Before the Florida real estate bubble burst, before devastating hurricanes passed over and around Fort Lauderdale, its first mayor had grand plans. William Marshall, former mayor and prominent resident promoted what was to be the tallest building in town along with a bit of namesake promotion as well…
The Wil-Mar Hotel
But then the bubble burst and construction ceased later in 1926. His project remained an unfinished skeleton until 1934 when the city began foreclosure due to unpaid property taxes all leading ultimately to its purchase by R. H. Gore Sr. of newspaper fame. The rest is indeed history as The Governors’ Club Hotel began its long run in town. A few early postcards show the unfinished Wil-Mar dream but publication really took off once the hotel was opened to the public.
Shown above 1)The Wil-Mar 2)Pioneer Department Store 3)The Sweet Building 4)The Broward Hotel
The Governors’ Club Hotel
As shown below, the hotel shows up on many of the aerial image postcards popular back in the day.
All the postcards shown are from my personal collection. Much of the fun of postcard collecting is discovering the history behind the cards. Credit goes to the following newspaper editions for proffering their bit of history:
- The Miami Herald 21 February 1926
- Fort Lauderdale News 04 June 1929
- Fort Lauderdale News 01 April 1959
- Fort Lauderdale News 17 March 1966
Fort Lauderdale Postcards 
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