6-BG hotel fire

BY LIZA STROUT - Joe Spadaro had a dream. He and his wife wanted to be accepted as guests at the Gasparilla Inn. When they arrived at that fine establishment, they received a rather chilly response. Depending on who is telling the story, the reaction ranged from a simple-yet-obvious disdain for their lack of appropriate dress to the desk clerk informing Joe, in a voice carved of ice, that “applicants should use the back door.”

Regardless of the cause, Spadaro dreamt a new dream, and this one became a reality.

Trisha Lowe took center stage with Robert Johnson at the Wednesday, Feb. 20 edition of the Historical Society’s ongoing series, “History Bytes.” This week’s topic was the Boca Grande Hotel, at one time the largest building on the island.

 

 

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