The Land Boom, Sarasota Style.

From sleepy fishing village to dynamic gulf-front city, Sarasota’s evolution over the last 80 years has been fascinating. The law firm of Kirk Pinkerton is proud to have played a part in the development of Sarasota County and her cities. During the 80 years following Sarasota’s land boom of 1926, we’ve witnessed good times and bad.

This narrative is a snapshot of what Sarasota was like during those early years.

The events which occurred in 1926 were unexpected. Seemingly overnight, the city exploded from a sleepy town of barely 3,000 into a bustling community of 15,000.

This was in part attributed to the enthusiastic investment efforts by wealthy movers and shakers such as Lord Palmer and John Ringling. John Ringling, the youngest of five brothers of circus fame, had been investing heavily here since 1912. Downtown Sarasota landmarks visible in mid-1926 included the Sarasota Hotel at the corner of Palm and Main, and J.H. Lord’s bank at Five Points. Nearby, former mayor A.B. Edwards built his Edwards Theater at the corner of Pineapple and First (the present-day Sarasota Opera House). In May 1926, the cornerstone was laid for the new courthouse and county government building, next to the hotel Charles Ringling built at the East end of Main Street (now the Sarasota County Terrace Building).

The Mira Mar Hotel on Palm Avenue had been welcoming visitors since 1923. At the Northeast corner of Main and Palm, business was brisk at Sarasota’s first “sky-scraper”, the 7-story Sarasota Hotel. Just a chip shot away, Owen Burn’s El Vernona Hotel (later purchased by John Ringling and renamed John Ringling Towers) was under construction.

The Ringling Legacy

History
During the summer of 1926, Henry Williford was a well known Sarasota attorney. His most prominent client, John Ringling, was busy acquiring land and investing heavily in what would become the infrastructure of Sarasota. Mr. Williford (Henry L. Williford 1886-1942) hired James E. Kirk (1902-1983), then a young lawyer from Pennsylvania who had just received his law degree from Stetson University Law School in St. Petersburg. The two men opened the law office of Williford & Kirk in the prestigious new First Bank & Trust Company building at Five Points. For the next decade, the firm remained busy handling the legal affairs of Mr. Ringling and many others in the community. This work consisted primarily of real estate acquisitions and land development. Mr. Williford passed away in 1942. In 1946, John C. Pinkerton (1916-1997) joined the firm. Kirk Pinkerton would later play an important role in the development of Sarasota and the surrounding area through representation of its clients in numerous real estate transactions. Many of these transactions resulted in the construction of Sarasota’s most luxurious condominiums on Longboat Key and the bayfront. Perhaps the firm’s most high-profile real estate transaction was the 1959 acquisition by Arvida of the former Ringling holdings on Bird and Otter Keys and the southern portion of Longboat Key.

From our first office in the old Palmer Bank Building at Five Points to our new Five Points office and the addition of our Bradenton location, the firm has grown with the community it serves.