunting season opened November first in Collier County, the call of the wild was strong. Every hunter headed to the Everglades in his woods buggy. Little Naples didn't know it then, but it was on the brink of a historical moment. Something was about to take place that would birth a special sports event unique to Naples.

Today's buggies are actually hi-tech, sophisticated racing machines. The builder/driver may have as much as sixty thousand dollars in his engine, not to mention thousands of man hours that he and his crew have dedicated to that strange creature with eight or nine hundred horses trying to jump the gun at the starting line.

The Swamp Buggy Races are fast and exciting today but they evolved from those first awkward collections of junk which were basic woods buggies for hunting in the Florida Everglades.

Price:$9.95


Caroline

by Faye A. Brown

Caroline's Life

Caroline Kipp came to Marco Island at the age of nineteen. It was there that she met her husband, Dewey Robinson. Together they raised a family of five children, four boys and one daughter. Their names are Robert, Justine, Carlos, Rudy, and Emil.

Caroline first taught in 1926 on the south end of Marco. A settlement called Caxambas. The Burnham Clam Factory had brought settlers to the area. The school had approximately sixty pupils up to the eighth grade.

This book is compiled of letters and notes from family, friends, and students who knew Caroline.

Price:$4.00



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