Regency area BEFORE Regency!:
Below appears to be Arlington Expressway and Southside Blvd:
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00209.jpg)
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00208.jpg)
Below appears to be Arlington Expressway and Atlantic Blvd.:
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00207.jpg)
Below appears to be Atlantic and Southside Blvd.:
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00123.jpg)
Below appears to be looking toward future Regency Square site from Southside Blvd.:
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00121.jpg)
Arlington Expressway exit:
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00075.jpg)
Anyone know where the C. T. Boyd expressway is today? Was this an original name for the Arlington Expressway?:
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF01261.jpg)
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF01260.jpg)
Is this Arlington and Southside Blvd based on the directional sign?
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00951.jpg)
Another mystery, but I guess either Atlantic and Arlington or Southside and Arlington:
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00952.jpg)
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF00953.jpg)
Where did you unearth these from.....are these dated at all?
Great pics! "They paved paradise to put up a parking lot".
In this case, "paradise" was a strip mine from WW2 and after, that created all those sand dunes. I forget what they were mining, maybe someone else remembers this bit of local history?
They were called Humphries Gold Mines and when I was small, I thought gold came from them. It was however, titanium and other valuable minerals. For years, after the mines closed and before the development, they were dune buggy driving areas.
Quote from: Charles Hunter on July 26, 2009, 09:07:52 AM
In this case, "paradise" was a strip mine from WW2 and after, that created all those sand dunes. I forget what they were mining, maybe someone else remembers this bit of local history?
Mr. Humphries was a mining engineer who developed a method of dredging up mineral bearing sand and separating the minerals from the quartz with a centrifuge and electric charges. He got the rights to mine a strip of land from the St. John's River to the St. Johnn's County line. The dredge floated in its own little lake and moved the lake along by filling the used sand in behind it as it moved along.
He evidently had an operation in Colorado too, because in the late 50's and early 60's, he used to fly back and forth to Craig Field in a WWII surplus B-26. He had a big easy chair installed in the space of the bomb bay claimed that the hours spent with an oxygen mask on was good for him. I can remember pumping 1200 gallons of 110 octane aviation fuel into that plane and giving the pilot books of green stamps for it. This was all way before the days of private jets.
What they were recovering from the sand was mostly titanium dioxide which replaced lead as the white pigment in paint. DuPont now does this kind of mining still.
Very cool info DW! I decided to "dig" further... :)
http://www.onemine.org/search/summary.cfm/Heavy-mineral-mining-in-the-Atlantic-Coastal-Plain-of-Florida-and-Georgia-and-the-chemical-and-physical-characteristics-of-the-deposits?d=0F3A4ABCC95BF91E9B31CA58640D4D34397F6FBAD1F94393A9661F13C5157E2544493&fullText=woodbine%20%20gold%20mining%20%20company
QuoteHeavy minerals have been mined from the sands of the United States’ Atlantic Coastal Plain since the early part of the twentieth century. Production of ilmenite from beach sands near Mineral City (Ponte Vedra), Florida, began in 1916. The first reported large-scale recovery of zircon in Florida was reported from this deposit in 1922 and of rutile in 1925. These operations ceased in 1929. Today the Ponte Vedra Country Club and Golf Course is situated in the center of the former mining site. In 1942 heavy-mineral operations were established on 202 hectares of land situated in Duval County, Florida. The location is about 16 kilometers east of the center of Jacksonville, Florida, in an area known as Arlington. This operation demonstrated that low-grade sand containing only 2 to 3 percent titanium minerals could be concentrated economically with the Humphreys spiral and that the oxides could be separated from the heavy silicates by electrostatic methods. Much of this area is now covered by a large mall and is a major retail- commercial center. Between 1958 and 1964 the Skinner tract, a deposit about 4 kilometers south of the above deposit, was mined. Today the area of this deposit is known as Deerwood, a gated country club community on the southside of Jacksonville. Further inland, E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. has been mining heavy minerals from a physiographic feature known as Trail Ridge since 1948, and a deposit near Green Cove Springs, Florida has been in production since 1972. Since the start of heavy-mineral mining in the southeastern United States, nine heavy-mineral ore bodies either have been or are being exploited in Florida and Georgia. Other deposits either have been lost to mining or are yet to be mined. These deposits have different origins. Some formed along shorelines at the heights of marine transgressions while others formed on regressional beach ridge plains during periods of temporary stillstands or slight transgressions. These different origins are reflected in the chemical and physical characteristics of the deposits. Ilmenite in older, more western deposits has a higher TiO2 content than ilmenite in younger, more eastern deposits. TiO2 content does not very with north-south direction. Garnet and epidote are absent or rare in the older Trail Ridge deposits, but progressively become common in the younger Duval Upland, Crestal Pamlico, and Holocene deposits. Grain size is coarsest for Trail Ridge sediments and finest for sediments in Duval Upland and Crestal Pamlico deposits. The average grain size for Holocene deposits is intermediate between Trail Ridge and Duval Upland deposits. The two models for the origin of the heavy-mineral deposits â€" deposits formed at the height of major marine transgression; and deposits formed during periods of temporary stillstands or slight transgressions that occur during a general marine regression; - are consistent with known sedimentological data and depositional trends.
Here is some more...
http://content.cdlib.org/view?docId=kt796nb3xp&doc.view=frames&chunk.id=d0e2090&toc.depth=1&toc.id=d0e2038&brand=oac
QuoteHumphreys Gold Corporation; Mining Beach Sands in Florida, 1948
Livermore
I was looking around for jobs, and one came up in Florida, with a company called Humphreys Gold Corporation.
6. See James V. Thompson, "Mining and Metallurgical Engineer: The Philippines Islands; Dorr, Humphreys, Kaiser Engineers Companies; 1940-1990s," Regional Oral History Office, The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, 1992.
It wasn't a gold mine but it was kind of an interesting mine. It was beach sands containing heavy minerals with titanium in the form of ilmenite and rutile, plus zircon, and also there was a certain amount of monazite. We didn't produce that commercially, though; there was no market for it at that time.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
― 23 ―
It was an interesting deposit, because it was practically on the outskirts of Jacksonville, on the beach. It was a dredging operation, and my job was running the exploratory drilling. We were drilling ahead of the dredge, blocking out reserves, so we had a kind of an unusual drill which was built there to drill down through the dune sands, which was kind of a difficult operation.
Swent
Tell a little bit about it; you had told me a couple of interesting stories about Mr. Humphreys.
Livermore
Well, yes. Mr. Humphreys was an interesting fellow. There were two brothers; one was an inventor, and the other was a businessman. They were a very good combination.
Mr. Humphreys the inventor--one of his inventions was a spiral, the Humphreys spiral, which was a very simple device. No mechanical moving parts.
The sand would circulate around the spiral and the heavy minerals would have a tendency--because of the difference in specific gravity--to settle into the center of the spiral. By cutting off the inside portion of the stream, we could concentrate large quantities of sand very quickly.
This was a very large operation. We were literally dredging I think a thousand tons an hour, something like that. They had a big battery of these spirals, and would produce a concentrate very cheaply, and that's really the only way that made this particular operation profitable.
Then that concentrate was dried, and they had a further refining process, which was an electrostatic process, to separate out the various heavy minerals. That was a very simple device; you wonder why somebody else hadn't thought about it sooner.
The other thing Humphreys invented--he was a fisherman--and of course fishing reels have their axis perpendicular to the pole. And often, there's a problem with backlash. Well, he had the bright idea, why not rotate that axis 90 degrees? The line would come off the top of the reel instead of the conventional position. That eliminated most of the backlash.
You know, inventors are amazing people. No one had ever thought of just simply turning the reel 90 degrees, and so that was his other great invention. Both of them very simple, very practical things, which no one had ever thought of.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
― 24 ―
He invented other things too; his head was continually in the clouds, like most inventors. But his brother was a hard-headed businessman, and between the two of them, they did very well. That Humphreys spiral was used in a lot of different mining applications.
Swent
You said they also had a special drill?
Livermore
Well, that's right. Sand is very hard to drill, because the walls cave in very readily. The normal drills just simply won't work. This was a very simple device. It just had a jet of water inside a casing. A heavy weight at the top of the water jet drove the casing down at the same time as the jet flushed out the sand from the bottom of the casing. They had attempted other methods which simply did not work; they tried to core it, or they tried to just drive it down, just bull it down, driving through the sand without a jet. We were down below the water table, and the sand would just cave in. But this system just worked beautifully. You could just go zooming right down.
Then the cuttings would wash out, and we'd save them. This machine was invented and built right there at the mine.
Also we had trouble driving across the sand dunes with the regular truck; you could easily get bogged down. So they designed special old military half-tracks with a drill mounted on them, and we'd drive them across the dunes, and do the drilling. The Humphreys group was a very imaginative organization.
Swent
So it was your job to find the sands that were productive and tell them where to dredge?
Livermore
Yes, and to block out the reserves, and how much overburden there was, and things like that. So that was an interesting job, and that lasted about a year.
I would like to learn more about the man himself... I have not had much luck. Is it Humphreys or Humphries? Seems there were more than a few of both in the mining business...
Another short blurb...
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/geology/geologictopics/minerals.htm
QuoteHeavy mineral mining began in 1916 near Mineral City (now Ponte Vedra Beach) to supply ilmenite for WWI titanium tetrachloride production. In the mid-1920s, zircon and rutile were also produced in this area. Other beach deposits near Jacksonville, Melborne, and Vero Beach were worked through the WWII years. Extraction of heavy minerals is today concentrated along the Trail Ridge of western Duval and Clay Counties.
I happen to agree with the decision to change Mineral City to Ponte Vedra Beach... :D
Do you suppose any of em know they are living over a former mine?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Vedra_Beach,_Florida
QuoteIn 1916 the community was known as Mineral City, and titanium (ilmenite) extraction was significant, as well as that of zircon and rutile.[2] These minerals were recovered from beach sands by a private commercial firm called National Lead Company, directed by Henry Holland Buckman and George A. Pritchard. During the First World War titanium was a component of poison gas, and therefore a strategic mineral. The golf courses created for recreational purposes by their company became the root of the present golf industry.
BINGO! Here we go!! Pictures of their mansion in Denver!
http://books.google.com/books?id=AO5-0H9oAXEC&pg=PA68&lpg=PA68&dq=Humphreys+Gold&source=bl&ots=qTpQO7ylKQ&sig=bTHBwuzVJmIMpn0oLLtWOZgfv1k&hl=en&ei=joNsSty0Eda3twfCgPmaAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1
He or they are inventors of the "Humphrey Spiral"...
http://www.websters-online-dictionary.org/Hu/Humphrey%2527s+spiral.html
QuoteHUMPHREY'S SPIRAL
Specialty Definition: HUMPHREY'S SPIRAL
Domain Definition
Mining A concentrating device that exploits differential densities of coal and its associated impurities by a combination of sluicing and centrifugal action. The material gravitates down through a stationary spiral trough with six turns (five for ore treatment) of mean radius 8 in (20.32 cm) with a fall per turn of 11 in (27.94 cm). Heavy particles stay on the inside, the lightest ones climb to the outside, and the resulting bandsare separated at convenient points. (references)
And...
http://www.freepatentsonline.com/5193687.html
QuoteGravity separators having metallic troughs, especially Humphreys spirals United States Patent 5193687
Abstract:A gravity-magnetic separator (10) for concentrating magnetic materials (28), particularly iron, is disclosed. The preferred separator is a cast-iron Humphreys spiral retrofitted with powerful rare earth magnets (22) beneath its separating surface (14), the magnets being sufficiently strong to overcome the shielding effect of the cast-iron spiral and induce a magnetic field at the separating surface of about 60 gauss to about 120 gauss. The resulting gravity-magnetic separator enhances the recovery of iron in a commercially significant way.
Quote from: 02roadking on July 26, 2009, 07:48:21 AM
Where did you unearth these from.....are these dated at all?
These pix are from the Florida State archives where earlier pictures on another thread of San Jose and Lakewood were taken from. Unfortunately, all are undated. I am sure JTA could tell you when these roads were built since they were part of the original, pre-interstate, Jacksonville Expressway System. My guess is between 1955 and 1965 (between construction of the Matthews Bridge and Regency Square).
Stephen and Bridge: Great data "mining" of history! :D I knew the story but not the level of details. Jax has been touched by a lot of "characters" over the years and someone could write a fascinating book with their stories as a companion to Wayne Wood's Jax Architectural Heritage book.
I love doing this stuff... you never know wher it will lead... :D
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grant-Humphreys_Mansion
QuoteGrant-Humphreys Mansion
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Coordinates: 39°43′41″N 104°58′50″W / 39.728102°N 104.980577°W / 39.728102; -104.980577
Grant-Humphreys Mansion
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The Grant-Humphreys Mansion on Pennsylvania Street in Denver, Colorado
Location: 770 Pennsylvania St
Denver, Colorado
Added to NRHP: September 30, 1970
NRHP Reference#: 70000160
Grant-Humphreys Mansion in Denver, Colorado, was built in 1902, in the Neoclassical style of architecture by Boal and Harnois, for James Benton Grant following his one term as the third Governor of Colorado (1883-1885). The house has been home to two families. Grant is best known for his role in the ore smelting industry, the first in Leadville, and then in Denver, where the Grant Smelting Company, located two miles northeast of downtown Denver, boasted the tallest furnace stack in the country and the third-largest in the world. Mr. Grant's wife, former Mary Matteson Goodell, was prominent in Denver society. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and helped to found a home for destitute children. Following her husband's death in 1911, she continued to live in the house six more years, selling it in 1917 to Albert E. Humphreys.
A.E. Humphreys is remembered as "The Wildcatter Deluxe" and the "King of the Wildcatters" for his successful discovery of oil in Wyoming, Oklahoma and Texas. He was also well known for his philanthropic activities, which were shared by his wife, Alice. The couple came to Denver in 1898 with their two sons Ira and Albert E. Jr. Ira married Lucille Pattison, and they lived with the senior Humphreys in the house until the deaths of his parents.
Ira was the mechanical genius of the family, while A.E. Jr. enjoyed the managerial side of the family oil business. Both young men were fascinated with airplanes and opened Denver's first commercial airport in 1918 at 26th Avenue and Oneida Street in North Park Hill, ten years prior to the Denver Municipal Airport that was eventually to become Stapleton International Airport. In 1919, Ira Boyd "Bumps" Humphreys formed the Curtiss-Humphreys Airplane Company.1 In 1941, Ira invented the Humphreys Spiral Concentrator, which was used extensively in the mining industry for the separation of minerals and heavy metals in low grade ores.2
The Colorado Historical Society took possession of the mansion, a bequest of the late Ira Boyd Humphreys, in 1976. The walls were originally covered in damask which unfortunately fell into disrepair and has since been removed.
Apparently both were accomplished aviators...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_Aviation_Hall_of_Fame
QuoteThe Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame[1] was established by the Colorado Aviation Historical Society (CAHS) in Denver, Colorado, USA, on November 11, 1969. The original and first ten Coloradoaviation pioneers were inducted into the Hall on that date. Guest speaker for the event was author Ernest K Gann. The Hall of Fame is part of the Heritage Hall in the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum, Denver, Colorado.
Originally, to be considered for the Hall of Fame, ones' pioneering activities were to be completed before November 11, 1918. Subsequently, the cut-off date was changed to 1935, then eliminated. Aviation pioneering including development of airports, air mail routes, flying training facilities, flight management and mapping, aviation and aerospace manufacturing and maintenance, aviation weather tracking and forecasting, teaching and educating, advancements in aviation business, and military achievements. These are some of the activities that challenged Colorado aviators and aviation business persons.
In the first 25 years of the Hall of Fame, over 160 Coloradans and organizations have been inducted and so honored.
[edit] Original ten inductees of 1969
1) Ivy Baldwin
2) Allan F. Bonnalie
3) Ira Boyd "Bumps" Humphries (Also spelled Humphreys) - See Grant-Humphreys Mansion.
4) Albert E. Humphries (Also spelled Humphreys) - See Grant-Humphreys Mansion.
Awesome!! You hit the... er... um... GOLD MINE! :D
Quote from: stephendare on July 26, 2009, 01:20:02 PM
Thanks Stjr. I totally agree with that.
I wonder if you can fill in some details or know anything about this. Growing up at the beaches, I was repeatedly told that Jimbo Stockton didnt start as a superwealthy guy, but that he had gone in and bought up all of Ponte Vedra at pennies on the dollar, as he was lucky enough to have cash when no one else did.
I wonder if he purchased it from the Humphreys?
Do you have any insight?
Not sure which generation of Stockton's you are referring to.
Of course, Stockton Whatley Davin & Company was the engine that developed San Marco, Ponte Vedra, Deerwood, some of Riverside I believe, and most of Gate's southside properties, along with what is now Chase/Washington Mutual Jax mortgage operations and Fidelity Information Systems (originally an SWD subsidiary, Computer Power). At one time its president, J. J. Daniel, was also the "publisher" of the Florida Times Union.QuoteWikipedia:
Stockton, Whatley, Davin & Co. (SWD) was one of the largest mortgage banking, real estate and insurance firms in the Southeast. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, they were founded as Stockton, Whatley in the late 1800's. At its' height, SWD had a real estate portfolio worth $100 million and a mortgage loan servicing portfolio of $3.8 billion, providing services in Florida, Georgia and Alabama.
The original partners were James R. Stockton Sr., Brown L. Whatley and Joseph W. Davin.
SWD was a developer of Ponte Vedra Beach in the early 1930's.[1]
The San Marco section of Jacksonville was developed by the Stockton Whatley Company in the 1920's.[2]
J.J. Daniel became president of SWD in 1960. He led development of the Deerwood section of Jacksonville, and the companion Deerwood Country Club, the most exclusive gated communities at the time and for many years thereafter.
In 1964, SWD was purchased by the General American Oil Company.[3]
Don Davis was named General Manager of Deerwood Country Club in 1965, a position he held for over 20 years. In 1978, Davis was promoted to Operations Vice President of SWD, responsible for all Deerwood Club operations, including the sale of residences and home sites.
William F. Aberly joined SWD as Financial Vice President in 1965 and retired as Chairman and CEO in 1984 prior to the company's dissolution.[4]
Phillips Petroleum Company acquired SWD early in 1983 in the merger of the General American Oil Company of Texas into its Phillips Oil Company subsidiary, which announced its intention to sell the unit.[5]
SWD's real estate holdings of 50,000+ acres were purchased by Herb Peyton and Gate Petroleum for $60 million in cash.[6]
The First National Bank of Boston purchased the mortgage banking business of SWD for $120 million.[7]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stockton,_Whatley,_Davin_&_Co.
An excerpt and story link from a descendant of Brown Whatley: QuoteFlorida Times Union, Published Saturday, June 2, 2007
When Ponte Vedra was just a rural beach
A woman who grew up there in the 1930s writes about those days.
.....Muffet's father, Brown Whatley, was president of Stockton, Whatley, Davin and Company, which developed early Ponte Vedra Beach.
Her mother, Marion, was a housewife who raised two children and occasionally played golf at the Ponte Vedra Club's nine-hole course, created just eight years earlier for workmen with the National Lead Company, which mined the beach for minerals.
At the time, the Beaches were rather isolated from Jacksonville because Atlantic Boulevard was the only road that led there.
After arriving in Atlantic Beach, people could drive south along narrow, two-lane Florida A1A to reach Ponte Vedra Beach, or they could drive on the beach, which was often faster....
http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/060207/nes_174061648.shtml
More on the Stockton family:QuoteJacksonville Florida Real Estate - Stockton Realty is... - [Cached Version]
Published on: 11/3/2003 Last Visited: 8/18/2004
Stockton ...A Tradition Since 1884
The Stockton name has been associated with the planning, development and construction of Jacksonville, Ponte Vedra and the surrounding areas for over 100 years.In 1884 Telfair Stockton & Company was created and in 1946 merged with Whatley & Davin Company to form Stockton, Whatley, Davin and Company ...And for thirty-eight years afterwards the SWD Logo was familiar and recognized around the country.Upon James R. Stockton, Jr.'s graduation from Washington & Lee University, he served on active duty in the United States Marine Corps.He began his working career in 1959 at Stockton, Whatley, Davin and Company and left in 1966 to form his own company.In 1972 he began the challenging development of the now famous Sawgrass Country Club.
...
Save your sand dollars 02/02/02 - [Cached Version]
Published on: 2/2/2002 Last Visited: 2/2/2002
Fast Fact: James Stockton Jr., the initial builder and developer of Sawgrass, picked the name after awaking from a sleepless night filled with tossing and turning.The stress of picking a name, he later said, was "growing wild - like that sawgrass on the property."
Fast Fact II: Ponce de Leon, the famous Spanish explorer who sought the Fountain of Youth, originally landed on what would later be known as Ponte Vedra Beach on April 2, 1513.
Sources: U.S. Census, City of Atlantic Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach Chamber of Commerce, Marsh Landing Realty Inc., Arvida Realty Services, Florida Realty USA Inc., Duval County property appraiser.
http://www.zoominfo.com/people/Stockton_James_153796188.aspx
In 1961, SWD took over management of ARVIDA, started by Arther Vining Davis, developer of Boca Raton and other south Florida communities, who also has another Jax connection with his $200 million +/- foundation (gave $10.6 million in grants in 2008) being based here in Jacksonville:SWD - Arvida article:http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=888&dat=19611202&id=gNUNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=PHkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4578,782993
2008 Foundation Annual Report: http://www.avdf.org/2008%20AVD%20Anual%20Report.pdf
QuoteFrom Arthur Vining Davis foundation website at http://www.avdf.org/founder.htm :
Any roster of the most innovative and successful contributors to American industrial growth and Florida land development during the first half of the twentieth century would necessarily include Arthur Vining Davis. The son of a Congregational minister, Mr. Davis moved with determination into the business world immediately after graduating at the top of his class from Amherst College in 1888.
Mr. Davis joined the Pittsburgh Reduction Company soon after completing college. Starting as a shop helper and a bookkeeper, he quickly rose through the ranks, becoming president and de facto chief executive officer of the company in 1910.
By that time the company had expanded and had been renamed the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa). During Mr. Davis' presidency, Alcoa became one of the country's most successful corporations. Under his leadership as president and later as Chairman of the Board for nineteen years, the company grew in size, profitability and influence.
Mr. Davis' activities were centered in Pittsburgh and New York until 1949 when, at the age of 82, he moved his residence to Florida. Instead of "retiring," he embarked on a new career. While leading Alcoa and serving as director of numerous major corporations, he had become interested in Florida and the Bahamas. During his residence in Florida, he invested in land and other enterprises such as banks, airlines, shipping companies and hotels. When Mr. Davis died in 1962 at age 95, he was one of the best known and respected businessmen in the Southeastern United States.
About the Foundations: Purpose and Organization
The purpose of the Foundations is to provide financial assistance, within the limits of their budgets and the discretion of their Trustees, to certain educational, cultural, scientific and religious institutions. Such aid is, by charter, granted to and expended by institutions and organizations which are tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the IRS Code, are not private foundations within the meaning of Section 509(a) of the 1969 Tax Reform Act, and are located within the United States and its possessions.
The Board of Trustees’ current practice is to award grants primarily in the areas of private higher education, secondary education, graduate theological education, health care and public television.
Today, two individual foundations comprise the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, and are designated respectively as Foundations No. 2 and No. 3. Created by Mr. Davis' will to receive the major share of his estate, they began operations in 1965, awarding their first grants in 1967. Organized in 1952 during the lifetime of Mr. Arthur Vining Davis, Foundation No. 1 existed for 48 years before being merged with Foundation No. 2 in 2001.
The Mellon Bank N.A. serves as corporate Trustee for Foundation No. 2. The SunTrust Banks, Inc. serve Foundation No. 3 in a similar fiduciary capacity. The Foundations' assets are invested in a broadly diversified portfolio consisting primarily of common stocks and bonds. No single company’s securities account for more than five percent of the combined total.
Operation
The two Foundations' assets are invested by the corporate Trustees and administered as separate legal entities. All funds are handled separately by the designated banks and subject to the various individual reporting requirements of federal and state laws.
For grantmaking purposes, however, the two Foundations function as a single philanthropic institution. The same individual Trustees serve without remuneration on both Foundations' Boards. The Board meets three times a year to consider grants, review investments, and assess programs and policies. The Foundations also share the cost of an administrative office located in Jacksonville, Florida. The plural form of the name, "The Arthur Vining Davis Foundations," is the preferred designation. Grant applicants should address proposals to the common office in Jacksonville. By following this procedure, earliest possible consideration of proposals is ensured.
Quote from: BridgeTroll on July 26, 2009, 12:24:48 PM
I happen to agree with the decision to change Mineral City to Ponte Vedra Beach... :D
Do you suppose any of em know they are living over a former mine?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponte_Vedra_Beach,_Florida
QuoteIn 1916 the community was known as Mineral City, and titanium (ilmenite) extraction was significant, as well as that of zircon and rutile.[2] These minerals were recovered from beach sands by a private commercial firm called National Lead Company, directed by Henry Holland Buckman and George A. Pritchard. During the First World War titanium was a component of poison gas, and therefore a strategic mineral. The golf courses created for recreational purposes by their company became the root of the present golf industry.
'Mineral City Inn & Club' lacks a certain cachet...
At some point, Humphrey's mining properties in Ponte Vedra transitioned Ponte Vedra to National Lead Company before SWD acquired the land. In 1942, SWD's partial forerunner to-be in 1946, Telfair Stockton, acquired the properties:QuoteSeveral sources claim Ponce de Leon landed in the vicinity of what is now Ponte Vedra Beach while searching for the legendary Fountain of Youth. It is reported that on April 2, 1513, at latitude 30 degrees 8 minutes north a landing party went ashore. However, the location did not provide a suitable harbor for his ships, so legend states he sailed further down the coast and landed at the present site of St. Augustine.
After the establishment of St. Augustine by the Spaniards to the south in 1565 and the founding of Fort Caroline by the French to the north, French and Spanish soldiers traveled the sands of Ponte Vedra Beach in bloody forays vying for a foothold in northeast Florida.
The area received a certain prominence in World War 1 when many valuable minerals were discovered in the local sands. The most valuable for the war effort were rutile an ilmenite, from which titanium is made, and ziroconium, the basis for zircon. The National Lead Company bought out the original discoverers, and the area was named Mineral City. Mineral City was a rugged outpost plagued by rattlesnakes, alligators and mosquitoes. Mining operations ceased shortly after the war ended.
In 1922 the National lead Company built the first nine hole golf course for the use of its workers. In 1942 Telfair Stockton Company bought all the National Lead Company holdings and began the development of the present resort community.
World War II brought a sinister moment in Ponte Vedra's history. On the night of June 16th, in a daring exploit four, German soldiers from a German submarine rowed ashore in a rubber boat carrying explosives and United States money. Five days prior to this four other German saboteurs had landed on Long Island in New York. The intentions of the eight men were to blow up defense plants and destroy important transportation arteries. Before any damage was done the eight men were captured by federal authorities. All were tried and six were electrocuted. The other two had collaborated with the United States government and received prison terms. After the war President Truman commuted their sentences, and two prisoners were deported to Germany. A St. Johns County historical Marker is on the site of the Ponte Vedra Beach landing.
http://74.125.47.132/search?q=cache:8GvslbP0GHsJ:www.jaxbeach.com/ponte_vedra_beach.htm+national+lead+company+stockton&cd=6&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
Here is a history of National Lead including their interest in titanium:QuoteThe National Lead Company, now known as NL Industries, began business in Philadelphia in 1772. Several lead manufacturers banded together and incorporated as the National Lead Company in 1891. The company has been well known for its white-lead paints, sold since 1907 under the Dutch Boy label. Over the twentieth century, the company has produced many other products, including titanium dioxide paint, atomic bomb elements, and ball-bearing slides.
During the 1920s National Lead manufactured solder, pipes, and bearing metals. Its lead was an important ingredient in the technological development of telephone wiring and automobile parts, for example. During that era, National Lead engaged in some mining as well as in purchasing stocks of lead internationally. In the early 1920s National Lead began experimenting with titanium dioxide, a bright white pigment, as a new base for paint. By the middle of the decade National Lead was the largest lead company in the United States. In 1929 the company’s president claimed that 100,000 tons of lead were under continuous manufacture at National Lead’s plants. Net income was $4.9 million in 1927 and $5.2 million in 1935.
National Lead began expanding its business in titanium dioxide products during the 1930s and 1940s. The company mined titanium ores for production of titanium alloys, metals, and pigments. The company prospered after the Second World War. Net income was $5.2 million in 1943; it increased to $47.9 million in 1955.
National Lead also worked on atomic bombs on behalf of the U.S. government during the 1940s and 1950s. Along with other private companies like Dow and Westinghouse, National Lead contributed to safety systems as well as to weapons. For example, a National Lead plant in Fernald, Ohio, produced high-purity uranium and researched nuclear fuel reprocessing. During the 1970s many of its weapons plants were found to be contaminated. In the late 1980s the government and a subsidiary of NL agreed to a multi-billion dollar cleanup plan.
National Lead had mostly ceased mining by the 1950s and instead bought its ore and scrap metal stocks from suppliers. It acquired a large portion of its ores from mines in the Adirondacks, Quebec, Norway, Australia, and Cuba. Paint and pigments comprised 35 percent of the business in the early 1950s. The company also sold products for the manufacture of castor oil, rayon, airplanes, and oil drills. National Lead acquired Doehler-Jarvis in 1953 and began devoting 20 percent of its business to die-cast metal manufacture.
National Lead continued its diversification and expansion into lead- and titanium-related businesses during the 1960s. Its main products, though, remained Dutch Boy paint, metals and bearings, titanium products and pigments, die castings, and oil well products. Net income in 1965 was $61 million. In 1969 net income was $51 million. The company issued $100 million in bonds in 1971 to facilitate the construction of many chemical plants, among them a Utah magnesium plant, multiple chloride-process plants, and an oil well chemical plant in Texas. Net income for 1974 reached $78 million. That marked the sixty-ninth consecutive year in which the company paid dividends.
National Lead Company changed its name to NL Industries in 1971. The company’s base remains in Houston, Texas. NL Industries has been hit with many lawsuits over its lead paints and products since the late 1980s.
Mineral City, 1928:(http://historicaltextarchive.com/beaches/28pv.JPG)
QuotePrivate enterprise played a role in bringing the Beaches out of the Depression; the fancy resort and housing development called Ponte Vedra Beach was developed from Mineral City in St. Johns County. The building of Ponte Vedra would spur growth in Jacksonville Beach because money was being spent within a small economy and because part of the development would be houses in south Jacksonville Beach. In October, 1928, men meeting in the office of National Lead, Inc. decided to hire Telfair Stockton Company of Jacksonville to create a grand design for its seventeen miles o property in Mineral City. The mining was no longer viable but the growth of the Beaches as a resort gave National Lead an alternative use for the property.
From the first, they did not want the development to have the honky-tonk atmosphere of the Boardwalk area of Jacksonville Beach and they wanted it to be a higher class resort than Atlantic Beach. In short, they wanted to create an upper-middle class and upper class resort and development, one that would be an exclusive private club. So they chose Joe Davin as the land engineer and Jim Stockton as the designer, planner, and manager of the resort. Stockton was a graduate of Princeton in 1916 so he recruited upper-class clients in 1937 by using his Princeton alumni connections.
The property had a club house and nine-hole golf course; National Lead has built them for its managerial employees, their guests, and visiting executives. For half of the year it was much more pleasant than New York or other eastern cities. The log cabin built in 1927 was temporarily used by guests until The Inn opened in 1937. The Stockton company removed the shacks and mining equipment. It commissioned landscaping to beautify. It pressured the state to build a coastal highway, A1A, to St. Augustine to entice settlement. Equally important, they initially sold lots cheaply to get people there. They built attractive edifices befitting their proposed clientele--a Bath Club (which had a dance floor), a swimming pool for those who wanted to avoid the ocean, and then The Inn and guest cottages. The golf course was expanded to an 18-hole course. The 130 acre golf course was built in 1931-32 with 100 mules doing work. Lagoons were dug out of swampland. Talented employees were hired. The key to the good domestic service and maintenance was Collis Quarterman, a "black" man, recruited and supervised a large staff. Over a half million dollars in construction monies were spent, money which surged through the Beaches' economy multiplying as it did so. Mineral City was renamed Ponte Vedra Beach, a Hispanic name chosen to reflect the "European" character of the resort.
Stockton wrote to his fellow Princeton University alumni to encourage them to visit and, perhaps, buy property and membership in the Ponte Vedra Inn & Country Club. It worked. The resort saw the likes of the famous radio commentator Edward R. Murrow and the film star Dana Andrews as guests in addition to the ordinary well-to-do and wealthy. National Lead sold its interests in 1942. Ponte Vedra was self-sustaining. The Ponte Vedra Inn & Club was successful enough that Tommy Sabin bought 600 feet of oceanfront further south and built the 32-room Innlet in 1940. In 1944, the Ponte Vedra Inn & Club bought it. In 1947, thirty apartments were added.16
Below Picture: This photograph shows southern Jacksonville Beach and Ponte Vedra Beach (where the lakes or lagoons are) in 1942. The island in the lagoon (lower right) is the Ninth Hole of the golf course. The left side of the photograph shows marsh land and part of Pablo Creek/San Pablo River.
(http://historicaltextarchive.com/beaches/42stjohns2.JPG)
From: http://historicaltextarchive.com/books.php?op=viewbook&bookid=70&cid=4
Sometimes you have to wonder why histories always focus on politicians and their actions when our everyday lives and events are more influenced by people and companies like the ones in this thread.
(http://fpc.dos.state.fl.us/rfisher/RF01261.jpg)
QuoteAnyone know where the C. T. Boyd expressway is today? Was this an original name for the Arlington Expressway?:
Unable to find where this road is, but apparently C. T. Boyd may be Charles T. Boyd, Jr. (was there a senior in Jax?), founder of today's Boyd & Jenerette, et. al. law firm. Strange to have a road named for you just disappear, especially an "expressway".QuoteBoyd & Jenerette and Cole, Stone, Stoudemire & Morgan proudly announce the merger of their law firms effective 1/1/2009. In transition, the firm shall be know as Boyd & Jenerette / Cole, Stone, Stoudemire & Morgan and shall thereafter continue as Boyd & Jenerette.
Boyd & Jenerette, P.A. traces its origins to 1952, when Charles T. Boyd, Jr. and Noah H. Jenerette, Jr. formed what would soon grow into a well respected trial and litigation practice with deep roots in the communities of Jacksonville, Florida.
Since then the Firm has been in continuous operation in downtown Jacksonville with offices in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and Savannah, Georgia and enjoys a long history of advocacy in the state and federal courts throughout Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and in other jurisdictions. The Firm’s attorneys and professional staff enjoy a reputation for excellence in client service.
Great finds StJr.!! This has certainly been one interesting thread.
On the mines...
Iluka Resources is an active titanium mining company that uses the methods discussed earlier in the thread. They have a active mines southwest of Green Cove Springs.
Quote from: Jason on July 27, 2009, 01:08:26 PM
Great finds StJr.!! This has certainly been one interesting thread.
On the mines...
Iluka Resources is an active titanium mining company that uses the methods discussed earlier in the thread. They have a active mines southwest of Green Cove Springs.
In my past work many moons ago, I actually visited the DuPont mine near Green Cove Springs. As I recall, it was a joint venture then with American Cyanamid or Union Carbide.
Jacksonville's history as a lumber and "naval stores" port would be a fascinating one too. The turpentine gathering and refining industry was a big part of Jacksonville's development. You can still find the chevron shaped cuts and clay pots on some of the older stands of pine trees around here.
Quote from: stephendare on July 27, 2009, 01:41:51 PM
The Dupont Home has become Epping Forest Yacht Club. In talks with some of the old guys, they said that the Dupont's used to keep machine gun armed guards at the end of their docks for fear of another Lindbergh baby kidnapping incident.
I didnt realize that the Duponts were also involved in the local mining. Its weird to think of mining as such a huge part of the economy isnt it? In typical florida style all the evidence of the destroyed landscape has been neatly covered with upscale development.
Different Dupont's, Stephen. The mining was/is done by the chemical corporation. Alfred I. DuPont and Ed Ball, his brother-in-law, were in banking, railroads, land and timber. I think there was some sort of estrangement between Alfred I and the rest of the DuPont family.
A.I. DuPont and Jessie Ball didn't have any children either, but there used to be some sort of mounts in the towers at the end of the Epping Forest docks that were rumored to be machine gun mounts; at least that's what we told each other as kids in the area. You could see them sticking up in the middle of the end dock houses.
Quote....but there used to be some sort of mounts in the towers at the end of the Epping Forest docks that were rumored to be machine gun mounts; at least that's what we told each other as kids in the area. You could see them sticking up in the middle of the end dock houses.
Quote from: stephendare on July 27, 2009, 02:16:39 PM
Stjr. Maybe you know the answer to this. Is there any connection between our Ed Ball and the Ball Family of the Ball Jar dynasty? The family patriarch of the Ball Jar family was also named Ed Ball.
There is still an artillery piece at Epping Forest mounted near the bulkhead along the river. Based on my understandings from various articles over the years, Alfred I. DuPont was a "black sheep" in THE DuPont family and moved here from home base in Wilmington, Delaware, to set out on his own. Nevertheless, he had a good chunk of the family fortune including at least a million shares each of DuPont and General Motors (which was founded with backing of the DuPonts).
Ed Ball, his brother-in-law, took over his estate when Alfred died in the early 40's or so. Ball acquired the St. Joe holdings in the panhandle during the Depression and then took over FEC railroad and Florida National Banks which became the largest bank in Florida. So powerful did he become, that Congress passed a law limiting people like him from both controlling banks while also owning other businesses. He even fenced across a navigable waterway in the panhandle which was against the law but went unchallenged until after his death. Ball also paid out only peanuts from the income of the trust to its charitable beneficiaries of Nemours Childrens Clinic in Jax and hospitals in Wilmington. The states of Delaware and Florida both sued for bigger payouts but never prevailed until Ball died. Ed Ball is a Florida legend and stories are endless about him. You can see more on him at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Ball_(businessman)
Wikipedia makes no connection to the Ball jar family nor have I ever seen such a mention anywhere else over the years, Stephen. There is an authorized biography co-written by Raymond Mason, founder of The Charter Company, and a good friend of Ball, called "Confusion to the Enemy" that, if you located a copy, might shed some more light on his ancestors. According to the Wikipedia article, there is also an unauthorized biography by a very similar name. Of course, Ed Ball sold Mason the DuPont home, Epping Forest, before Mason finally sold it to Gate. At one time, St. Joe, over 80% controlled by the DuPont Trust, owned part of Mason's Charter Company and Charter owned a piece of St. Joe.
Interesting stuff! Thanks so much
From Old Arlington, Inc. web site at: http://oldarlington.org/HumphreysGoldMine.phpQuoteHumphreys Gold Mine (a.k.a. Humphries Gold Mine)
Humphreys Gold Mine was located north of Regency Shopping Center, where the Southside Boulevard connector to State Highway 9A travels through. The dredging operation was not geared toward mining gold as the name suggests; it was merely a reference to the company name (Humphreys Gold Corporation, incorporated August 29, 1932 by A.E. Humphrey, I.B. Humphrey, and Judson S. Hubbard).
Starting in 1940, the area near Regency was mined for rutile, titanium, ilminite, and zirconium for the war effort; nearly a dozen precious metals including any gold particles were extracted when found in the area. The precious metals were mined for DuPont Corporation until the contract ended in 1957. The dredging operation excavated the top 50 feet of soil, performing a sifting and washing operation that would reveal and allow reclaiming of any precious metals. After 50 feet of earth was removed, the only thing remaining was the sand that had built up over millions of years.
In addition to the Regency area, the company had another dredging operation near Southside Boulevard in and around the Deer Park area. Per Mindat.org, the official location of the company in that area was on the west side of Southside Boulevard, 30o18'6" North, 81o33'48" West (Mindat.org Data Map). A web search shows that Humphreys Gold Corporation also operated in Starke, Florida for a while as a subcontractor to DuPont. DuPont continues the operations at Starke today. The web search does not show very many other locations but the Humphreys Gold Corporation did have mining operations in other parts of the country as well, and in some gold was the primary metal being dredged for (such as in Montana).
After World War II, the Regency mining area operations continued and as a result it provided jobs for returning soldiers and others that were laid off as a result of the war ending. A large number of the people that worked there were from the Arlington area (see payslip at bottom).
The company closed local mining operations around 1957. The Denver based Humphreys Engineering Company was in operation up until at least 1966 and possibly longer. There is a reference that shows while in the area Humphreys Gold Corporation was the registree of an old Douglas A-26 Invader aircraft (Florida 1956).
As a result of the mining operations, large sand dunes and lakes were created in the Regency area. During the late 50s and 60s, the area was used for several types of recreation, all uncontrolled as many things were in those days. The lakes were used for swimming and fishing, and the dunes provided a backdrop for target practice. Those with dune buggies often rode around the sand dunes, and if you didn't know what areas were being used for what, you could come over the top of a dune right in line with someone target practicing; such fun everyone had in those days.
Many years after the dredging operations were closed, the land was used as an experimental area to see if pine sapling could be grown, if sufficient soil was added. Following the success of that experiment, eventually the area was purchased at a premium ($1/acre) and turned into commercial property, such as Regency Shopping Center.
The Humphreys Gold Mine is also mentioned on these OldArlington.org pages:
Brief History
History Column - 2007-08 - Lone Star Stables
History Column - 2007-04 - Arlington in the Fast Lane
History Column - 2008-04 - Oakwood Villa
History Column - 2006-02 - African History Month in Arlington
Arlington Hangouts
(http://oldarlington.org/images/ScannedGraphics/CP/ArlingtonHumpreysPayslip-1955-640x1098.png)
Arlington Expressway exit:
Anyone know where the C. T. Boyd expressway is today? Was this an original name for the Arlington Expressway?:
The top picture is Arlington Expressway & Chaseville Rd. (now University Blvd. N) Obviously the cloverleafs were added later.
The picture underneath is the Arlington Expressway, eastbound, at Southside Blvd.
Way cool. I knew the dunes had been mines, but seeing so much of the history is great.
Rutile Mine equipment and machinery in 1948.
(http://www.floridamemory.com/fpc/spottswood/sp00243.jpg)
State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, http://floridamemory.com/items/show/51313
Rutile Mine equipment and machinery in 1937.
(http://www.floridamemory.com/fpc/spottswood/sp00984.jpg)
State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, http://floridamemory.com/items/show/51984
QuoteThe company closed local mining operations around 1957. The Denver based Humphreys Engineering Company was in operation up until at least 1966 and possibly longer. There is a reference that shows while in the area Humphreys Gold Corporation was the registree of an old Douglas A-26 Invader aircraft (Florida 1956).
I met Mr. Humphreys while workinig at Craig Airfield pumping gas to get money for flying lessons. Those were the days before executive jets. His pilots were his auditors. They would fly that A-26 non-stop from Denver to Jacksonville and back. Mr. Humphreys, the only passenger, had a big reclining chair set up in the middle of what had been the bomb-bay. The interior had been insulated and was quite luxurious, but the plane was not pressurized so everyone had to wear oxygen masks on the whole flight.
Mr. Humphreys, who was in his seventies at the time, said that he always felt better and smarter after his flights because of the oxygen he had breathed for so many hours.
I remember pumping 1400 gallons of high octane aviation fuel into that A-26 and giving the pilots green stamps for that amount. Even then high octane av-gas was over a $1 per gallon.
Great job folks on all the research and the interesting comments everyone provided. I grew up in Arlington when our family moved to the Fort Caroline area in 1960. In 1963 when I was in the 4th grade at Lake Lucina Elementary our class took a field trip to Humphries Mining Company. It was a small operation, by then, and the facilities were off of Mill Creek Rd about where the road turns in behind Regency Square. I remember these tall bleacher like stands that washed the sand in various compartments. I asked the foreman for some mineral samples and I did a small research paper on the various minerals. I still have the three bottles of minerals labeled, ilmenite, zirconium, and rutile.
I believe Cleve Powell, of the Old Arlington Historical Society, dad worked there. I thought perhaps I would donate the bottles of mineral samples if they ever get a museum, or if someone else knows of a place that could use them.
The sand dune area was a place we frequented often. We accessed the area at the end Of Lone Star Rd at Mill Creek. About 1965 there was a short fad of sand surfing in the large pit area. I was in 6th grade, Ft Caroline Elementary, and at that time there were many students in my class from the University Park area as well.
We all made miniature surfboards (about the size of a skate board) from 1X6 pine boards -- sanding the front end up to get the proper curve. We then rubbed the bottom of the board with a block of Gulf Wax to make it slick. Various parents carpooled us there and we spent hours sliding down the hills. Shortly thereafter the dunes were taken over by the VW Dune Buggy crowd. They had races and climbing contests to see who could crest the hill the fastest.
Sometimes in the winter when it wasn't crowded some of the dads would bring old Mausers, Springfields, and other old WWII rifles to target practice. Sometime shortly after Regency Square was built a young girl was murdered and they found her body in the dunes. After that we stopped going.
However, in 1969 and 1970 while at Terry Parker High School several of my buddies had 4 wheel drive trucks and Broncos
and we would take our dates out there at night and hang around the lakes and listen to music. I have a lot of memories of the place but it looks vastly different now with all the development through the years.