Tampa Bay Hotel/Plant Museum- Tampa, FL

Not surprising, Florida has been a popular winter destination for as long as people have been able to get there. It was one of the first resort destinations developed by early railroad magnates, who sought to attract wealthy Northerners looking to escape frigid temperatures. Thankfully, many of these grand hotels still exist; while some still welcome overnight guests, a large number are now museums. One such beauty is the Tampa Bay Hotel, now owned by the University of Tampa, and operated as the Henry B. Plant Museum.

Henry B. Plant was a wildly successful railroad tycoon, who worked his way up from a captain’s boy on a steamboat to president of the Plant System of railway and steamer lines. Following the Civil War, he purchased several defunct railroads, and within 20 years amassed a transportation empire, including 14 railway companies, and several steamboat lines.

Realizing easy access to Florida opened up a market for tourist accommodations, between 1887 and 1898 Plant built or bought several hotels along his railroad lines, starting with Sanford’s PICO Hotel. The crown jewel of his hotel collection was the 1891 Tampa Bay Hotel. Built at the terminus of his Southern Florida rail line, Plant constructed an enormous grand Moorish Revival palace, fancy enough to delight even the most sophisticated traveler.

Designed by New York architect John A. Wood, the extravegent 511 room Moorish Revival hotel cost over $3 million to build, and another $500,000 to furnish. Constructed of poured concrete and reinforced steel, the elaborate palace had six minarets, four cupolas, and three magical stainless steel domes. Built to impress wealthy Victorian travelers, the hotel was the first in Florida to offer electric lights and telephones, as well as an elevator, which is still operational today. Most rooms also had en suite baths, which was extraordinarily rare, and beyond luxurious at the time. Rooms cost between $5-$15, many times more than the average room in Tampa at the time.

The hotel also included a formal dining room, grand salon, beauty shop, music room, and a writing and reading room, as well as a telegraph office. Plant himself hand picked the hotel’s furnishings, collecting objects all throughout Europe, sending back such a quantity that an auction had to be held for the large surplus. Somehow, he had managed to buy too much for a 6 acre, 511 room hotel. Many of the original furnishings remain at the hotel, and are displayed throughout the museum. The result is every bit as crowded and fabulous as you would imagine.

Set on 150 acres, the grounds also included an indoor swimming pool, racetrack, bowling alley, casino, golf course, conservatory, and billards hall. Situated on the Hillsborough River, fishing and boating were also available to the guests. Certainly more than enough activities to entertain visitors throughout the winter, the only time the hotel was open.

In 1898, the USS Maine, an American naval ship, was sunk in Havana Harbor, during Cuba’s revolt against Spain. It was assumed, although debatable, that Spain was responsible. Two months later, on April 25, 1898, President McKinley declared war against Spain, starting the ten week Spanish-American War. Due to its proximity to Cuba, deep water port, and excellent rail infrastructure, Tampa was chosen by the U.S. Government as the official port of embarkation of American forces headed to Cuba.

Plant, ever the businessman, convinced the U.S. military to rent out the Tampa Bay Hotel, which was used as an elegant base of operations. Generals and other high ranking officials were given access to the hotel’s luxurious rooms, while enlisted soldiers camped on the hotel lawn. Teddy Roosevelt was among the hotel’s occupants at this time, leading training exercises on the grounds.

By the next winter, the troops were long gone, and the hotel opened for business as usual. Indeed, the hotel continued to do very well over the next several decades, hosting celebrities such as Sarah Bernhardt, Clara Barton, Winston Churchill and Babe Ruth. Alas, not even the grand Tampa Bay Hotel could weather the Great Depression, which all but ended Florida’s tourist industry. The hotel was shuttered in 1930, sitting vacant until its acquisition by what would become University of Tampa.

While the old hotel was taken over by students, the City of Tampa sought to preserve a portion of the hotel in its original form. A lease was signed that excluded the southeast wing, which would remain untouched, housing artifacts from the hotel’s heyday. Although somewhat chaotic, it is a wonderful collection of hotel ephemera. It offers a wonderful peek into the hotel’s elegant past, and leaves visitors longing for an extended stay at the Tampa Bay Hotel.

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