Catalog Archive
Auction 205, Lot 218

1898 Plant Railway System Promotional for Florida

"[Map in Booklet] Map of the Plant System of Railway, Steamer and Steamship Lines and Connections [in] Scenes in Florida", Matthews-Northrup Co

Subject: Florida

Period: 1898 (published)

Publication:

Color: Printed Color

Size:
10.9 x 8.5 inches
27.7 x 21.6 cm
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This high-quality promotional piece includes 14 plates and a single-page map of the Plant System of railroads. The illustrations feature H.B. Plant’s hotels, especially the luxurious Tampa Bay Hotel, built at a cost of $3 million. This hotel was the first building in Florida with electricity, telephones and baths in each room and elevators, and served as the headquarters for the U.S. Army’s invasion of Cuba. The last few pages show a patriotic collage and scenes from the Spanish-American War. Plant was credited with developing a transportation network that led to the rapid growth of Florida’s west coast similar to the development fostered by Flagler on the east coast. After Plant’s death in 1899, his holdings were merged into the Atlantic Coast Railway. Pictorial wrappers with string ties.

References:

Condition: B+

Contents are mostly clean and bright with an occasional faint spot of foxing along the gutter and sheet edges. Covers are partially sunned and a bit frayed along the right edge.

Estimate: $150 - $180

Sold for: $100

Closed on 9/10/2025

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