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From its beginnings as a
tiny fishing village, to its present day sophistication, Naples remains one of
the most beautiful tropical enclaves in the world! Once, the only people to stroll Naples' seven
miles of white, sandy beaches, were the Caloosa Indians. Now, thousands of
visitors and residents
flock to the white sandy beaches to experience the soothing Gulf waters.
Whether you desire a beachfront high-rise, a
country club home or villa, or a charming tin roof cottage in Olde Naples, there
is a home to match your Neapolitan lifestyle!
Some of the world's most famous golf course
designers have created challenging courses that have put Naples on the map as a
premier golfing destination.
Naples' cultural arts community is growing every
day. The Philharmonic Center for the Arts brings world-class entertainment
to its stage every season, attracting patrons from all along the Southwest
Florida coast. A variety of theater groups, outdoor concerts, art
galleries and festivals add excitement all year long.
Shopping,
dining, golf, boating and fishing are among the most popular pastimes in Naples. From elegant to casual Naples has it all! The upscale shops
and bistros of Olde Naples are famous. The Waterside Shops, The Village on
Venetian Bay and many others add to the ambience that is Naples! World
class hotels including the Ritz-Carlton Naples,
LaPlaya, The
Inn at Pelican Bay and The Registry Resort offer
unparalleled accommodations.
Throughout the 1870's and '80's, magazine and newspaper stories telling of
the area's mild climate and abundant fish and game likened it to the sunny
Italian peninsula. The name Naples caught on when promoters described the bay as
"surpassing the bay in Naples, Italy."
In 1887, a group of wealthy Kentuckians, led by Walter N.
Haldeman, owner of
the Louisville Courier-Journal, purchased virtually the entire town of Naples.
One of the first improvements Haldeman and the Naples Company made was to build
a pier 600 feet into the Gulf of Mexico. The unusual "T" shape allowed
large ships to dock easily. Despite being destroyed and rebuilt three times, the
pier's "T" shape remains.
Naples
grew primarily as a winter resort.
Social life revolved
around the Naples Hotel, which played host to celebrities such as Rose
Cleveland, Thomas Edison, Harvey Firestone, Greta Garbo, Hedy Lamarr, and Gary
Cooper. As the town of Naples went up, so did the price of property.
The cost of
a beachfront lot soon reached $125.
In 1911, Barron G. Collier, who had made his fortune in streetcar
advertising, visited nearby Useppa Island. He was so taken with the area that he
bought over a million acres of untouched swampland - including most of Naples.
Collier believed that Florida's west coast could enjoy the same boom that the
east coast was experiencing in the 1920's; but first it was necessary to bring
in road and railroads.
Based on Collier's promise to help build the Tamiami Trail, in 1923 the state
legislature created Collier County, of which Naples is the county seat. Collier
spent more than $1 million of his own money to construct the Tamiami Trail,
which opened in 1926 as the only paved highway linking the state's two largest
cities - Tampa and Miami.
Collier died before he could see his dream come
true but today, Naples enjoys unparalleled prosperity. And the area's unrivaled sport
fishing, hunting, boating, sun bathing, and beach combing attract people today
just as it did a century ago.
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