Vintage Jacksonville

“This Picture was taken from the Prudential Insurance Building showing the big parking lot and the need for a parking garage.  This picture was taken in the 50’s.  Note top center on San Marco, The Royal Crown Bottling plant.  The Fuller Warren Bridge Ramp looks brand new.  Some difference today.”  LS

This image appears to be looking South toward San Marco. When details were enlarged you could see that the approach to the Fuller Warren Bridge is still under construction in the upper left of the frame.  The Fuller Warren Bridge over the St. Johns River was completed in 1954.

Tags: bridge, cars, Fuller Warren, historic photography, parking, parking deck, Prudential, Royal Crown Cola, San Marco, vintage photograph

Another one of Loyd Sandgren’s bathing beauty photographs.  There was no information with this image but it sure makes me wish I was at the beach.

Tags: bathing beauty, beach, beauty, crustacean, historic photography, lobster, model, sculpture, vintage photograph, women

A women’s wrestling match inside what looks like the old Arena located at Main Street and Beaver Street.  There are a good number of sailors in their dress white uniforms mixed in with the local crowd in the stands.  Great banners and flags hanging from the rafters including a 48 star United States flag which would date the photo from before 1959 when the 50 star flag was adapted after Alaska and then Hawaii were added as the 49th. and 50th. states.

Tags: 014091, Arena, banners, Beaver Street, crowd, flag, historic photograph, Main Street, professional wrestling, referee, vintage photography, women, women wrestlers, wresting

“I think this store was the Lane-Rexall Drug Store on Main & Forsyth Streets.  This was a good place to eat and they did a thriving business in the 50’s and 60’s. “  LS

I believe Loyd was correct.  This image was probably shot in the late 1940’s or early 1950’s when Loyd Sandgren was still taking photos for Brown’s Camera Store after getting out of the Navy and before going out on his own.  The advertising in the record shop in the background right of this image is for performing artist Eddy Arnold and corresponds with the window display in another photo from Loyd’s collection. There is also the reflection of a lighted sign in one of the columns that matches the signage of the Darling Store that was located across Main Street from the Lane-Rexall in the Lynch Building.

There has to be a story in the face of the woman working the waffle irons!

Tags: business, downtown, drug store, Eddy Arnold, food, Forsyth Street, historic photography, Lane Rexall, lunch counter, Main Street, restaurant, stainless steel, vintage photograph, women, worker

“A Gator Bowl Parade of the 50’s and as you can see it was the float of the Muntz TV, which was nation wide at that time.  This was on Julia St. in front of the George Washington Hotel (Rainbow Room, the night club).”  LS

Tags: crowd, gator bowl, George Washington Hotel, historic photograph, Julia Street, Muntz TV, parade, Rainbow Room, television, vintage photography

“A scene looking East towards Arlington.  The year was 1970.”  LS

Great early 70’s view of the far East edge of downtown Jacksonville shot from an upper floor of the Lynch Building looking over the roof of the old downtown library.  This predates the Police Memorial Building but the lot in the back right of the image has been cleared for its construction.

Tags: cars, downtown, Florida Theatre, historic photograph, Lynch Building, parking, shipyard, vintage photography

“At one time the Brundage Co. brought thousands of VW cars here, in fact it was the distribution center for the Southeast.  This shows how the vehicle was taken off the German ship.”  LS

Brundage Motors was an early importer of German made vehicles to Jacksonville starting with Volkswagen and Porsche vehicles in the late 1950’s.  Brundage Motors later became Brumos Motor Cars.  Another photo in the Loyd Sandgren collection shows a Volkswagen Beetle being offloaded from the same ship.

Tags: Brumos Motor Cars, Brundage Motors, docks, historic photography, port, shipyard, Talleyrand, Van, vintage photograph, volkswagen, work

The Florida Barber College located on Park Street just West of King Street in the 1970’s.  According to Wayne Wood’s book Jacksonville’s Architectural Heritage, the Art Deco structure was built in 1941 as the Orange State Oil Company Service Station.  The building is now the home of the European Street Cafe.

Tags: architecture, Art Deco, cars, European Street Cafe, Florida Barber College, historic photography, Orange State Oil Company, Park Street, service station, vintage photograph

This is another frame from a series of photographs showing a Group of congressmen at the NAS Jacksonville range according to Loyd Sandgren’s notes.  Dated 10/15/45.  Again, I think this was probably from the Naval Air Gunnery School at Yellow Water.  Here is an additional photo on the pistol range of the third gentleman from the left.  Looks like they were having way too much fun!

Tags: congressmen, gunnery school, guns, historic photography, men, navy, politician, shooting range, shotgun, suits, vintage photograph, Yellow Water

“An aerial view of the Huckins Yacht Corp. on the Ortega River and Roosevelt Blvd.  Some of the finest Yachts in the world are built there.  They built crash boats and P.T. boats during World War Two.  After some of the big storms in the East, The Huckins would be the only yachts afloat.”  LS

1950’s view of the Florida Marina, home of Huckins Yacht Corporation.  Roosevelt Blvd. runs past the marina and the sparsely developed land on both sides of the road is quite the contrast to the way it looks today.

Tags: aerial, boats, Florida Marina, historic photography, Huckins, Huckins Yacht Corporation, marina, Ortega River, Roosevelt Blvd., vintage photography