Manufacturer: Carr China
User: The Monson Hotel – St. Augustine, Florida
Date of bowl: 1936
Notes: From Wikipedia: "The original Monson hotel was established by Captain Anthony Vincent "Bossy" Monson and his wife Florence Young in the 1880s, not long before the opening of the Flagler hotels made the city a luxury destination." Originally called the Monson House, it "was on the water's edge at 24 Bay Street (now Avenida Menendez), between the Plaza and Fort Marion."
"This first house burned in an 1895 fire. The second Monson House was located at 26 Bay Street next to Brava Lane. The house/hotel was again enlarged in 1901 and in 1912, when the capacity was advertised at 75."
From an article in the St. Lucie Tribune on Friday, May 25, 1906: "The Monson house, situated in front of Anastasia Island, and one of the leading hotels of the city, has established a rate for the summer of $1.50 to $2.50 per day, with special rates by the week or for parties. This is a first-class hotel, is but forty feet from the sea wall and two minutes walk from the old Spanish fort or the Ponce de Leon Hotel."
Again, from Wikipedia: "The final wooden hotel fell victim to the April 1914 fire that started at the Florida House and destroyed everything from Saint George Street to the Bay. The fire claimed four hotels, the opera house, the courthouse, and countless homes and businesses.
"The Monson was replaced by a masonry structure that opened on January 5, 1915. Monson died later that year, and his brother-in-law Charles E Young Sr became manager of the new hotel.
"The Monson was enlarged in 1916 with an addition to the south side that almost doubled its size. The Monson Hotel remained a fixture on Saint Augustine's Bay front until 1960, when it was demolished and replaced by the Monson Motor Lodge. That structure was eventually razed as well, and in 2003 reopened as the Hilton Bayfront Hotel."
Sources:
Wikipedia
St. Lucie Tribune, Friday May 25, 1906
Cardcow.com
Contributors:
ID: Sean Feeney
Author: Ed Phillips