Hotel Ponce de Leon
Dublin Core
Creator
Title
Hotel Ponce de Leon
Alternative Title
Flagler College's Ponce Hall
Date Created
1887-1888
Date Modified
1941-1946
1968
c.2001
2022-ongoing
Type
The original purpose of this building was as a grand hotel.
This building was a Coast Guard training center during World War II.
This building was repurposed as a college.
Description
The Hotel Ponce de Leon was opened in 1888 by Henry Flagler as a luxury hotel in St. Augustine, FL. Henry Flagler is accredited with modernizing St. Augustine and turning it into the "Newport of the South." This was his first hotel, but he went on to build many more hotels along the east coast of Florida as well as the Florida East Coast Railroad.
During World War II, the Hotel was borrowed by the Federal Government and converted into the Barracks and training ground for the Coast Guard. Locals remember the trainees and the gun or cannon fire from training periods throughout the day when gun exercises took place.
In 1968, to save the Hotel from demolition, Flagler's heirs turned the building into an all-women's college. In 1971 with the ascendency of Dr. William L. Proctor to the office of president, the College became co-ed and was accredited. Since then, Flagler College regularly wins awards and accolades for both academics and athletics. Air conditioning was first installed in Ponce Hall in c.2001. Extensive renovations of Ponce Hall were started in 2022 and are currently ongoing. Flagler College is a small, liberal arts college with one Master's degree in Deaf Education.
During World War II, the Hotel was borrowed by the Federal Government and converted into the Barracks and training ground for the Coast Guard. Locals remember the trainees and the gun or cannon fire from training periods throughout the day when gun exercises took place.
In 1968, to save the Hotel from demolition, Flagler's heirs turned the building into an all-women's college. In 1971 with the ascendency of Dr. William L. Proctor to the office of president, the College became co-ed and was accredited. Since then, Flagler College regularly wins awards and accolades for both academics and athletics. Air conditioning was first installed in Ponce Hall in c.2001. Extensive renovations of Ponce Hall were started in 2022 and are currently ongoing. Flagler College is a small, liberal arts college with one Master's degree in Deaf Education.
Has Part
The Hotel Ponce de Leon was part of Henry Flagler's Enterprises, specifically, the Florida East Coast Railroad System.
The Hotel was part of the auxiliary training locations created immediately before and during WWII to train Coast Guardsmen.
Ponce Hall is the main building on Flagler College's campus.
Mediator
Parts of Ponce Hall are open to the public. For tour information, please refer to Historic Tours of Flagler College.
Rights Holder
Source
The following books, articles, websites, and photographers were used to find the above photographs or illustrations:
Photograph 1 (c.1886): Graham, Thomas. Flagler’s St. Augustine Hotels: The Ponce de Leon, The Alcazar, and the Casa Monica. Sarasota, FL: Pineapple Press, Inc.
Photograph 2 (c.1887): Graham, Thomas. Flagler’s St. Augustine Hotels: The Ponce de Leon, The Alcazar, and the Casa Monica. Sarasota, FL: Pineapple Press, Inc.
Photograph 3 (c. 1950s): Courtesy of the Flagler College Archives. https://library.flagler.edu/college-archives/.
Photograph 4 (2023): Augusty, Jean-Marc. "Picture of Flagler College." March 24, 2023.
Photograph 1 (c.1886): Graham, Thomas. Flagler’s St. Augustine Hotels: The Ponce de Leon, The Alcazar, and the Casa Monica. Sarasota, FL: Pineapple Press, Inc.
Photograph 2 (c.1887): Graham, Thomas. Flagler’s St. Augustine Hotels: The Ponce de Leon, The Alcazar, and the Casa Monica. Sarasota, FL: Pineapple Press, Inc.
Photograph 3 (c. 1950s): Courtesy of the Flagler College Archives. https://library.flagler.edu/college-archives/.
Photograph 4 (2023): Augusty, Jean-Marc. "Picture of Flagler College." March 24, 2023.
Rights
Flagler College Special Collections is neither the original nor current copyright owner for the photographs. Please contact the publisher or source cited for each photograph to obtain a copy and/or permission to reproduce these items.
Is Referenced By
The following St. Augustine Fiction books feature this building as a location:
The Age of Innocence
American Girl
The Belle of Camden County
Dark Cries of Gray Oaks
The Devil's Own Dear Son
An East Florida Romance
Elsie in the South
A Florida Enchantment
Florida Is Closed Today
Frank Merriwell's Life Struggle
A Golden Sorrow
Grandmother in Cellophane
La Vida Vampire
The Ladies' Juggernaut
The Last Resort
Last Vampire Standing
Love and Honors
Mandie and the Seaside Rendezvous
Matanzas Moon
My Mother Is a Violant Woman
Mystery of the Missing Candlestick
Pablo's Search
Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Perpetual Youth
One Summer in the Old Town
Out of Step
The Reaper of St. George Street
Romance of a Kentuckian in St. Augustine
Salt Run
Sand Crabs and Sharks
Secret Missions
Sliding Beneath the Surface
St. Augustine A to Z
St. Augustine Spirits in Our Midst
Stepping Off a Cliff
Sweet Dreams, St. Augustine
Tales of St. Augustine
Things That Hang from Trees
Three Vassar Girls at Home
The Two Salomes
The Vampirate of Matanzas Inlet
The Age of Innocence
American Girl
The Belle of Camden County
Dark Cries of Gray Oaks
The Devil's Own Dear Son
An East Florida Romance
Elsie in the South
A Florida Enchantment
Florida Is Closed Today
Frank Merriwell's Life Struggle
A Golden Sorrow
Grandmother in Cellophane
La Vida Vampire
The Ladies' Juggernaut
The Last Resort
Last Vampire Standing
Love and Honors
Mandie and the Seaside Rendezvous
Matanzas Moon
My Mother Is a Violant Woman
Mystery of the Missing Candlestick
Pablo's Search
Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Perpetual Youth
One Summer in the Old Town
Out of Step
The Reaper of St. George Street
Romance of a Kentuckian in St. Augustine
Salt Run
Sand Crabs and Sharks
Secret Missions
Sliding Beneath the Surface
St. Augustine A to Z
St. Augustine Spirits in Our Midst
Stepping Off a Cliff
Sweet Dreams, St. Augustine
Tales of St. Augustine
Things That Hang from Trees
Three Vassar Girls at Home
The Two Salomes
The Vampirate of Matanzas Inlet
Date Submitted
This record was last updated on March 27, 2023.
Citation
Carrere & Hastings, “Hotel Ponce de Leon,” St. Augustine Fiction, accessed May 15, 2024, https://staugustinefiction.omeka.net/items/show/283.