Tag Archives: Regency Square Mall

Senator John Mathews and the Bridge to Nowhere

Posted on January 19, 2023 | Leave a comment

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When the Mathews Bridge was new, it was “the Bridge to Nowhere,” but it heralded the growth of Arlington east of the river and Downtown Jax. The city painted it “garnet” to celebrate its United States Football League team in 1984. It was named for the Florida senator best known for his proposed legislation to limit black voting rights. Opposing those bills got Harry T. Moore and his wife killed on their 25th anniversary.

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Tagged Arlington Expressway, Floridan Hotel, Harriette Moore, Harry T. Moore, Jacksonville Bulls, John E. Mathews, Ku Klux Klan, Mathews Bridge Jacksonville, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Florida, Pittsburgh Courier, Regency Square Mall, Robert Broward, Rosa Moore, Senator John Mathews, Ted Pappas, Thunderbird Motor Hotel, Tim Gilmore, Town and Country Shopping Center, United States Football League, USFL, White Primary Bill

When the City Dumped Sewage Sludge on the Regency Dunes

Posted on October 1, 2022 | Leave a comment

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National headlines announced fecal matter raining across the city. Sewage lines collapsed without being replaced. Treatment facilities were overwhelmed. Tankers dumped sewage sludge on the sand dunes behind Regency Square Mall where kids had jumped their dune buggies and dads shot World War II rifles. The mayor jumped into the sludge wars.

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Tagged Anheuser-Busch, Arlyn Dockery, Bob Glenn, Buckman Street Sewage Treatment Plant, Cindy Mathieson, Cypress Gardens Tanzler, Davin and Co., Dee Dot Ranch, Dennis Gary Sneed, Don Ferguson, Don Gibbons, Duval Septic Company, Frank Ellis, Hans Tanzler, Humphreys Gold Mine, J.E. Davis, Jake Godbold, James Crooks, jax psycho geo, Jeanne Yates, Jim Crooks, Linda Flynn, Lone Star Jacksonville, Lone Star Road, Melvin Newman, Mike Tolbert, Mill Creek North, Norman Peterson, Nutri-Gro, Ray Huard, Regency Square Mall, sewage sludge Jacksonville, sewage sludge Regency, St. Regis Paper Company, Stockton, Tim Gilmore, Wayne Ellis, Whatley, Winn-Dixie

The Rise and Fall of Regency Square Mall

Posted on September 17, 2022 | Leave a comment

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“All roads lead to Regency Square,” they said, “the largest shopping center in the Southeast,” a “city within a city.” The shopping mall seemed to replace the heart of the city itself. All spectacles converged there — dancing bears, the Easter Bunny, art shows, wax figures of English monarchs. Then came the fall and the era of the “dead mall.”

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Tagged Albert Stein, Alpert Investment, Baker Shoes, Cary Corley, Diane Keniston, Flair Fabrics, Frosty Follies Jacksonville, Furchgott’s, Governor Haydon Burns, Haydon Burns, Ivey’s, J.C. Penney, Jacksonville Orchid Society, Jacksonville Tim Gilmore, Joan Stein, Joanie Stein, Joseph Crain, Kay Jewelry and Russell Stover Candies, LeDow the Magician, Lerner’s, Levy’s, Lillie-Rubin Dress Shop, Martin Stein, Maurice Alpert, May Cohen’s, Mayor Haydon Burns, Mayor Lou Ritter, Miller Norton, Regency Centers, Regency Mall, Regency Square Jacksonville, Regency Square Mall, Regency Square Mall Jacksonville, Regency Square Summer Art Show, Rosenblum’s, Thunderbird Motor Hotel, Tim Giml, Underwood Jewelers, Walgreen’s, Woolworth

New Story: Wandering the Ruins of the Thunderbird Motor Hotel

Posted on July 4, 2020 | Leave a comment

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The Thunderbird Motor Hotel lies in ruins on 19 acres. We wander through it. It was “one of the brightest jewels in the Florida Crown,” created to “give Jacksonville a Las Vegas, New York, big-city type of night club atmosphere.” It featured multiple lounges like The Zodiac Room and The Wonderfall, dinner theatre and convention space. The stars came. For a while. Few realized its full history of financial troubles. Now a hawk flies over the abandoned swimming pool. Click below for the story.

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Tagged Al Stein, Albert Stein, Ann Sothern, Arlington Jacksonville, Ben Stein, Bethel Baptist Church, Bethelite, Bold New City of the South, Bonnie Morrison, Burger King Jacksonville, Carmen Ann Roden, Danae Clift, David Stein, Fireman's Ball, Fisher & Malone, Florida Gothic, Frances Langford, Gator Bowl, Gerry Roden, Hans Tanzler, Howard Keel, Jackie Gleason Show, Jacksonville Coliseum, Jacksonville Florida, Jacksonville Gothic, Jacksonville University, Jason Wood, jax psycho geo, Jay Leno, Jill Starr, Joann Starr, John C. Christian, Jud Ammean Orchestra, KBJ Architects, Kettle Pub, King’s Inn Lounge, Man of La Mancha, Martin Denny, Mary Lynn Brown, Mayor Hans Tanzler said, Michael Ammiano, Peter Cummings, Philip Browning, Red Carpet Inns, Regency Square, Regency Square Mall, Ricky Takacs, Rolling Stones Jacksonville, Sammy Spear Orchestra, South Pacific Orientalism, Terrace Room, The Diamonds, Thunder Resort Hotel, Thunderbird Motor Hotel, Thunderreal, Tiki Bar, Tim Gilmore, Tim Gilmore writer, Tiny Tim, white flight, William Groff, William K. Jackson, Wonderfall, Wonderfall Bar, Wonderfall Lounge, Yvonne Moray, Zero Mostel, Zodiac Room