Rodney Kite-Powell - History of Davis Islands: David P. Davis and the Story of a Landmark Tampa Neighborhood

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC 29403

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2013 by Rodney Kite-Powell

All rights reserved

First published 2013

e-book edition 2013

Manufactured in the United States

ISBN 978.1.62584.000.4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Kite-Powell, Rodney.

History of Davis Islands : David P. Davis and the story of a landmark Tampa neighborhood / Rodney Kite-Powell.

pages cm

print edition ISBN 978-1-60949-873-3 (pbk.)

1. Davis Islands (Tampa, Fla.)--History. 2. Tampa (Fla.)--History. 3. Davis, David P., 1885-1926. I. Title.

F319.T2K58 2013

975.965--dc23

2013029337

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

PREFACE

Ten years ago, I finished the introduction to my masters thesis on D.P. Davis with a note to two of my best friends, Lets go fishing. Much has changed since I wrote those words. Sure, I still enjoy fishing with my friends, and I have the same job with the same museum. But I now have an amazing wife and wonderful stepson, and the museum I work for is in a gleaming new home ten times the size of the old place where many of the artifacts, documents and photographs relating to Davis Islands were first collected.

I have met and worked with some incredible people in the process of researching the life of David Davis, and they have all contributed in some way to the completion of this work. When I first began this study in the late 1990s, I encountered a group of people across the state that was eager to share their information and expertise. Joe Knetsch is a researchers best friend. He is always on the lookout for some bit of information and comes up with some amazing material. The state of Florida is lucky to have someone as diligent as Joe. Robert Kerstein, political science professor at the University of Tampa, has also been a great help and a great friend, providing insight into Tampas political history and reading previous drafts of this work. Professor John Belohlavek at the University of South Florida offered encouragement and suggestions along the way as well.

Two of the greatest contributors to the study of Tampa history, Gary Mormino and Leland Hawes, were also two of my greatest supporters. Gary read numerous drafts and guided my research during my time as one of his graduate students and into my professional life, giving both needed encouragement and patient criticism. Leland read drafts of the manuscript, giving me insights and suggestions that could only come from someone with his knowledge and experience. I am forever grateful to them both and deeply saddened that Leland did not survive to see the publication of this work.

Frank North, past president of the Tampa Historical Society and editor of the societys journal, the Sunland Tribune, provided me with an outlet for sections of this work, as well as information on his aunt Billy, who worked for D.P. Davis Properties in Tampa in 1925. He did all this before I had the sense to marry his daughter. Franks abilities with publishing and editing were second only to his skills as a father, father-in-law and grandfather. He passed away on Easter Sunday 2013 far before his time. His love of history lives on, in part, in this book.

Several institutions have been extremely helpful in providing research materials and assistance throughout this endeavor. The Tampa Bay History Center in particular has been accommodating, both in furnishing information and photographs of Davis, his family and Davis Islands and for allowing me the opportunity to pursue my goal of writing about Daviss life. Colleagues past and present, including president and CEO C.J. Roberts and curator of collections Travis Puterbaugh, have been very supportive through the years. The other major libraries in Tampa, the John F. Germany Public Library and the library at the University of South Florida, also hold vast collections of materials relating to Tampa history. Andy Huse at USF has been especially helpful, both with the librarys collection and in discussions about Davis and Davis Islands. In addition, the City of Tampas Archives and Records Services maintains the records of Daviss deals with the City of Tampa, including the contract signed in 1924 for the purchase of the small islands that would become Davis Islands. Curtis Welch, the former assistant city archivist for the City of Tampa, was an immense help. Lynn Hoffman and Mary E. Murphy-Hoffman at the Putnam County Archives supplied me with a surprising amount of information on the Davis family, including photographs of gravestones and information on the family patriarch, George Mercer Davis. Charles Tingley at the St. Augustine Historical Society also proved invaluable, assisting me with my research on Davis Shores on Anastasia Island.

In the intervening ten years, new friends and colleagues have entered my life and the world of D.P. Davis and Davis Islands. Lee Medart, former publisher of the Davis Islands News, took an interest in my work on Davis Islands and offered space in her newspaper for me to publish a monthly history column. Much of the research in this book grew from those columns. Lee also provided an introduction to the Davis family, including to D.P.s sons, that I would have thought impossible. George Riley Davis II, his brother, David Paul Jr., and their families opened their homes to this stranger from Tampa and were very patient while I asked very personal questions about Davis, his life and his death. Nancy Davis, who is married to David Paul Jr.s son, Greg, has been my main conduit into the California Davises and has been a great resource and friend. Additionally, I would be remiss if I failed to thank the wonderful people at The History Press. Editors Chad Rhoad and Julia Turner may be new to the world of D.P. Davis and Davis Islands, but they have been very supportive, patient and encouraging throughout the submission and publication process.

Finally, this book and its author would still be stuck in neutral if not for my wife, Krissy. She has read every word and, more importantly, kept me moving forward both toward the pursuit of the books publication and on to my final deadline. The love and support that she and her son, Lucas, have brought into my life are immeasurable.

All of these incredible people did their part and did it well. Any inaccuracies or mistakes are my own.

CHAPTER 1

FLORIDA ROOTS

DAVID PAUL DAVIS AND THE FLORIDA LAND BOOM

The 1920s real estate boom in Florida caused a sensation across the United States. Hundreds of thousands of people, more mobile than ever in their Ford Model Ts, Oldsmobile 8s and Studebakers, took to newly constructed highways and headed south into an expected paradise. They searched for palm-lined streets paved with gold and year-round sunshine with profits sprouting from the sandy soil.

A profusion of real estate pitchmen awaited the southbound throng, hoping to separate fools from their money. From this frenzy of hucksters emerged several professional developers who earnestly desired to change and, in their minds, improve the landscape of Florida. The names Carl Graham Fisher, Addison and Wilson Mizner and George E. Merrick readily come to mind when considering the pantheon of the Florida land boom. More often than not, one particular Florida real estate mogul is relegated to second-tier status or neglected altogether. This is unfortunate considering his accomplishments: numerous developments in Miami, completion of projects in Cocoa Beach and Tampa and near completion of a development on Anastasia Island in St. Augustine. David Paul Davis achieved all this between 1920 and 1926. More unusual still, he was a Florida native and dabbler in real estate as early as 1907.