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Florida: Empire of the Sun

1930

Due to the fact that Florida's development has been so closely allied to, and in some sections has resulted from, the resort or tourist business, the hotel industry has grown to be one of the most important phases of activity in the state. Names of Florida hotels have been purposely omitted from this book, with the exception of several which have been closely associated with the early history of the state, because of their large number and because there is little to choose in luxury and splendid equipment among the larger and better hotel institutions.

The thousands of hotels in Florida include some of the finest and most pretentious hostelries in the world, equipped with every conceivable facility of comfort and convenience. Others with more modest accommodations permit the guest to enjoy the manifold attractions of Florida on an unusually economical vacation budget. All hotels, large and small, are subject to the regulations and jurisdiction of the Florida State Hotel Commission, whose authority also extends to supervision of the thousands of restaurants and cafes throughout the state.

The visitor will gain a comprehensive idea of the hotel accommodations available in the various sections of the state from the following approximate hotel totals in each county:

County	County Seat	No. Hotels	No. Rooms
Alachua	Gainesville	78	954
Baker	Macclenny	3	31
Bay	Panama City	39	679
Bradford	Starke	10	104
Brevard	Titusville	118	2,226
Broward	Fort Lauderdale	177	4,969
Calhoun	Blountstown	5	62
Charlotte	Punta Gorda	20	427
Citrus	Inverness	19	308
Clay	Green Cove Spgs	13	322
Collier	Everglades	114	374
Columbia	Lake City	25	443
Dade	Miami	1,943	64,269
De Soto	Arcadia	35	603
Dixie	Cross City	18	223
Duval	Jacksonville	710	14,973
Escambia	Pensacola	89	1,553
Flagler	Bunnell	7	153
Franklin	Apalachicola	16	291
Gadsden	Quincy	35	458
Gilchrist	Trenton	4	55
Glades	Moorehaven	5	93
Gulf	Wewahitchka	10	117
Hamilton	Jasper	118	328
Hardee	Wauchula	16	370
Hendry	La Belle	12	247
Hernando	Brooksville	18	227
Highlands	Sebring	56	1,670
Hillsborough	Tampa	856	18,173
Holmes	Bonifay	4	61
Indian River	Vero Beach	41	940
Jackson	Marianna	22	342
Jefferson	Monticello	10	136
Lafayette	Mayo	3	45
Lake	Tavares	144	2,585
Lee	Fort Myers	107	2,348
Leon	Tallahassee	62	990
Levy	Bronson	26	351
Liberty	Bristol	5	58
Madison	Madison	12	185
Manatee	Bradenton	77	1,877
Marion	Ocala	91	1,458
Martin	Stuart	32	842
Monroe	Key West	18	618
Nassau	Fernandina	9	120
Okaloosa	Crestview	17	420
Okeechobee	Okeechobee	15	335
Orange	Orlando	314	7,333
Osceola	Kissimmee	52	857
Palm Beach	W. Palm Beach	368	11,810
Pasco	Dade City	31	525
Pinellas	Clearwater	990	22,345
Polk	Bartow	280	5,324
Putnam	Palatka	75	1,154
St. Johns	St. Augustine	110	2,818
St. Lucie	Fort Pierce	39	993
Santa Rosa	Milton	14	207
Sarasota	Sarasota	101	2,865
Seminole	Sanford	42	514
Sumter	Bushnell	25	309
Suwannee	Live Oak	17	231
Taylor	Perry	44	695
Union	Lake Butler	8	106
Volusia	De Land	424	9,355
Wakulla	Crawfordville	11	132
Walton	DeFuniak Spgs.	11	209
Washington	Vernon	8	119
Totals		8,026	196,225

(Hotels of ten or more rooms only are listed)

Source:
Excerpt from "Florida: Empire of the Sun" Published by the Florida State Hotel Commission, Tallahassee, Florida. 1930.