The Homes on the End of the Pier

The Homes on the End of the Pier. . , Early Islanders relied on small boats to bring supplies and to transport visitors. As more people discovered the island, a new transportation solution was needed. In 1911, developers built a 776-foot-long pier to accommodate larger boats and to entice tourists and investors to buy lots and to build homes and businesses., In 1913, Col. John Tice, a prominent Tampa banker, built a luxurious four-bedroom summer cottage on the end of the City Pier and named it Lotus Cottage. An icehouse, later converted into a fish and tropical fruit canning plant, was added in the 1920s. When the cannery failed the building was remodeled into a rental cottage named Belle Haven., A large storm in 1926 pounded the pier. Weakened by generations of wood-boring marine worms, the pilings collapsed, washing the homes into the bay., The larger Lotus Cottage broke up; Belle Haven was found intact. While still floating, the cottage was purchased for $125 and barged around the north end of the island where it served as a home for more than 75 years., According to local lore, when Belle Haven slid into the bay, a man staying in the cottage jumped out a window and swam to shore.