The first Lafayette Street Bridge did not hold up well. In September 1892, city engineer J.H. Neff reported to the mayor that the west approach of the bridge was in a dangerously poor condition, and recommended that all of the pilings should be replaced. Neff regarded the bridge approach’s design to be a “very inferior plan.”  That same month the electric company’s cable at the bridge burned out, causing the electric company to use a switch connection to connect wires. Every time the drawbridge opened at night, Hyde Park’s lights went out until the bridge closed.

Opponents of the bonds, led by F. A. Salomonson, filed an injunction, whereupon Judge Barron Phillips found that the ordinance had been drawn illegally. The city then appealed the decision to the state supreme court. Although the city incurred an additional expense of $2,000 in legal fees to fight the suit, Salomonson claimed that he had only acted upon his patriotic duty as a citizen.

A view of Tibbetts Corner in the 1890s, looking east along Lafayette.  The progress is apparent:  Trolley tracks on Lafayette curve northward and merge with Franklin St. tracks, telephone poles, street lights, flag pole and trees.

Detail below shows close up of the man on the roof by the Tibbetts Corner sign.

Men selling apples in front of Tibbetts Confectionery, circa late 1890s early 1900s

The Tibbetts expanded to "Tibbetts Other Corner" at Franklin and Harrison in the north part of downtown, and Tibbetts Middle Store somewhere in between.

This photo may not have been taken at Tibbett's Corner store because a stairway is visible to the right of their shop, in between the buildings, and their Corner store did not have space between shops, as seen in the 1889 map.

The 1895 and 1899 maps show the Tibbetts Corner confectionery on the second floor of the building on the corner, formerly occupied by the bank / real estate office.

Cartter, Milo & Hosea Cartter (M. S. Cartter & Co., St. Louis, Mo.)   127,564 Jun. 4, 1872 Howe truss configuration. One-piece shoe to receive the timber end post, timber. Timber top chord and crossed diagonals. Wrought-iron bottom chord and verticals. Special shoe connects bottom chord, end post, vertical rod, and timber diagonal.

In late February 1895, the city council had authorized a loan of $45,000 to build a new bridge across the Hillsborough River at Lafayette Street. Mayor Easley and the bridge committee had hired the Florida Dredging Company.

The Florida Dredging Company, based in Jacksonville, specialized in river and harbor improvements. Milo S. Cartter (also of M.S. Cartter & Co., which supplied the iron work for the bridge) was President of Florida Dredging Company.  In 1894, Cartter, along with Capt. James A. Bryan, and others, organized The Florida Dredging Company, with Bryan as General Manager in Tampa.  James E. and Alexander R. Merrill and Arthur Stevens of the Merrill-Stevens Engineering Company were the directors.
 

Bond Issues Settled

Less than two weeks after his re-election as mayor, Salomonson spoke to the city council about the city’s financial state. The outstanding bonded indebtedness of the city was $100,000, and the funded indebtedness was also $100,000, for a total debt of $200,000. Property in Tampa was assessed at approximately $5 million, but the city’s script was selling slowly. Salomonson recanted his prior ardent stand against the sale of bonds, while acknowledging his continuing concern about faults in the city charter and inequities in how the funds would be distributed. He recommended that the city first draw up a new charter, then vote a bonds issue, then install a sewer system and build a new bridge at Lafayette Street. The council agreed, and instructed the city attorney to draw up a new charter authorizing a Board of Public Works and changing mayoral elections from annual to biennial events.

Construction Begins

The Florida Dredging Company began building the second Lafayette Street Bridge on June 1, 1895.  At the same time, workers built a footway 100 feet upstream from the old bridge as a temporary crossing.  Although there were as many as twenty-five men at a time working on the bridge, Tampans urged the contractors to use more workers and finish the bridge more quickly. Meanwhile, construction became a public spectacle, and the builders asked rubberneckers to stay out of their way, because bridge building was a complicated undertaking. Workers cleared old bridge timbers out of the river and the Water Works Water Company re-laid mains on both sides of the river at the bridge. Crews drove pilings for retaining walls, and laid timbers on the pilings. Masons covered the tops of the timbers. Divers built cofferdams around pier emplacements.

104,110 Jun. 14, 1870 Howe truss configuration. Timber upper chord and diagonals. Lower chord of interlocking iron plates. Single iron shoe to receive both diagonals at panel points.

James McKay's oldest son, James McKay, II., was elected State Senator in 1881. After the arrival of the railroad to Tampa in 1884, McKay, II became the commander of the H. B. Plant Steamship Line which plied the Caribbean Sea.  During the Spanish-American War, Captain McKay II headed the expeditionary fleet which took General Shafter’s Army to Cuba. He showed great skill and ability in the loading of troops and materials at Port Tampa, and the unloading on the coast of Cuba. The former rebel received laudable praises from many in high office in Washington for bravery and his excellent performance in the war effort. James McKay, II served as Tampa's 34th mayor from June 5, 1902 to June 5, 1904.

James McKay, Sr. and Matilda's third son, Capt. John Angus McKay, like his father and brother James, became a sea captain. He commanded several of his father’s ships, and served the Confederate army throughout the war.  After the war he served as deputy collector of customs at the port of Tampa for several years, and in 1870, was elected as a delegate to the State Conservative Convention. In 1876, he was elected to serve as chairman of the County Commission. In the latter part of the 1870s he purchased the Orange Grove Hotel, the most popular hostelry in pioneer days. 

John A. McKay married Mary Jane McCarty and their first son, Donald Brenham "D.B." McKay served as Tampa's 38th and 42nd mayor, from June 1910 to June 1920 and from January 3, 1928 to October 27, 1931.  He served on the board of directors of the First National Bank, served for President Wilson as chairman of the President’s Advisory Committee, was owner and publisher of The Tampa Times, and was one of the founders and trustees of the University of Tampa. D. B. McKay was named the first County Historian of Hillsborough County; Rollins College bestowed upon him the degree of Doctor of Humanities; King Alfonso XIII decorated him with the Order of Isabel la Catolica; in 1914 he received the Cervantes Medal from the Hispanic Institute in Florida. In appreciation for his interest in the welfare of the Seminole Indians, he was made an honorary chief and named Chief White Cloud.

One of his lasting contributions to Florida is the preservation of Florida history through his "Pioneer Florida" series which appeared in the Sunday Tribune for approximately 15 years. The Tampa Historical Society honors his memory with the yearly D. B. McKay Award for outstanding service in the cause of Florida history.

The second son of John Angus and Mary Jane was Charles A. McKay.  He attained eminence in the business world. He served as Vice President of Maas Brothers, at that time the largest dry goods establishment in South Florida. He served as the first president of the Tampa Merchants Association, on the board of directors of the South Florida Fair and Gasparilla Association, and was a charter and lifetime member of the Tampa Rotary Club. In his later years Charles McKay became the owner of Bentley-Grey Dry Goods, Inc., one of the largest dry goods distributing firms in Florida.

The 1895 map on the right shows the relative location of City Hall to the buildings on Franklin St. and the newly-built Hillsborough County Courthouse.  Also on this map can be seen what is now Tampa's oldest house, the yellow structure marked "D" (dwelling) at the lower right at Florida Avenue and Jackson St.  The house is barely visible at the left edge of the photo.  

In 1850, 15-year old Sheldon Stringer lived in this house with his sister Laura, brother Samuel and mother Mary, who was widowed.  By 1860, Sheldon had become a doctor and was still living with his mother Mary and sister Laura. Sheldon was 25. Mary ran a boarding house, probably in their home. By 1867, the Stringers had moved to Brooksville, Hernando Co.  Imboden Stalnaker purchased the 1842 frame home in 1914 and had it moved to 3210 8th Ave. to save it from destruction when the new City Hall was to be built at this location in 1915. 

In 1920, 58 year-old Imboden Stalnaker was living on 7th Ave in Ybor with wife Bell, son Karl, daughter Lillian and son Leo. Imboden was a retail grocery merchant. Imboden Stalnaker, described by the Tampa Tribune in his obituary as a “pioneer East Tampa merchant,” had been a school teacher, school principal, and owner of a mercantile store, before becoming a resident of Tampa 43 years prior to his death in 1948. His first venture in Tampa was a grain and fencing store on Whiting between Franklin and Tampa Streets. The business was later moved to Gary, formerly a separate entity, but would become part of the City of Tampa by annexation.  On the 1930 census, Imboden was living at 3210 8th Ave with wife Bell, in the old home he had rescued from destruction. Imboden owned the home and it was valued at $2500.

It was here that young Leo Stalnaker spent his youth.  Needing more room as his family circle expanded, Leo rebuilt and enlarged a bungalow two blocks from his boyhood home.  On the same 1930 census, Imboden's son Leo Stalnaker was living at 3510 8th Ave with his wife, an adopted son, and son Leo Jr. and daughter Luella. Leo (the father) was a lawyer of general practice.  It was during the stormy crime-ridden years of the Charlie Wall era that Leo Stalnaker, Sr. was appointed Municipal (Police Court) Judge in 1927. Stalnaker quickly earned a reputation as a “crusading magistrate.” He had already gained national attention during his 1927-28 term as a member of the Florida House of Representatives as an opponent of the teaching of evolution in the public schools.  Showing neither fear nor favor, on his first day on the bench, Stalnaker quadrupled fines and gambling and liquor law violators got stiff jail sentences.  Near the close of his productive and colorful career, Leo Stalnaker, Sr, at age 82, continued his service to the public and to the Bar when he was appointed General Master in Chancery for Hillsborough County Circuit Court on January 11, 1979.  Read more about the illustrious life and career of Leo Stalnaker and about his son, Leo Stalnaker, Jr.

See a better and present-day photo of this house and another view of old City Hall at Tampa Changing and an excellent investigation into the current house's authenticity at Tampania Blog.   See "Hortense the Beautiful" for more about our present City Hall, built in 1915.

Leo Stalnaker (Sr.)        

In June 1895, the municipal government enacted the new city charter, and almost immediately, the city council approved an ordinance calling for the sale of $350,000 in bonds. Construction work at the Lafayette Street Bridge halted on December 7, 1895, when the city cut off funding pending the results of the bond issue. The election results were a resounding 451 yeas versus 10 nays, showing an electorate strongly in favor of the bonds. At the January 1, 1896, city council meeting, Councilman Wall proposed a resolution that the unfinished bridge across the Hillsborough river be turned over to the commissioners of Public Works with instructions to finish said bridge, and that an appropriation of $15,000 be and the same is hereby made out of the $25,000 raised by bonds for general municipal improvements, and that said commissioners be requested to finish said bridge as soon as possible out of the first money coming in to their hands from the sale of bonds.

Councilmen Ramirez and Pons, of the Fourth Ward, adamantly opposed Wall’s resolution, Ramirez asserting that it was unfair to set a large amount aside for an improvement that would only benefit two wards (the first and the third). Pons added that he felt it unfair to take money from one ward and spend it in another, skeptically adding that there was no guarantee that the bridge would not end up costing $100,000.
 

Hyde Park in the 1890s

H. B. Plant Declines To Provide Funding

Tampa city councilmen had yet to hear anything from W. N. Coler & Company, the New York bankers who had agreed to sell Tampa’s bonds. As of January 30, 1896, the city had received no money and no explanation from Coler & Co. The city council approached Henry B. Plant asking the Plant Investment Company to loan the $15,000 needed to finish the bridge; Plant turned them down. Plant rarely contributed money towards utility construction or public works in cities served by his railroads or where he had hotels, and avoided political or close personal associations in those cities.

Funding Arrives - Construction Resumes

In mid February 1896, the city received its first installment from the bonds of $11,000, and the bridge builders resumed work. Unfortunately, Tampa’s struggles with Coler & Co. continued for some time. The Tribune railed against Coler for months, accusing the company of hampering Tampa’s growth: “Instead of muddy streets and gloomy countenances, the people would be buoyant with bright anticipation of great improvements.” In December 1897, Pinnel & Co. of Chicago offered to take the entire issue, but the Board of Public Works rejected the offer because the deal would make it impossible to finish the proposed sewage system before quarantine regulations against excavations were to be enforced the following spring. Finally, in early 1898, the city announced that Rudolph Kleybolte & Co., of Cincinnati, through New York bankers and brokers Pierson & McCutcheson, had purchased the remainder of the bonds.

The Second Lafayette Street Bridge Opens

At the end of February 1896, Councilman Brengle of the bridge committee reported that the new bridge should open within a week. Brengle’s estimate proved to be a little optimistic, but on March 21, 1896, the second Lafayette Street Bridge did open to the public. In the middle of a Saturday morning, with little ceremony, workers cast aside the barriers at the feet of the bridge. The first carriage to cross was that of Mr. Hathaway, Manager of the Tampa Bay Hotel, who was accompanied by F. de C. Sullivan, Henry Plant’s private secretary. Together Hathaway and Sullivan drove to Mayor Salomonsen’s office, where City Engineer Neff and councilmen Brengle, Wall, and Beckwith joined them. These men then went to the Tampa Bay Hotel for an elegant lunch. Although few people were present at the bridge’s opening, word quickly spread and that afternoon a solid stream of wagons, carriages, and pedestrians flowed across the river.

Formal Dedication Ceremonies

A few days later, city leaders formally dedicated the bridge, with many flourishes. The Fifth Battalion Band played as eighteen mounted policemen and three carriages of dignitaries neared the bridge. Crowds of spectators filled the approaches. The hose wagon, engine, and hook and ladder truck from Station One added to the festive atmosphere, as Fire Chief Harris’ daughter Leslie waved to the crowds from amidst a mass of flowers. Precisely at the center of the bridge, the parade halted, as Reverend W. W. DeHart rose in his carriage, uncovered his head, and spoke: “In the name of the commonwealth of Tampa I now declare this bridge open on this the 24th day of March, 1896, and call on you one and all to join in giving three cheers and a tiger.” And so the parade continued to the grounds of the Tampa Bay Hotel where DeHart spoke from a balcony, heralding the bridge as tangible evidence of Tampa’s manifest destiny.

Note the temporary footbridge upstream on the right, in the process of being dismantled.

The second Lafayette Street bridge and Tampa Bay Hotel in 1902
Like the first bridge, the second bridge was also a swing bridge.  In the above photo, the center span rotated clockwise until it aligned perpendicular to the road and in line with the structure in the middle of the river where the support ring was located.
 

A swing bridge is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the turning span can then pivot horizontally as shown in the animated illustration to the left.  Small swing bridges as found over canals may be pivoted only at one end, opening as would a gate, but require substantial underground structure to support the pivot. The Columbus Drive bridge pivots nearly from its end.  In its closed position, a swing bridge carrying a road or railway over a river or canal, for example, allows traffic to cross. When a water vessel needs to pass the bridge, road traffic is stopped (usually by traffic signals and barriers), and then motors rotate the bridge approximately 90 degrees horizontally about its pivot point.

Hyde Park and Bayshore Residents Want a New Bridge

When the second bridge proved inadequate and unreliable, Hyde Park and Bayshore residents and real estate agents claimed that construction of a new bridge would benefit the whole city. Yet it took years to get the new bridge. Tampa’s government was strongly conservative when it came to fiscal matters, as were the voters, and bond issue after bond issue for public improvements was rejected or never even came to vote.

A view from the chimney of Tampa Electric's power plant, Hyde Park, looking northward, 1906.

Tampa and the Tampa Bay Hotel played an important role in the Spanish American War of 1898. Plans had been made by Resident Manager D. P. Hathaway to close the hotel at the end of the season on April 1, 1898, and keep the doors shut until December. It remained closed for only several weeks when Henry Plant convinced the Secretary of War to allow Tampa to be the official port of embarkation for troops going to Cuba.  The hotel was selected as Army Headquarters and served in addition as residence for guests and others who were in some way connected with the war. The Tampa Bay Hotel became the headquarters for the Army officers awaiting the order for embarkation.  During this “rocking chair” phase of the war, it seemed that the Tampa Bay Hotel was the place to meet old friends, listen to good music and learn the latest gossip concerning the place in Cuba where the force would land. Plant's railroad and steamships helped transport troops to Florida and eventually to Cuba.

Major General Shafter and his staff enjoying the veranda

The Generals planned the war campaigns from the hotel. Officers and war correspondents stayed here in relative luxury, rocking on the veranda, sipping iced tea and planning and reporting strategies. Colonel Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders trained in the camps near the hotel during the day. Clara Barton gathered supplies for the Red Cross and frequented the hotel. The enlisted men camped in tents around Tampa and other Florida cities, fought off mosquitoes, endured stifling temperatures, wool uniforms and boredom while waiting for the signal to start the war.

The encampments were located in these areas:  Port Tampa, West Tampa, and Tampa Heights.  The camp of the Rough Riders was about 1 1/4 miles west of the Tampa Bay Hotel, around present day Kennedy Blvd. and Armenia northward to Cass St. just south of where the Ft. Homer Hesterly Armory on Howard Ave. is located today. Most of the regular regiments plus the First Volunteer Cavalry and eight infantry regiments of volunteers included with the Fifth Corps command were situated in various areas from Port Tampa to Ybor City with principal encampment being in the two hundred and fifty acres of pine forest specially designated military grounds at Tampa Heights at Michigan Avenue (Columbus Drive.)  General Joseph Wheeler noting that his men had been camped at Port Tampa where no shade trees were available was able to move the camp to West Tampa. Also encamped at West Tampa were several hundred Cuban troops who would sail with the invasion fleet. Altogether four regiments were at Port Tampa, seventeen at Tampa and four at Lakeland.

Click the map to see a full-size map image

See The Rough Riders in Tampa for an excellent account of Tampa's role in the Spanish American War and how the influx of thousands of military men affected Tampa.

Encampment at Port Tampa

Col. Teddy Roosevelt, 1898

Cuban volunteers performing target practice in West Tampa

Troops at Port Tampa getting ready to board their ships

  Troops charging through the water at Port Tampa

Encampment at Port Tampa

You can see hundreds of photos taken in Tampa during the Spanish American War at the Harvard Collection.  Do a "Quick Search" for Tampa at the upper right of this page.  Some hits will be photos not taken in Tampa, but part of a collection that includes "Tampa" in the title.

See more about the Spanish American War here at TampaPix's feature about the Burgert Brothers

From Edison films "war extra" catalog: A wide plain, dotted with tents, gleaming white in the bright sunshine. Soldiers moving about everywhere, at all sorts of duties. In the background looms up a big cigar factory; giving the prosaic touch to the picture needful to bring out in sharp contrast the patriotism with which the scene inspires us. The camera was on a rapidly moving train, so the panoramic view is a wide one, and remarkably brilliant.

The Library of Congress, American Memory Collection - Motion Pictures
10th US Infantry marching down an Ybor City Street

  The Mugge home at Jackson & Marion St., 1922    

Robert Mugge was a blonde German immigrant who came to America at age 17, departing from Glasgow, Scotland and arriving at the Port of New York on Sept. 19, 1870 on the steamship Iowa.  He married in Indiana where he and his wife had 3 children, then decided to move to Cuba for warmer weather, as he was an asthma-sufferer.  Probably departing from Mobile by schooner, their ship stopped in Tampa to unload cargo.  Around 1875, they arrived in Tampa where Mugge decided he liked the town and decided to stay.  Tragically, Robert's wife and three children died in a yellow fever epidemic. He then corresponded with Caroline Rautenstrauch in Germany who later joined him in Tampa and married. Together, they started a large family (nine children that survived, and two who died very young.)  More of his family followed soon thereafter, including Louis Mann, his brother-in-law, who was a tailor.  Mugge and Mann decided to go into business together and as a sideline they opened a grocery and general merchandise store. Robert was a jeweler by trade.  He bought a quarter of a block of land located at the northeast corner of Marion and Jackson streets. According to records in the court house, he paid $50 for it. There he built a two-story wooden building. The store faced Marion Street with rooms for rent on the second floor. The family lived in another two-story building in the rear facing Jackson Street.

Robert Mugge 1900 U.S. Census in Tampa      

The 1900 US Census shows Robert Mugge living at 302 Marion St. in Tampa.  It shows Robert was born in Jan. of 1854 in Germany and was age 46.  It shows that he immigrated in 1860, had been in the US for 40 years and was a naturalized citizen, but this information appears to be inaccurate, possibly given by Caroline who was his 2nd wife.  Ship passenger records of the SS Iowa show he arrived in 1870.  See a portion of the list.  He was married to Caroline for 17 years who was the mother of 8 children, with 7 living at the time.  Robert's business was "Saloon business."  Robert & Caroline's children were listed as Louise, Eugene, Frances, Albert, Lannie, Martha and Willie (age 5 mos.).  Their 1910 census shows "Lannie" was actually "Melanie", and also lists one more child born after the 1900 census--Nettie B.  The 1910 census provides more detail in regard to middle initials:  Louise M., Eugene G., Frances B., August B. (who is of age to have been the "Albert" listed in 1900), Melanie W., Martha W., and Nettie B.  A widowed sister of Robert Mugge is also in their home in 1910, Bertha Berger, and a daughter-in-law Wilhemina Mugge.  Their 1910 census also indicates that Caroline was Robert's second wife they had been married for 27 years and this was Caroline's first marriage.  Louise had been married for 6 years, but her husband is not listed in the household, and Eugene had been married for 3 years; his wife might be Wilhemina.  Eugene was a jewelry travelling salesman, and Robert's occupation was wholesale liquor dealer.  On the 1920 census, Caroline is widowed, August is married and his wife might be "Minnie" who is listed in the home as daughter-in-law to Caroline.   On on the 1930 census, August is found doing quite well in a home valued at $10,000 on Sunset Drive in Suburb Beautiful (today's Bayshore Blvd. area) with wife "Minna"and 4 children.  August was the president of a real estate company.

In the ensuing years, Robert Mugge literally helped build Tampa.  He was the first to put up street lights in the neighborhood of his home in 1884, he owned a bottling plant near his home, built an electric light plant on Central Ave., an ice manufacturing plant (he bottled for Anheuser-Busch), and opened the first legal distillery in Florida at Cass St. and Central Ave. Mugge became a successful beer distributor for Anheuser-Busch, and successful liquor and wine wholesaler, as well as being a watchmaker and saloon operator. In 1886 the first hand water pump for fighting fires was donated to the city by Mr. Robert Mugge. Known as the Mugge pump it was equipped with 350 feet of two-inch hose and was dragged through the city streets by hand. 
                                          
                           The Mugge home and store, 308 Jackson, 1922 and after demolition, below, also in 1922

At right, the Mugge property after demolition.  The Bay View Hotel can be seen at the left side of the photo on the right.

Mugge built an amusement park and numerous brick homes and buildings in Tampa, including the Bay View Hotel downtown at 218 Jackson St. in 1912.  Originally, the hotel was to be a warehouse, but during its construction, Mugge changed his mind. Different from all other hotels of the day, Mugge described it as a cross between a YMCA and and a ten-story barroom.  It had 125 rooms and a large, decorated lounge on every floor.   At the time the Bay View Hotel was completed, Robert Mugge installed bowling alleys and pool tables on his property on Franklin Street. 

      
The Bay View front desk in 1942 and Dining Room in 1948
See a full size front view photo of the guest directory seen in the front desk photo, on the left wall.

On April 4, 1904 Robert Mugge's West Tampa saloon caught on fire. The building, located on Pine Street near Howard Avenue, was quickly devoured by the hungry flames, and before volunteer firemen arrived with their hoses reels, the blaze had spread to nearby homes and businesses. Authorities say the fire could have been contained to the initial area, but high winds from the northeast fanned the flames southwestward across Howard Avenue and west down to Armenia Avenue, consuming everything in their path, including the A. Santaella cigar factory at 1906 N. Armenia. The Leopold Powell Company on the northeast corner was spared due to the wind direction, but over 100 homes and 5 factories to the southwest were destroyed.  All were constructed of highly flammable wood except for one factory, which was of brick.  The high winds, lack of available water sources, and West Tampa's inadequate fire fighting capability were all blamed for the extensive damage.  Losses were estimated to be $200,000.  Read about this fire in detail.

Visit "Tampa's Bravest", a website dedicated to the history of Tampa's firefighters

Mugge Wholesale Liquors at 4190 E. Hillsborough Ave., 1935 (above) and 1937 (below)

In 1898, during the Spanish-American War, American troops were brought to Tampa by rail and they marched up Franklin Street to the northern part of the city where many were encamped. The camp was in the neighborhood of Michigan Avenue (now Columbus Drive). The soldiers were mostly volunteers from the west and were commanded by General Shafter, who had his headquarters in the Tampa Bay Hotel.  Robert Mugge built a large saloon in an orange grove near the camp. The contractor had to build the entire structure in one day, including fixtures. The counter had a length of 80 feet and the soldiers were served by eight bartenders. It was open at all times and was known as the "Noah’s Ark."

Rough Riders listening to a service delivered by chaplain Henry A. Brown, with Theodore Roosevelt, Leonard Wood, Joseph Wheeler and other officers standing next to the tree in the right of the photograph.

When Tampa was first mentioned as an embarkation for the troops, Robert Mugge, who owned the franchise for selling August Busch's Budweiser beer on Florida's west coast, anticipated the arrival of 30,000 potential customers, courtesy of the U. S. government.  He wired the Anheuser-Busch main office for a trainload of beer. An indignant Busch wired back: "There will not be a war and we do not sell beer by the trainload."  But there was a war and he got beer by the trainload, and he sold every drop of it. The "Green Goose Saloon" in Port Tampa also was supplied. The soldiers embarked from Port Tampa for Cuba, in all about 50,000 men. On the day the treaty was signed in August, the Noah’s Ark was destroyed by fire.

Robert Mugge - The Man
Clad only with an undershirt, trousers, shoes and coat, Mugge would conduct his business. He wore bluish linen clothes, winter and summer the same and he was spotlessly clean. He was endowed with boundless energy, going full speed an average of 18 hours out of 24. He never employed a bookkeeper, nor owned a typewriter or adding machine. His office was a small space in the center of the wholesale establishment on Franklin Street where you could see a high desk with a stool and in the back of this, a small table and arm-chair. He transferred by hand from the order book to the bills which had to be collected on Monday morning. All letters were written by hand, no receipts kept, he had a remarkable memory and could give you an answer at a moment’s notice. He could talk with you while he was writing letters or listening over the phone. At this time he would converse with Mr. Davidson, his plumbers or electricians in reference to a building under construction. He would read the daily papers while he was eating. In 1901 he became a member of the Board of Public Works. He aided many worthy causes, among them the Children’s Home located on Washington and Marion Streets. His name appeared on the list of the month as one of the highest contributors.

Mugge died Dec. 17, 1915, at age 63, and was buried in a newly acquired family plot in Woodlawn Cemetery. The funeral was reported to be one of the largest ever held in Tampa and was held from the family home on a Sunday morning. Robert Mugge devoted his life to the building of Tampa which he loved so well. He would invest every dollar he made in Tampa thereby giving employment to thousands of breadwinners. He was a law-abiding citizen and would not tolerate any violation of any kind by his employees. He and his estate in later years paid well over $1,000,000 in City and County taxes in addition to a large number of occupational licenses.  Read more about the amazing Robert Mugge, the man and his contributions to Tampa.

The story behind the painting of Robert Mugge

At the time the Bay View Hotel was completed, Robert Mugge installed bowling alleys and pool tables on his property on Franklin Street. On a Sunday morning in 1915, a photographer appeared and wished to take a picture of the alleys. On the finished picture, in the left-hand corner, appeared Robert Mugge reading the newspaper. This being the only picture of Mr. Mugge known to be in existence, the photographer enlarged the picture and shaded in the background dark. A few years following Mr. Mugge’s death, his son August Mugge observed some paintings of former Tampa mayors on the walls of various council chambers. He secured the name of the artist from former Mayor D.B. McKay.  A German artist, Wilhelm Teschner, was given permission to paint, in oil, this enlarged picture at a cost of $25. The artist had received small advances on the promised $25 and when the picture was finished the family was so well pleased they gave him an additional $75. A few months later the artist’s body was found in an attic in Ybor City, with a brush and palette in his hands. He must have died of a heart attack. Since the artist had no relatives, the City of Tampa provided a lot in Woodlawn Cemetery and friends donated money to pay for funeral expenses. A Methodist minister officiated.

Apparently, no one was aware of, or had forgotten about, this portrait taken of Robert Mugge by the Burgert Brothers photographers in 1899.  The photo is part of the "Tony Pizzo" collection at the University of Florida Digital Collections, George A. Smathers Library.  The photo was originally posted as "A Portrait of Robert Hugge" but upon contacting the librarian, a re-check of the back of the photo revealed that "Hugge" was a typo and it was indeed "Mugge."  Although the title was corrected, the citation still carries the misspelling, "Hugge".   See the citation and link to the full size photo here.  Mr. Pizzo was an accomplished Tampa historian whose photos were donated to several library archives in Florida.   Other photos from Mr. Pizzo's collection can be found at the University of South Florida Special Collections and the Florida Memory Project.

See a photo taken in 1899, here at Tampapix,  which shows "Robert Mugge Corner" in Ybor City.  So named because of one of his saloons on the corner of 7th Avenue and 15th Street.
 

Robert Mugge's great-grandson, also named Robert Mugge, is an accomplished veteran music filmmaker known the world over.  He's received countless honors and accolades for his work in the music documentary film industry and is holder of the Edmund F. and Virginia B. Ball Chair in Telecommunications at Ball State University. 

 If you're wondering how to pronounce his surname, he says it's pronounced "Muggy, like the weather."  Read more about Robert at his website.

At left, Robert directs the filming of a concert around 2010,
photo by Chris Bergin for the Muncie Star Press.

At right, Robert and his wife/production partner Diana Zelman at the
Starz Denver International Film Festival.  Photo by Larry Laszlo for the festival.

Don't miss Robert's website at www.robertmugge.com!