In the wake of World War I, on January 5, 1929, Senator Duncan U. Fletcher introduced a bill that would appropriate funds for a Soldiers’ Home to be constructed in Florida. Ultimately the bill’s wording was changed from “Florida” to “southeastern states,” but it did pass and appropriate $2 million for a home.
Within Pinellas …
The Don Ce-Sar, also known as the Pink Lady, first opened in January 1928 as a luxury resort on Pass-a-Grille to cater to the visiting wealthy during Florida's land boom. The resort stayed alive during the Depression thanks in part to the New York Yankees' spring training, but fell into disrepair after the death of the …
During the 1950's through the 1970's Bay Pines and Florida Representatives such as James Haley, William C. Cramer, and Bill Young fought for direly needed expansion in the form of buildings and hospital beds. At the same time, however, the facility (originally 500 acres) had a surplus of land. In 1955 Bay Pines gave 18 acres of …
During the 1932-1933 construction of Bay Pines it was generally known that Native Americans had previously inhabited the area. The earliest recorded excavation of the area was in 1880 by S. T. Walker, who left a collection with the Smithsonian (the record of which is currently available on the Smithsonian website). However, no …
The 1980's were an incredible time of change for Bay Pines Medical Ceneter. In November 1980, the new wing of the Nursing Home Care Unit (Building 101) opened as the first completed stage of the $110 million construction project appropriated in 1976 and begun in 1978. The new, five building domiciliary was soon after completed, and …
Bay Pines Veterans Affairs Medical Center opened in 1933 as the National Home for Disabled Soldiers at Seminole Point, Florida. Initially home to fewer than 200 beds, Bay Pines (re-named on June 15, 1934) now serves 97,786 veterans each year and spreads their care geographically through eight different outpatient centers and community-based outpatient centers. Having celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2008, Bay Pines has a rich history representative of the growth throughout America since the Great Depression.
This constantly-growing collection contains photographs, newspaper articles, letters, and various other documents tracing this history from the first consideration of a Home in 1902 to the completion of Building 107 in 2011.
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