Submitted by Suanne Z. Thamm
Reporter – News Analyst
December 7, 2015 11:00 a.m.
During Public Comment at the Fernandina Beach City Commission meeting on the resolution to modify the Ocean Highway and Port Authority (OHPA) Charter this past Tuesday, Chip Ross presented a slide dating to 1986 that appeared to show in an aerial photo that there was a “pristine beach” along the waterfront in the area currently occupied by the Port of Fernandina. Following the meeting, an alert Fernandina Observer reader sent me portions of a photo montage from the same time period that seem to suggest that rather than a beach, that portion of the river front was home to several warehouse-type buildings.
Since I did not live here at the time, I invite our readers who were to comment.
Editor’s Note: Since posting the previous photo, we have received the above photo (circa 1900) from Rob Hicks. According to Hicks, “The Merrow House is beyond the large ship assumed to be attached to the dock. This same photograph is framed and hangs in the archival research room at the museum.” Thank you Rob for a great addition to our harbor photos.
Another reader has provided the photos below from the Florida Photographic Archives, part of the Florida Memory Project. They date to 1900-1915. Note in the second photo that at one time the railroad tracks ran out onto the wharves. In the back right area of that photo you can see stacks from the phosphate storage area. The phosphate facility, located roughly where WestRock is today, was destroyed in a fire in the early 1900s.
In doing a bit more research into the phosphate fire, Suanne found the following photo, also from the Florida Photo Archives, www.floridamemory.com:
And the photo below, from the same source, lists as a date 192-:
Editor’s Note: Suanne Z. Thamm is a native of Chautauqua County, NY, who moved to Fernandina Beach from Alexandria,VA, in 1994. As a long time city resident and city watcher, she provides interesting insight into the many issues that impact our city. We are grateful for Suanne’s many contributions to the Fernandina Observer.
When I first saw the comment about a “pristine beach” along the riverfront I was a bit doubtful although there is a narrow band of sand in front of the Plaza in Old Towne that widens as it goes north towards Fort Clinch and I thought maybe it could have extended down past WestRock. The river channel along there is pretty deep. I am sure there are some “ole timers” that could give a better description pre-Port and before the construction of the dock.
I too was surprised about the fact presented of a “pristine beach” in this area. Please keep us posted Suanne if you find out any more information.
I like the pictures . Thank You.
The aerial photograph, which was not published, is dated 1986. It was part of the site plan for the proposed Port. It is what it is. Perhaps a better word would have been undeveloped beach.
So you’re asserting that before the port was built, the area where it now resides was undeveloped.
That’s some good detective work there.
I like ALL of the old photos. It would be helpful to know the exact year all the photos were taken. It appears that the 1986 photo of the sandy beach submitted with the site plan for the OHPA was the latest before the Port was built. Anyone know what happened from the early 1990’s to 1986? What changed the waterfront? Was that when there was a fire?
Aug. 19, 1907
http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/081807/nen_192151631.shtml#.VmiZargrLIU
I did some asking around to people older than myself in regards to the area now occupied by the port and was told that:
Immediately west of where the Customs House is now, there was a phosphate operation where phosphate was brought in by truck and rail and loaded onto ships. It is true that there was a phosphate fire at one time in the distant past, but the operation continued will into the 50s and 60s in some capacity until the 60s. No mention was made by these fellows about it being located near WestRock.
North of the phosphate operation (to the right if you were looking at the water) was an ice operation where in large blocks of ice would be brought in by truck from the Ice Plant (what newcomers might know now as the Recycle Center, on the SW corner of 8th and Lime) to be chipped by machine and “shot into” waiting shrimp boats.
Further North past that, according to these old timers, was what to me sounds like a trash heap. These gentleman described old refrigeration units (taken off shrimp boats) cast aside, copper coils and other refrigeration equipment, and various detritus related to shrimping and refrigeration (Styrofoam, large coolers, motors, plywood, etc) all laying out in what we’d now recognize as “wetlands.”
Pristine? Certainly not. Undeveloped? I don’t think that’s an appropriate characterization. Perhaps a better word would have been “a shore of unknown condition because zoom is unavailable on this old black and white photo.” In fairness, that’s more than one word. But that’s what happens when you want to be accurate and not merely persuasive.
The older gentleman with whom I spoke are in the process of finding a photograph of the 50s-70s era waterfront they remember. If one can be found, I’ll be sure to send it along.
*older gentlemen
I just got off the phone with another older gentleman witnessed Nassau Terminals being constructed and worked at the port when it opened.
He says the white in the good doctor’s photo is “phosphate sludge” (sic) and leftover phosphate from that business. He also corroborates the “trash pile” descriptor I used to sum up others’ statements regarding the waste that had accumulated over the years adding that it included “railroad ties and buildings that were falling down. All of which had to be cleaned up before the Port could be built.”
Thanks Ross.
I am familiar with the northern portion of Front Street up to Dade from the early 1980’s. My husband worked for Standard Marine Supply and performed dock splices at nearly every active shrimper’s dock during that timeframe. I accompanied him for many of these onsite cable repairs to assist him with holding the cabling in place while he spliced the ends. At that time, shrimp docks and packing houses lined virtually the entire length of Front Street from Centre Street north to Dade Street. Many of the docks and buildings were dilapidated and in ill repair. The northernmost dock that he visited was owned by the Tringali family and was situated directly at the corner of Front and Dade Streets (the building is still there now). The property to the north of it, in the early 1980’s appeared to me to be nothing more than an impromptu, overgrown dump. Where Mr. Chip Ross gets a description of “pristine” beach, I honestly don’t know. Was Mr. Ross living here at that time? Did he personally view this “pristine” beach that he claims existed? I don’t think so. I feel it is just more grasping at straws to come up with something else to sling mud at the Port of Fernandina.
My family bought shrimp every year from the
Tringelli’s and they would pull sea horses and starfish out of the nets and give them to my sister and I. Started going there in 1952 and had my first trip to Fernandina at 3 months old. Got to look for old photo’s to share.
Gee,I guess the port was the environmentally responsible party.Imagine that!
Suanne, these are great pics. Thanks for posting them. Do you have a picture of what the downtown waterfront looked like before I built Fernandina Harbor Marina?
Do you have some to share?